9 year old boy has just started having migraines- help!

[RobinC21]

Hello, I have been suffering from increasingly frequent migraines for the last 3 years and have tired various treatments. I am now on candesartan which seems to help with the pain but not with the frequency. I'm now getting one every 2 days. Anyway, I'm sort of coping, but the reason I'm posting is that my son has just started having migraines too. They come on very suddenly, give him both a headache and bad tummy ache and make him feel unwell, nauseous, withdrawn and unhappy for up to 3 days. At the moment I am giving him 1 tablet of ibuprofen round the clock as soon as it starts and then occasional paracetamol in between. He gets very little relief from this though. For the last three weeks he has had an attack every week and it is leading to quite a lot of missed school. ( I tend to let him have 1 day off and then send him back even if he is still feeling a bit off). Has anyone had any experience of migraine in this age group? Any suggestions re acute treatment or any preventatives that might work? We have a paediatrician appt in the pipeline but want to try something else soon.

Also, does anyone have experience managing this with school and how best to approach it?

It's horrible when you see your child suffering with something that you've struggled with for ages and you understand the implications (plus you know they've inherited it from you!) ☹️

[chelsea00]

hi, i started with migraines when i was 9 years old and back then my parents didn't know how to treat them - even though my father had them. Junior aspirin was about the only painkiller for children and NOT recommended for under 12 s now. So consequently i suffered many full blown migraines. In my late teens i realised that i had to treat myself as soon as it began, but even then it really didn't make much difference to the outcome. I now always take medication as soon as i feel a headache coming on as i treat any headache as a potential migraine . I also place a heated wheat bag on my head and this seems to help me (plus painkillers) a lot, and it is quite comforting. I passed this on to my son- who also is a migraine sufferer and he too finds this helps him. Hopefully your son may get some relief too. best wishes

[Tabby-Cat in reply to chelsea00]

Interesting that the heated wheat bag works for you, because I get some relief by putting an ice pack on my head. It's worth people experimenting to see what works for them.

[chelsea00 in reply to Tabby-Cat]

yes it is, as getting my head cold swimming, cold air conditioning and getting chilled in general are all triggers for me..