Has anyone tried HRT to help with migraines?

[Headache123]

I have never been on HRT and went through the menopause seven years ago but have recently heard about how lack of oestrogen can add to migraines which I’ve suffered from for many years. Have you had any experience of HRT helping migraines ? Thanks!

[Cat00]

I haven't, I'm probably perimenopausal as I'm 47, but the general consensus is that HRT neither improves or aggravates migraine as such.That's not to say for some people it doesn't transform they're migraine frequency etc it just doesn't do it reliably or across the board.

I've had chronic migraine since childhood. When I was younger they used to say menopause won't make any difference. However now that I'm older and still having migraine over 50% of the time my neurologist is saying menopause might be good for me.

I will most likely have to go on HRT as I am osteopenic but my neurologist says that is unlikely to make any difference and that benefits of menopause for me may not be effected by HRT.

So it seems to be a complex system. It might be worth a try because you don't know if you are one of the people it might help and as far as I know there are other benefits of HRT does seem to be a bit 50/50.

[PurpleTranmere]

Hi I have tried HRT twice I am 49 and perimenopausal. It made my chronic migraines even worse I ended up with a continuous migraine both times and had to stop. I think it is common that if your migraines are chronic hrt makes them worse.

[Lovecake]

Hi, I am on HRT patches. I had a total hysterectomy 14 years ago and needed hormone replacement. The tablets gave me a migraine 24/7 but the patches are ok.

Recently though, I have some issues down below and my migraines have become more frequent (the 2 may not be linked). My GP said low estrogen can cause headaches. Prescribed some estrogen topical cream twice a week. After 3 doses I had 6 days of bad heads with needing to take Imigran 4 times to function! Obviously stopped the cream and head calming (was only last week it was terrible).

So, I suppose the short answer is………ask to try the patches if you haven’t tried them, and go for a low dose to start with. Although if you have your ovaries, I’m pretty certain you will need estrogen and progesterone.