I take approx 24 triptans a month - 50mg. Research tells not to take many of these- how many do you guys get through?

[MigraineVictim]

I'm on 80mg propanolol daily slow release capsule. This has lessened the hospital having to fix me but not lessened the chronic amount. So what is one meant to do when your not supposed to take so many triptans - the docs have no clue about it and frankly don't care. I take 24 a month. #migraine #triptan #sumatriptan #propanolol

[Juliapester3]

Its a shame your Drs are not more helpful, your maximum Triptan usage should be 8 tablets per month, if you take more they cause rebound headaches which may be why you,re suffering so badly. You will need to see a neurologist or speak to a headache specialist who can help you with this. The best strategy is to keep all painkillers or triptans to an absolute minimum (as these make the headaches worse, you should also google medication overuse headache so you can have a read on it) then see how many migraines you are left with and try to find a preventative that works. Hope that helps a little.

[Gambit62]

Have you tried not taking a whole tablet - I take Rizatriptan and usually a 1/4 wafer is enough to do the trick.

My migraines have reduced in frequency over the last few years but at one point I was getting through a pack of 6 a month so that would have been about 24 dosages.

Do you see a different GP each time or do you see the same one - it is definitely worth going back and pointing out exactly how many you are taking and asking for a referral to a specialist. You definitely should not be taking 24 triptans a month.

[MigraineVictim]

Yes I do cut the triptans in half sometimes - I judge by the intensity and how fast/slow the pain is accelerating. On the rare monthly occasion I take two at a time. My doctor who was wonderful has left- I had her for a few months and in that time she sent me for head scan and refereed me to a neurologist (that I have yet to book into) however I was not informed I've been taking too many triptans- they have helped my migranes were ridiculous before now they are manageable within reason but still as frequent.

[Gambit62 in reply to MigraineVictim]

I saw a neurologist for a while - one of the things I learnt from him was that what I was experiencing wasn't a lot of migraines but actually the recurrence of the same migraine. You might find that switching to a different triptan might help as sometimes they can act for different lengths of time.

[zigzag]

How on earth do you get so many from your gp. I would love to get so many. But they would call me in for a review etc if I asked for so many.

[woodlog]

You are suffering from triptan overuse. You may have migraine too but the drugs are your real problem. The only thing to do is cut them out. It's the most difficult habit to break but there's no alternative.