Smart Nurse replied: "Long but worth the reading. The information below is often overlooked or missed by both patients and physicians. This is the best headache and Migraine info. Being a nurse with over 25 years experience, I have seen a lot of patients with various illnesses and disorders. Many headaches are caused from common everyday chemicals and fragranced products as well as VOC's in homes, schools and workplace. This is a growing problem for many people and most are not even aware that it exists as more and more chemicals are being introduced and used on a daily basis. Many people believe that because a product smells good or cleans well and it is on a store shelf that it is tested, approved and safe for use. Think again ! We are now seeing more and more children and adults with skin disorders, nausea, dizziness, nausea, Chronic Headaches, Sinusitis, Migraines, Asthma, Allergies, Hives, Chronic Hives, Eczema, sinus / respiratory illnesses and Hormone related disorders. I can not emphasize how important it is to educate yourself about the harm you may be doing to your health by using chemicals and fragranced products. If you or a loved one has symptoms of or suffers from chronic headaches, reproductive problems, Migraines, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Lupus or Fibromyalgia, you need to read further and learn about the signs and symptoms of MCS - Multiple Chemical Sensitivity. Most doctors will not inform you about this because patients as a whole like to walk out of a doctors office with a prescription for some magical medicine and they do not want to be told that their expensive new perfume or newly installed carpet may be the culprit. So, the doctor will give you medications and many of these meds either do not work or cause other health problems. Chemicals and fragranced products are often the root of many disorders and illnesses when it comes to your health. Many of the below mentioned items are common triggers to sinus, asthma, itching, headaches, Migraines and allergy problems amongst other health issues. Get rid of them and your immune and respiratory system will thank you and you will breathe easier. And, it is not only personal body or cleaning products causing havoc on your health….many people become ill after wearing brand new clothing, dry-cleaned clothes, installing new carpet, painting, buying a new mattress or after home renovations because of the Flame Retardants, Antimony, Benzenes, Formaldehydes, etc. used in these products. So the answer is NO, you are not imagining that 2 weeks after your home, office or classroom got renovated you started to become ill, get dizzy or have headaches. This is happening more and more these days and adults as well as children are becoming sicker and sicker. Unfortunately, too many doctors compound the problem by prescribing chemical medications to try to alleviate the symptoms of an already chemical overloaded body and they rarely tell the patient to eliminate the chemical offenders. How many times have I seen people in the grocery store with Bounce, Glade Plug-Ins and Febreeze in their shopping cart along with a bottle of Benadryl , Migraine Excedrin and a box of Allergy Tablets ? Why don't they make the connection? Keep in mind that your skin is the largest organ of your body and what you put on your skin gets absorbed into your body. Then ... well... then it has to be filtered by your organs which are already working real hard. BIG NO-NO's ---- I would SERIOUSLY recommend removing all of the below from your living / working area. No Bounce or dryer sheets - these are VERY toxic No Febreeze - your pets will even thank you for this No Glade Plug-ins - VERY toxic No Scented candles No Scented Dish Detergents No Fragranced Products on Body, Hair or Clothing No Smoke No Newspapers and Magazines - The ink is a huge irritant. No Dander No Sprays No Sharpies (marker pens) New Cartpeting, mattresses, paint, contain toxins that can trigger severe respiratory disorders as well as headaches and Asthma flare-ups. And remember, it is NOT the smell it is the Chemicals that make up the smell. So, even if something is "Fragrance Free" these products often mask the smell with another chemical ! There are plenty of safe healthy products out there that work well and do not have added chemical fragrances. More and more workplaces & schools are implementing Fragrance Free policies and creating "Fragrance Free Zones"… why do you think this is? Make the connection, your lungs , immune system and your general health will thank you."

Lily L replied: "There is generic Imitrex now, so it's probably not that expensive to go back to Imitrex. Also, imitrex comes in a whole bunch of doses. If you always take 2, you should ask for a higher dose. I'm not sure if it's the same thing, but I always get nausea from migraine meds as well. It doesn't sound as if mine is as severe as yours, but what always helps me is Dramamine!"

Jessica B replied: "Topamax has worked really well for me and has a really good track record for reducing migraines in lots of people I've talked to and people in my family. You have to take it every day though, as a preventative medication and you still may occasionally get a migraine now and then, but where as I used to get 2 or 3 a month, after starting topamax I only got one maybe every other month or so, so it was a massive help. The side effects are different for everyone, but are usually not bad at all. One side effect that many people experience is weight loss, not because it alters your metabolism or anything, but it makes some things taste different to you. For instance, my sister can't drink sodas anymore because they just taste horrible to her. 2 sisters and my dad lost about 20 lbs since starting topamax, but unfortunately I didn't get any kind of side effect like that... O well. Since I write for a living, one effect I was warned about was that you can experience a mild drop in cognitive abilities (lots of 'tip-of-the-tongue' loss for words and such) and I definitely felt that so my dosage was dropped down a little and everything came back to me. Otherwise topamax is definitely worth trying. The pros absolutely outweigh the cons. It significantly reduced my migraine numbers and I feel functional again. I don't think there is a cheaper version of it available or anything quite like it out there, but if this ends up being the only medicine you need for migraines (even if it's a $35 or $50 copay) it's worth it to feel normal and function again and not have to pay 6+ times a month for imitrex (which for me eventually stopped working at all). Combine that with a generic pain medication for the few times when a migraine may break through, and you should be fine."