Migraines, Severe Anxiety and panic attacks. Looking for positive recovery stories

[Jezza53]

Gday guys, im a 30 year old male, life long sufferer of migraines and strong anxiety, which have become more and more debilitating the older i get. i had a very active life, and although i wasn't really well, i was able to actually go out and live my life. That was until my panic attacks caused my to lose my job, lose my ability to live on my own, to be away from home etc. I've been seeing therapists, psychologists and psychiatrists for the past year, and have tried 4 different medications, for the correct amount of time, all have which have either not worked or have made me much, much worse. my problem is i can handle anxiety, but when it turns to panic and im away from home, no amount of CBT or deep breathing or positive thinking can help, and i have to either go do things with people or suffer extreme torment until im able to get home and wait out the attack. im still trying new doctors and medications and therapy avenues, but i live in a rural area and cant physically travel to where the good help is without completely losing my mind due to panic.

I do my best to stay positive, but to do so while suffering migraines, constant anxiety and sporadic debilitating panic attacks that have quite literally ruined my life, its very, very hard.

im looking for people who have suffered through similar comorbid conditions, as the only thing thats worse than going through this, is going through it alone.

for anyone wanting to suggest change of diet, exercise, bloodworks, mri's etc, i have tried no sugar for months, no difference, no caffeine for two weeks, no difference, extensive mri on head neck and back, all clear, bloodworks, all clear, exercise generally makes no difference or makes me feel worse with headaches. i used to train for triathlons and being able to run 6km, ride 30km and swim 1km did nothing to quell the strong anxiety and flighty panic response to emotions.

i have breakthroughs, where im able to work on myself with healthcare professionals, start feeling good, going out on my own driving etc and like, feeling that im getting my life back, but its like when i get used to one form of panic, randomly, for no discernible reason, i will suffer a new form of panic that i dont know how to deal with, that postive habits and thought patterns cant touch. ive had about 7 such relapses in the last year, and now my only option is to cycle through medications at the risk of them hurting me again. cheers for any help, much appreciated.

[therising]

Hi Jezza53

My heart goes out to you as you work so hard to find an answers.

Wondering if you've ever heard of silent migraine, migraine without headache. Sounds like you get the headaches which is extra cruel but when taking the headache out of the scenario, such a migraine can offer a slightly different view of things.

Some years ago I went to a GP as occasional weird sensations through my body were getting weirder. Doctor's advice, 'Panic attacks. We'll put you on medication'. My response 'No medication, just tell me what's going on'. Things got weirder to the point where, one night, I thought I was having a stroke. Called ambulance, went to hospital, everything turned out fine. Clever doctor there suggested 'Possible migraine without headache'. Went to different GP, as weird turns kept happening. Sent for brain MRI. Answer: Silent migraines. I was lucky enough to be having a migraine in the MRI machine at the time. Got put on blood pressure med and it all stopped. No longer on medication by the way.

I wasn't having panic attacks. The migraines were interacting with my nervous system. Looking back, I could tell you which parts of my brain the electrical glitches and changes in blood pressure impacted. For a start, the part that relates to the sympathetic nervous system, the parts responsible for movement and strength in the left side of my body, the part responsible for vision (hence the blurriness that would happen in mild form but with no aura), the part responsible for speech and so on. The change in blood pressure was never intense enough to cause headaches.

Been led to wonder about my mum lately, as she's having turns that brain scans and every heart and vascular test under the sun can't find reason for. She used to get aura migraines and they stopped. Perhaps they've taken on a different form. Research has led me to look at the benefits of magnesium supps and even probiotics. Maybe you've already tried these along with the change of diet you mentioned. Researchers have begun to find strong links between gut imbalance and migraines also gut imbalance and anxiety and depression, based on the kind of chemistry produced in the gut that impacts brain signalling. 'Vagus nerve' makes for interesting research. By the way, certain meds can worsen a gut microbiome imbalance.

Apparently, people who experience migraines have a very sensitive nervous system. Even barometric changes in the weather can be a trigger.

Hope you find answers.

🙂

[Guest9337]

therising said:

Apparently, people who experience migraines have a very sensitive nervous system. Even barometric changes in the weather can be a trigger.

Fascinating. I been wondering where my few migraines come from and some head aches too. Bright Light can do set one off, Loud noises and seemingly random stuff/times.

[Bibbetyboo]

Hi there,
I’m sorry to read you are going through this and i can understand to a degree, I am also a life long sufferer of complex migraine.

I read a book by the late Oliver Sachs called “migraine” to help understand the type of migraine I have, i have had a few sorts and there are a few sorts all may require different interventions.
Oliver Sachs was the worlds leading neurologist on this condition. I understand how hard it is to get help with that condition. drs tried multiple anxiety medications treated me like an experiment and expected it to work however, the medications triggered the complex and made it worse, the attacks on medication were so severe i lost memory on one occasion and on a few others ended up blacking out from thirst i vomited so much i woke up in hospital.
the nurse told me it wasn’t a migraine or a mix of allergic reaction to the mild anxiety meds with complex migraine, she had never seen that before.
anxiety medications are dangerous with a type of migraine so are some antipsychotics and hormonal meds such as the pill.
comsider having your hormones looked at? Thyroid? Estrogen levels? My condition was a i product of a hormonal imbalance issue that has never been resolved.
its also advisable not to live in or rent a home with a gas heater.
i will respond with more when i put my son to bed.

[Jezza53]

Gabs_ said:

Have you spoken to your team about considering TMS? It could be another option. You can do it in-patient and out-patient, but that would still require you traveling. Could you do a pro's and con's list of going in-patient that would assist as a visual item to look at, so when you are more than the 15km+ from home, you could look at that list to see how much the pro's outweigh the cons of being that distance away? That might help temper the anxiety or give you something to focus on when the feeling becomes too overwhelming.

havent heard of TMS before looking it up now, but hey im open to anything, assuming i can find a way to travel without losing my mind haha. As for the medication you mentioned, i've literally just come off it, i was given it in an attempt to help calm me enough to travel. felt almost nothing for the first 3 days then on the 4th it hit and it was horrible. very bad brain fog, like i could still think very articulately and do everyhting i usually do, but it felt like i was in a permanent drunken stupor. also did nothing to help the anxiety and panicked thoughts, felt i was close to passing out at the shops haha.

[Jezza53]

gday david, yea most of what youve got there is bang on, save for the fact that while i trained hard to compete in triathlons, i was never able to compete because of work and migraines.

My cbt methods were deep breathing, hold breath in for 4 second, out for 4 seconds type thing, reassuring myself that what im feeling wont kill me, it just feels like death, reassuring myself that it will pass and ill be fine, its just anxiety, i can handle it, things like that. but they dont work on my own, i have tried desperately to make them work, but to no avail. Take for example in the midst of one relapse, i was feeling good, i was getting out and about without being anxious, driving around etc, so i thought id push my self a bit further, drive 15 kays outa town to get used to it. as i did so i felt my body screaming at me to turn around go home, but i assured myself ill be fine, im not far from i'll be sweet. so i pressed on, and my hands started cramping up on the wheel, I started feeling breathless with pains in the chest, but still i remained calm and began my deep breathing. my anxiety just spiralled from there, and as i was halfway home on the back roads out of town my face started to go numb, my vision started blurring and i was getting dizzy, my head spinning like it does when you lay in bedd after having smashed 10 beers. At this point i felt i was going to pass out, so i pulled up at an intersection and sat still breathed deeply, allowed myself to calm for 60 seconds but to no avail, head still spinning, vison blurry and very distressed, it was all i could do to stick to the speed limit as i drove home. and the closer i got to home, without even consciously thinking it, i just felt better, and better, to the point where i was completely feeling great again as i pulled into the driveway, even though not 3 minutes early i was prepared to pass out on the side of the road.

thats generally how it goes driving by myself, i get good and confident, stoked that my lifes getting better, then i get blindsided and hurt by rogue panic and my progress is set back by a month or more. i dont often drive by myself anymore because i don't know how many more times i can take losing everything ive fought months to work for.

i tend to push hard because it does more to distract me from the things i feel than slowing down and breathing. deep breathing actually gives me panic sometimes

[Jezza53]

therising said:

Hi Jezza53

My heart goes out to you as you work so hard to find an answers.

Wondering if you've ever heard of silent migraine, migraine without headache. Sounds like you get the headaches which is extra cruel but when taking the headache out of the scenario, such a migraine can offer a slightly different view of things.

Gday mate, i've known about silent migraines, but i've never thought that what i feel are panic attacks may be that. Definitely something ill look into. I've never had migraine aura, but my migraines are a whole body debilitating thing. itll start in the neck and head, and if im unlucky, i have pain in my eyes, head, neck and all the way down my back to my ass. the way i taste things changes when a big one is coming on, so i often know if its about to get bad. i used to get a lot triggered by stress, but ive lowered those down a lot with practice, now i average one day of debilitating migraine a week because i wake up with them.

Sorry to hear you've suffered extensively, i don't wish these thing on anyone.

[Jezza53]

Bibbetyboo said:

Hi there,
I’m sorry to read you are going through this and i can understand to a degree, I am also a life long sufferer of complex migraine.

I read a book by the late Oliver Sachs called “migraine” to help understand the type of migraine I have, i have had a few sorts and there are a few sorts all may require different interventions.
Oliver Sachs was the worlds leading neurologist on this condition. I understand how hard it is to get help with that condition. drs tried multiple anxiety medications treated me like an experiment and expected it to work however, the medications triggered the complex and made it worse, the attacks on medication were so severe i lost memory on one occasion and on a few others ended up blacking out from thirst i vomited so much i woke up in hospital.

GDay, yea i have had blood done for thyroid i believe, they did bloods before starting me on medications a year ago. im due to go back and have more bloods done, ill check to see if its on there

[Gabs_]

Oh gosh - that sounds like a terrible experience with those meds!

Re the TMS - I've seen a few threads on here where people have found it really beneficial for treating anxiety. If you have a google as well, you can also find some good articles on it's effectiveness for treating anxiety. Not trying to peddle it to you, just something that you could explore if medication isn't working. I know when I was in hospital, there were a few people on my floor doing it, and they all had good things to say about it.

As you are regional, I think TMS Australia has a map where they show their treatment centres across the country (and some are regional). However, that's not the complete list, as some private psychiatric hospitals offer it too (not sure about public).

G