Suggest Treatment For Migraines

Posted on Sun, 26 Oct 2014

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sun, 26 Oct 2014 Answered on

Tue, 18 Nov 2014 Last reviewed on

Question : I have been diagnosed with migraines. Took amitriptyline for 4 weeks, reached 30 mg, but started to make me feel bad, tingling and numbness in arms and chest. My doc lowered the dose to 10 mg, but that made me feel worse. He then prescribed 30 mg cymbalta, one dose of that made my heart race, have jitters and dilated pupils. I have not taken any meds for 2 days now, still having tingling in arms and chest. I'm not sure whether to take 5 mg of amitriptyline tonight to see if that will help. I don't like taking meds, but I'm nervous what will happen if I continue to not take any.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Erion Spaho (3 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Other drugs should be tried.

Detailed Answer:
Hi, I had gone through your question and understand your concerns. Amytriptiline and Cymbalta are antidepressive drugs used in some cases as preventive medication for headaches in migraine. If you don't feel good using them, other medications should be tried, e.g:
1.pain relieving drugs ( Triptans, non-steroid antiinflamatory drugs, Ergots, Opioids),
2. Headaches preventive drugs ( Beta-blocker drugs, anti- seizure drugs).
Tingling and numbness may be caused by migraine, or are side effects of drugs. If you don't use any drug, the worst that may happen is having a headache crisis again. I suggest you if you experience aura, to take ASAP Sumatriptan for example. If you have prolonged auras or headaches, you should try another preventive drugs. Hope this answers your question. If you have additional questions or follow up questions then please do not hesitate in writing to us. I will be happy to answer your questions.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Yogesh D