another occular migraine post (sorry)

[LaughClown]

Ok, I know there have been a lote of posts on occular migraines, but I couldnt find anything on frequency and some other things I've wondered.

Now Ive had migraines since I was a kid, sometimes more frequent than others, sometimes with auras, sometimes not, sometimes just the aura. After my surgery five months ago though, I've had sparks in my vision several times a day every day since the surgery. I also have gotten the numbness in my finger tips, lips, blind areas, but thats more rare (once every one or two weeks), but the sparks are every day. They often travel right across the center of my vision in pulses, sometimes fast sometimes slow single or many.

I told my card and he said to go back to him six months post-op if its still going on or if it gets worse, but after reading all of the posts,
is there anything that could be done anyways?

Maybe its in case its something worse, but from the sounds of it thats doubtful.

I ask because I woke up this morning with a horrible headache and a veru sick stomach which means I had a migraine while I was sleeping. The strange thing is that this is the first actual headache Ive had since the surgery so it weird for me.
Also lately Ive had closed eye hallucinations. I see sometimes abstract sometimes vivid visuals when I close my eyes or if its dark but all of this may be related to something else (no not drugs)

 

[CathyK.]

I have gotten the flashes like you discribed since surgery also. I am 7 weeks out and have them daily but they are quick. One occular migraine since surgery. I have noticed that the flashes are less than what they were so I am just waiting to see what happens. I don't get any numbness any where so I can't help you there. Keep us informed.

 

[LUVMyBirman]

I can relate. The little sparks you mention are most likely what is referred to as "floaters". Which are little bits of gel and or tiny tiny micro emboli floating in the visual field. I have been checked out on numerous occasions. CT's, infared eye exams. No effects were noted.

It's scary.....but all this usually passes without event. You should consider a complete work up. Neuro and eye exam to rule out anything more serious.

Good luck.

 

[Marguerite53]

I think you should start a food diary. Write down everything you eat for a week or two. The migraines do not always appear soon after ingestion of the triggering foodstuff, but you might be able to track it. Especially since you woke up feeling so poorly, I would suspect something from your dinner which was new to your system may have caused it.

With all this is mind, stay away from caffeine, chocolates, wine, orange juice (or any citrus) and peanut butter(or any nuts) for awhile (if you even eat these things). No Chinese food, or processed foods with any monosodium glutamate (MSG). Keep your salt intake low. Watch to see if a rise in your blood pressure might cause (trigger) some episodes.

Get some good poloroid sunglasses to prevent a sudden glare from setting you off. CLose your blinds abit so that direct sunlight doesn't stream in at you. Check you laundry soaps and bathing soaps and get rid of scented ones that may set you off. Whenever I walk down the laundry aisle at the grocery store I get a migraine....never fails.....or the lawn goods aisle in a hardware store.....all that poison and fertilizer..whew!!

Time your episodes. My occular disturbances last exactly 22 minutes. So. Now I know that for those 22 minutes I'm pretty worthless, but for the rest of the day, I'm fine. I just pretty much accept mine. They are daily. You just learn to look through them. The headaches, no. They are too intense. I seem to have suddenly started getting them with the abundance of pollen this year. But. there won't be pollen all year, so I don't worry about it.

Good luck. NEVER hesitate to ask for further consulting from varieties of doctors. But try my suggestions and let us know what you discover.

Marguerite

 

[marky]

I am almost 11 months post op and I still get them everyday! I don't get the pain, just the occular migraine.
I have found that staring at the computer, or TV or if it is bright outside or I sit near a window will always give me one.. until my eyes adjust.

sorry no advice.. I have learned to live with them..

 

[francie12]

I just have to recommend a book here... Following its instructions, my son and I both have our migraines under control. In Matt's case an almost total cure (he gets the occular only as well as with the painful kind) and in mine about an 90% cure with advil easily controling the remaining headaches. The book is called, Heal Your Headache by David Buchholz (a Johns Hopkins neurologist), and it outlines a program for keeping your migraine triggers beneath your personal threshold. I don't usually go in for books with titles like this, but I had heard about it on NPR and ordered it out of desperation. It takes some will-power to follow the recommended program, but it definately worked for us and was more than worth the trouble. For what it's worth...

 

[ALCapshaw2]

I recently had dizzyness and vomiting following an MRI (to check for possible neurological contributions to some eye related events).

My ENT Doc's Nurse suggested that getting up suddenly after laying flat for an hour may have been the cause. She suggested taking Lasix whenever I had dizzy spells as they can cause the inner ear to have excess fluid which leads to the above symptoms. Knowing how to maintain your fluid balance is another whole issue!

'Al Capshaw'

 

[Butterfly]

Magnesium and miagarine.

Magnesium and miagarine.

I remember my first miagraine around the age of ten. I didn't know what was happening to me ,the aura with flashing lights and zig zag lines,vomiting and nausea,numbness.Nothing seemed to help the frequency of them or the symptons. Believe me I tried everything so I just learned to live with them. About a year ago I read about the magnesium miagraine link and started supplementing with magnesium . Now I must tell you I'm noted as the world's greatest skeptic however I have not had an episode of singular miagraine or cluster miagraine since so Ibegan supplementing save for a short period of a few days when I ran out of magenesium and couldn't get to the shop as I was working. I have also read that caffiene depletes magnesium in the body and this maybe the reason for some people's miagraines.It would be wise though to consult your doctor before supplementing with magnesium.For me though it's been like a miracle no more nausea,flashing lights and taking days to feel clear headed again.Hope this is of help to some miagraine sufferers as I know that panicky feeling you get when you know the inevitable is about to happen again.

 

[musician2k]

Magnesium is about the only thing I have never tried. I'm already taking so many pills each day that I hesitate to add another, but maybe it's time. I had the occular disturbances the OP described for about 2 to 3 weeks post-op, in July of 2006. Since then, the occular migraines went way down in frequency and I was almost headache free until March of this year (2007). Now, bam, they're back. Occular migraines with pain and other symptoms almost always following. I hate that I lose not only a few minutes to an hour on the day of a migraine attack, but that for a few days after it I don't feel right. I'm not me. I don't percieve things the same, and while the pain's not unbearable it seems to linger.

Does anyone know if magnesium supplements would interfere with one's protime?

Chris

I remember my first miagraine around the age of ten. I didn't know what was happening to me ,the aura with flashing lights and zig zag lines,vomiting and nausea,numbness.Nothing seemed to help the frequency of them or the symptons. Believe me I tried everything so I just learned to live with them. About a year ago I read about the magnesium miagraine link and started supplementing with magnesium . Now I must tell you I'm noted as the world's greatest skeptic however I have not had an episode of singular miagraine or cluster miagraine since so Ibegan supplementing save for a short period of a few days when I ran out of magenesium and couldn't get to the shop as I was working. I have also read that caffiene depletes magnesium in the body and this maybe the reason for some people's miagraines.It would be wise though to consult your doctor before supplementing with magnesium.For me though it's been like a miracle no more nausea,flashing lights and taking days to feel clear headed again.Hope this is of help to some miagraine sufferers as I know that panicky feeling you get when you know the inevitable is about to happen again.

 

[kbheart]

I had several vision problems after the surgery, the floaters, the migraine auras, the blocked vision (gray spots that stayed in my eyes for several minutes), and double vision that would last for a few minutes and then be gone. The symptoms have gotten better over time. After 9 months, I have very few floaters, only the migraine aruas when I get stressed, and the double vision or blocked vision when my INR drops too low. I saw a neuro-opthamologist for reassurance.
I hope your symptoms go away soon! I know it can be scary and frustrating.

 

[briansmom]

As far as I know Magnesium does not interact with INR. My son has been on mag off and on since his first surgery.

 

[KMB]

I used to get migraines all the time about 10 years ago. I stopped drinking caffine and they went away. They came back when I was in the hospital after my surgery and I have gotten them ever since. I also can relate to getting double vision when my INR is low. I told my doctor about it and they had me wear a monitor that would record when I was having these effects, but when they looked at it, nothing ever showed up the the heartbeat.
Good luck, but I think there is not much we can do about it!