How do you manage chronic pain/migraines post-op?

[Yeledov]

Hi Everyone!
I’m pretty-op (should get my surgery date any time now). I have chronic pain from tendonitis in my arms and my Achilles’ tendons and in my upper back from a pretty bad repetitive stress injury in my twenties. I also get migraines about 3-5 times a year.
I’ve been searching for ways to manage my pain after the surgery. Inflammation is a major player in both of my chronic issues. Tylenol does not cut it for either of the during a flare up. I ice, heat, use a tens unit, KT tape, take turmeric, do pain relief meditations, do physical therapy. I can’t think of anything else to do!
If you have chronic pain or migraines, tell me what you do, please! How do you handle it? Is there anything else I could be doing? I’m especially concerned about migraines as, so far, the only thing that has helped is a shot in the butt of a heavy duty NSAID. That won’t be an option after surgery because it will be in my blood stream and can still seriously damage the stomach. As for heavy pain meds like opiates, they don’t touch my headache.
Any suggestions?
Thanks and have a great week!

 

[3momchaos]

The majority of my chronic pain has gone away since losing so much weight. However, there were times during that loss and now when I have pain, it’s just more tolerable and I have learned when to stop doing certain things and just sit down. I use pain pads for spot treatment like on my back and knees. Tylenol helps when I sleep, so I don’t wake up from pain. I think one of the biggest things that has come hand in hand with me is that I’m not eating foods that cause inflammation, but I do feel a difference when I indulge with real sugar or refined carbs.

 

[JudyNY]

I have arthritis and fibromyalgia and I have to say I have almost never taken anything because I haven't needed it. I do believe that by eating less processed food has helped tremendously as does losing weight. As for migraines, I use to get them pre-menopause but thankfully don't anymore. I know they can be miserable. I do get an occasional headache but not to the point where I've needed to take anything. I think mine are mostly allergy related and defusing high quality essential oils helps me there.

 

[WazzuCoug]

I don't remember which surgery you are getting, but the sleeve is a bit more forgiving as far as what you can take post surgery. That being said, I suspect you'll find fairly significant relief from inflation and pain after just a couple months or so post-op. Even doing things like physical theraphy will be more effective for you because you won't be battling the body inflammation like you are now.

Every part of my body was inflamed prior to surgery...joints, my back, my eyes, skin, God, you name it. It's all resolved. I have a little bit of low back pain still, but not only is it much more manageable, and when I decided to start going back to physical therapy, it is soooo much more effective now than when I had tried it in the past. With the reduced weight and inflammation, your body usually responds so much better to things.

 

[Yeledov]

I don't remember which surgery you are getting, but the sleeve is a bit more forgiving as far as what you can take post surgery. That being said, I suspect you'll find fairly significant relief from inflation and pain after just a couple months or so post-op. Even doing things like physical theraphy will be more effective for you because you won't be battling the body inflammation like you are now.

Every part of my body was inflamed prior to surgery...joints, my back, my eyes, skin, God, you name it. It's all resolved. I have a little bit of low back pain still, but not only is it much more manageable, and when I decided to start going back to physical therapy, it is soooo much more effective now than when I had tried it in the past. With the reduced weight and inflammation, your body usually responds so much better to things.

Thank you for the point about systemic inflammation. It didn’t occur to me that the weight loss would impact that. Also, of course physical therapy would be more effective! Why did I think of that?! Unfortunately, I’m not a good candidate for sleeve. My BMI is just too high. I need both the reduced capacity of a smaller stomach and the malabsorption of the bypass to lose enough to impact my health problems. If I never find a good solution to my migraines and have to just lock myself in a dark room for a couple days a few times a year it will be worth it for the better quality of life I’ll have all the other days.

 

[3momchaos]

I had chronic migraines for about a year before I saw a neurologist. He tried to put me on one of the triptans which completely stopped my ability to talk. It was the weirdest thing that’s every happened to me. I had to text my husband and tell him I couldn’t speak. He came upstairs and didn’t understand what I meant. I had an internal dialogue but literally could not get the words out. Anyways, then I started topiramate, which did wonders and I lost 60lbs with it. Then I started having problems finding my words and with short term memory loss. So bad in fact that I walked off a ladder because I forgot I was on it. After that it was established that my migraines were actually steaming from hormones, and then were controlled by birth control. I stopped all migraine meds, and now only have 1 migraine a month, and guess when?! Yup, right at my cycle. But I’ll take it over the 25 I was having a month. But I’d say now after the weight loss, I haven’t really had any true migraines, a few bad headaches, but that’s it.

 

[WazzuCoug]

Thank you for the point about systemic inflammation. It didn’t occur to me that the weight loss would impact that. Also, of course physical therapy would be more effective! Why did I think of that?! Unfortunately, I’m not a good candidate for sleeve. My BMI is just too high. I need both the reduced capacity of a smaller stomach and the malabsorption of the bypass to lose enough to impact my health problems. If I never find a good solution to my migraines and have to just lock myself in a dark room for a couple days a few times a year it will be worth it for the better quality of life I’ll have all the other days.

Yes! So many good things can happen when all that inflammation goes away. It's really amazing. As a side note, the small pouch and malabsorption have nothing to do with the effectiveness of the surgery, but there are still a lot of doctors/surgeons who still ride on that train. It's been scientifically proven that neither of those things is actually what makes weight loss surgery successful. But that's neither here nor there as to your questions.

Here are the things my various doctors have attributed to the reduction of systemic inflammation in combination with the weight loss:

1. I hear better...as crazy as it sounds, I had a hearing aid, and I don't need it anymore
2. Dry eye and eye inflammation...gone
3. Pain and fluid around knees....gone
4. 90% of my back pain
5. Carpel tunnel syndrome...resolved
6. Inflamed and oily skin...resolved
7. Aches and pains in all joints...resolved
8. Plantar fasciitis...resolved

No prescriptions for anything, no chronic conditions, just a few supplements.

It doesn't mean that it will solve everything, or make everything go away 100%, but it can make HUGE difference!

I hope it all goes away for you!

R

 

[Tokash]

I was also a toperimate taker but it only slightly helped. Any other fast acting meds i have do not work- but 8 can take them if I want to. I stopped the toperimate since it wasn't helping much anyway. I get several migraines a month and just suffer through them unless they hit 4 days. Once I'm on day 4 I go to the doc and get a concoction from her. I dont remember what all is in it but there are 4 or 5 things, one being benadryl. They push it with a bag of fluids and it does the trick.

 

[dianeseattle]

Try freezing a wet washcloth and putting it on the back of your neck. This works for me and might work for you. Migraines are harder to treat than any of your other conditions, but if you include conscious breathing with mantras and the washcloth, it might help.

 

[missyinacage]

I second what everyone is saying about pain/inflammation. Do not underestimate the amount of pressure that you'll be taking off your body once you lose weight. As for migraines, Ubelvry is a pretty good rescue but there are many medications out there. Your doctors will work with you until you find one that works for you.

 

[Snapdragon]

I had multiple migraines per week. Was finally referred to a neurologist who put me on verapamil, which is a calcium channel blocker/blood pressure med. I do not and never have had high blood pressure or anything even near that, but the verapamil has worked magic. I still get the occasional tension headache but I’ve been migraine free for over a year. He also recommended a supplement called “preventa-migraine” which I buy off Amazon. I think it helps but I can skip doses and be okay whereas if I miss my verapamil I will get a headache by midday.

 

[Tokash]

The crappy thing about many of the rescue meds is that they can cause rebound headaches which I think are even more unpleasant than migraines. I am a chronic migraine suffer and have been for years. O was never dx until my second pregnancy and my ob nurse asked me if I always had migraines. I thanked her for finally giving me a name to my experience that nobody had before. I usually end up in the er a handful of times a year for the mystery concoction. I take tylonal now and over the years have had the best luck with tension headache meds. I am so used to them now that as long as I'm not throwing up or seeing things from them I just keep on working.

 

[Yeledov]

Yes! So many good things can happen when all that inflammation goes away. It's really amazing. As a side note, the small pouch and malabsorption have nothing to do with the effectiveness of the surgery, but there are still a lot of doctors/surgeons who still ride on that train. It's been scientifically proven that neither of those things is actually what makes weight loss surgery successful. But that's neither here nor there as to your questions.

Here are the things my various doctors have attributed to the reduction of systemic inflammation in combination with the weight loss:

1. I hear better...as crazy as it sounds, I had a hearing aid, and I don't need it anymore
2. Dry eye and eye inflammation...gone
3. Pain and fluid around knees....gone
4. 90% of my back pain
5. Carpel tunnel syndrome...resolved
6. Inflamed and oily skin...resolved
7. Aches and pains in all joints...resolved
8. Plantar fasciitis...resolved

No prescriptions for anything, no chronic conditions, just a few supplements.

It doesn't mean that it will solve everything, or make everything go away 100%, but it can make HUGE difference!

I hope it all goes away for you!

R

That. Is. Frickin. Amazing.
I’ve started looking into some of the theories on systemic inflammation and there is some fascinating stuff. The theories about the physical effects are cool but what really hooked my mind was the mental health implications. I have severe, treatment resistant, debilitating depression and anxiety. When I say I have tried everything, I mean it. All the therapy, intensive hospitalization programs, and I’ve been in therapy every week for going on 15 years. I’m on SSDI because of my mental illnesses. To stay somewhat stable I’m on a cocktail of meds (some off-label) and I have resorted to both electroconvulsive therapy and Transcranial magnetic stimulation in the past when things get really bad. (ECT and TMS actually help but are not exactly something you can do continuously and have any kind of a life.) Anyway, there are some hopeful research on reduced systemic inflammation having a positive effect on mental health. It isn’t a cure. I don’t expect to suddenly be able to work again. Mental illness is too multifaceted to work like that. But any improvement would be welcomed!

 

[Yeledov]

I was also a toperimate taker but it only slightly helped. Any other fast acting meds i have do not work- but 8 can take them if I want to. I stopped the toperimate since it wasn't helping much anyway. I get several migraines a month and just suffer through them unless they hit 4 days. Once I'm on day 4 I go to the doc and get a concoction from her. I dont remember what all is in it but there are 4 or 5 things, one being benadryl. They push it with a bag of fluids and it does the trick.

Benadryl…huh. I wonder what that is impacting? I don’t doubt that it is effective. Migraines are mysterious things. I’ve been on toperimate before and didn’t seem to help anything. I wonder if it helps on its own or only in the mix of other drugs?

 

[Yeledov]

I had multiple migraines per week. Was finally referred to a neurologist who put me on verapamil, which is a calcium channel blocker/blood pressure med. I do not and never have had high blood pressure or anything even near that, but the verapamil has worked magic. I still get the occasional tension headache but I’ve been migraine free for over a year. He also recommended a supplement called “preventa-migraine” which I buy off Amazon. I think it helps but I can skip doses and be okay whereas if I miss my verapamil I will get a headache by midday.

Hmm, I’ve never heard of that! I’m glad it helps! I’m taking note just in case my migraines kick up more than every quarter!

 

[Yeledov]

The crappy thing about many of the rescue meds is that they can cause rebound headaches which I think are even more unpleasant than migraines. I am a chronic migraine suffer and have been for years. O was never dx until my second pregnancy and my ob nurse asked me if I always had migraines. I thanked her for finally giving me a name to my experience that nobody had before. I usually end up in the er a handful of times a year for the mystery concoction. I take tylonal now and over the years have had the best luck with tension headache meds. I am so used to them now that as long as I'm not throwing up or seeing things from them I just keep on working.

Ugh, seeing things is the worst! I get auras with my migraines so I have like 15 minutes to get in a dark space or it hits me harder. My whole mother’s side had migraines to varying degrees so I grew up knowing what it was about. I got my first one around puberty so I thought mine might go away when I transitioned and started hormone therapy. (Quick reminder, I’m trans, assigned female at birth, so I had the whole deal of female puberty.) Sadly, I was wrong about that. I don’t have a cycle anymore but I still get migraines.

 

[JudyNY]

Ugh, seeing things is the worst! I get auras with my migraines so I have like 15 minutes to get in a dark space or it hits me harder. My whole mother’s side had migraines to varying degrees so I grew up knowing what it was about. I got my first one around puberty so I thought mine might go away when I transitioned and started hormone therapy. (Quick reminder, I’m trans, assigned female at birth, so I had the whole deal of female puberty.) Sadly, I was wrong about that. I don’t have a cycle anymore but I still get migraines.

Sorry that the migraines didn't cease for you. For me once menopause came the migraines stopped or somewhere around that time. But perhaps there are different triggers for different people. I know mine was hormones and also certain allergic reactions.

 

[dianeseattle]

This is an old post about the link between OTC drugs and dementia. If you watch daytime tv you may notice boatloads of commercials from law firms inviting people to join class actions resulting from taking "beneficial," supposedly harmless formulation. FYI:

dementia

There are some medications that have been in very long university studies that have now then shown to cause dementia. I was taking a few of these drugs and then when I read that the study I decided to live without them, which is very hard. Amitriptyline (Elavil) Atropine Benztropine (Cogentin)...

www.americanbariatrics.org

 

[3momchaos]

I wish Benadryl helped me, but I get the opposite reaction. They gave it to me through IV when I went into the ER for a migraine, and let’s just say it’s a good thing I was in the ER. It sent my pulse racing and BP skyrocketing. I was advised to put it on my allergy list from then on. My dad was the same way though.

 

[Snapdragon]

Ugh, seeing things is the worst! I get auras with my migraines so I have like 15 minutes to get in a dark space or it hits me harder. My whole mother’s side had migraines to varying degrees so I grew up knowing what it was about. I got my first one around puberty so I thought mine might go away when I transitioned and started hormone therapy. (Quick reminder, I’m trans, assigned female at birth, so I had the whole deal of female puberty.) Sadly, I was wrong about that. I don’t have a cycle anymore but I still get migraines.

My oldest daughter was assigned male at birth and had migraines starting in kindergarten. She transitioned and started hormone therapy at 17. She had “outgrown” the migraines by puberty and I was concerned hormone therapy might bring them back but so far so good (she’s 19 now). I know female hormones played a huge role in my migraines and in my mother’s and grandmother’s. How she (and my sister) got so lucky I don’t know. Just goes to show that everyone is different and migraines are mysterious!

I’m so sorry about your terrible depression though. I am bipolar and go through badly depressed periods (like suicidal and self harming) but they are relatively short and followed by a period of normalcy. I sincerely hope you find something that works for you soon.