caffeine
Aside from its ability to potentiate other meds (actually, the normal reaction of the body to pain slows absorption in the stomach, so caffeine helps speed up the absorption of the meds), caffeine is a vaso-constrictor. So, to the extent it counters the dilated cranial blood vessels of a migraine, it really is an anti-migraine med. 'Course, then there are the caffeine withdrawal headaches (a.k.a. Sunday morning headache); My wife got the most authentic migraine of her life the morning after she spent an overnight with a relative who had only decaff. According to my mother, her mother treated my grandfather's migraines with very strong coffee (which is how my mother learned to make coffee that will hold up a spoon -- and I learned from her).
This is a possibility- when I cut down my coffee consumption I got bad headaches for awhile. This happened to my mother as well. I know that caffeine is a trigger for some people. It does help some people with headaches- that's why they put it in Excedrin. It can be a migraine trigger for other people though. I know the sweet red wines (like Manschewitz) give me BAD migraines. Red wine in general used to, but since I've been on Elavil, I can drink it again. Yay!
Hi y'all - Yes! Purple grape juice will almost always trigger a migraine for me where white grape juice won't at all. I asked my neuro about that. He reasoned that it had the same thing in it from the skins as red wine. Who knew? Mir, Susan
Jennifer, The reason you have a worse migraine if you don't have the coke it is called caffeine withdrawls. Many people get them if they drink caffeine. If you ever get off the caffeine you won't have those. My mom used to until she got off it and has never had one since. Normal people without migraines have them. Pumpkie