Despite the obvious blood pressure lowering benefit of the Topamax, I couldn't justify being on it much longer. It truly lobotomized me, and did just about ZERO to deal with the chronic low back pain. And when my monthly menses related migraine hit, it did NOTHING to thwart it. So, in the end it wasn't what I deem "value added."
On May 11th, I saw my neurologist for a follow up. And he asked me how I felt. I replied, "This is how it's going to go down. I'm just going to do scatter-shot "word vomit" until you cry uncle." He nodded yes, and he let me ramble for what seemed like five minutes as I ticked off every observation I made, every side effect from the drug pretty much, and when I said the word "anhedonia," I felt as if I were a contestant on that old 1970s game show "Password," and "... the password is: ANHEDONIA." He said, "you can stop now."
So, back to square one. And he cycled back through, "What about Cymbalta?" And I think it's time I find someone else to deal with the chronic low back issues. A friend was mentioning an integrative medicine guy in Stamford (a scant half hour from here), and I need to research more.
However, on the MIGRAINE FRONT, at the suggestion of my neuro-opthalmologist (in April) I started taking vitamin B2 (to be added to my usual line up). Perhaps it's coincidental, or perhaps my baseline chronic low back pain and uterine pain ECLIPSED my migraine pain this month, or perhaps the vitamin b2 actually worked? I don't know for sure. But for the month of May (crosses fingers, knocks wood, and doing darshan to a picture of Hanuman), so far, so good: No. Migraine. (Yet.)
Note: At current writing, I have been off the Topamax for 17 days.
Stay tuned.
On May 11th, I saw my neurologist for a follow up. And he asked me how I felt. I replied, "This is how it's going to go down. I'm just going to do scatter-shot "word vomit" until you cry uncle." He nodded yes, and he let me ramble for what seemed like five minutes as I ticked off every observation I made, every side effect from the drug pretty much, and when I said the word "anhedonia," I felt as if I were a contestant on that old 1970s game show "Password," and "... the password is: ANHEDONIA." He said, "you can stop now."
So, back to square one. And he cycled back through, "What about Cymbalta?" And I think it's time I find someone else to deal with the chronic low back issues. A friend was mentioning an integrative medicine guy in Stamford (a scant half hour from here), and I need to research more.
However, on the MIGRAINE FRONT, at the suggestion of my neuro-opthalmologist (in April) I started taking vitamin B2 (to be added to my usual line up). Perhaps it's coincidental, or perhaps my baseline chronic low back pain and uterine pain ECLIPSED my migraine pain this month, or perhaps the vitamin b2 actually worked? I don't know for sure. But for the month of May (crosses fingers, knocks wood, and doing darshan to a picture of Hanuman), so far, so good: No. Migraine. (Yet.)
Note: At current writing, I have been off the Topamax for 17 days.
Stay tuned.
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