has this happened to you?

I visited my ER three days ago after suffering for three days with a full blown migrane. When the doc asked what worked i told him demerol and vistral. This is the combo my primary has been giving me for years. He told me he could not give me that because they were no longer giving out narcs for headaches. he hooked me up to an iv gave me tordal and enough benadryl to sedate a cow. I did not get releif he just sedated me enough to shut me up and send me home. I am not a frequent flyer at the ER so I was very confused by this. Has anyone else been told no more narcs?

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Migrane headaches
Depression
Anxiety/panic disorder
Arthritis in my spine

Current meds: amitriptline, topamax
PRN: vicodin, oxycodone, zofran, klonopin

Hello Wenmarie,

I still had not broke my week long headache so i went to the urgent care not er at the same hospital and he gave me dilaudid. Im confused. I can understand why people "doctor shop". Its frusterating when you know what helps you and they are not willing to offer it to you. MIgranes are a serious illness and it is definetly not treated as one. It is treated as people who use there conditon to seek drugs. Im sure there are some people out there that do do that, but that should be determined on a person to person basis and not treat the whole migrane population as drug seekers. I get really upset because my sister is a nurse at the hospital I use. (( the only one in a 75 mile radius) and she gives me so much hell for even takin a tyelnol because you should just let your body take it s course. I get so much critisim from her it makes me sick. Her job is to help people not judge them. I just got a script for 15 percocet and she freeked. She made some statment, no wonder why we have so many people hooked on drugs, these stupid docs hand them out like candy. I explainded to her i take them because i need them not because i want them. UGGG sorry had to vent!

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Migrane headaches
Depression
Anxiety/panic disorder
Arthritis in my spine

Current meds: amitriptline, topamax
PRN: vicodin, oxycodone, zofran, klonopin

I need to rant a bit here too.

I hear you both... I suffer from frequent migraines but, oddly, will go through spurts of NOT having them or having ones for a short time (meaning only a few hours), but usually not so lucky and they are long lasting, vision blurring, hammer/knife to the head feeling, nausea inducing, head killers ... I worked in a hospital for 3 1/2 years and saw both the drug seekers and the genuine Migraine sufferers... and some that were hard for me to say which they were.

I catch grief from the people that don't understand migraines and other migraine sufferers as well. The people that don't understand migraines say things like "I get -headaches- too! Get over it!" and "You are not in pain, your just a druggie" (these are exact quotes I have gotten and many more like them... and it shows how little they know. I have not taken anything for a migraine in over 2 years because nothing I had tried worked. and THAT is where I catch grief from those with migraines because I'm told things like "if it was actually bad enough to affect your work/personal life you would be 'on' something" or "if you ACTUALLY had a migraine you wouldn't be here" (meaning work... and as my work record shows, obviously missing work for migraines isn't acceptable. It's better to show up and do a half-assed/piss poor job, or show up and actually TRY to work and succeed at getting nothing done, except make the migraine and other body problems worse)...

I have had some constant body pains since I was about 11 (about when the migraines also began and just became more and more frequent). most of them were either never diagnosed as anything other than 'body aches' or were told to me (at 11 or 12) that they were arthritis (which I noticed you also have wenmarie).

I have gone to doctors/the ER for so many different things relating to these issues and they can never help me out... it's always basically "we don't know whats wrong with you... here's some drugs, leave us alone

I am (barely) holding onto one job, and thats because it is more of a come in when you can (i.e. when your not laying down with things piled over your head and every door and window-shade closed) job...
I, obviously, need a better job. which remains out of reach... but that a whole different story...

I am basically trying to say I understand some of what you are going through and can't stand what happens when I go to the ER or a doctor...

I am frequently treated like a drug addict when I go to the ER. I've found that bringing a parent/boyfriend/spouse (someone that represents a serious relationship, but not a friend) helps. They might not believe you, but they'll believe the "sane" and "unaddicted" person by your side. It sucks to be treated that way. My boyfriend didn't believe me (that I was treated that way) for the longest time, but now he always comes with me to help combat the addict treatment. I even used to bring a folder with my entire migraine history with me, although that didn't work as well. I hate to say this, but go ahead and let it all out when you're in the ER. Make sure they know how bad it is. If you want to cry, then cry. When the doctors see something they feel is more objective, they are more willing to help. The caveat to that is, at least for me, when I try to remain calm and collected I do feel better. I actually have to allow myself to feel and experience the full-blown effects to get the help I need. But try bringing someone with, especially if you are in your twenties or thirties. A tired, frustrated parent or a doctor/lawyer-type professional works well.

I am just wondering one thing.  How do you decide to go to the hospital.  I mean, last week i got a really bad migraine while out on my boat (I think it was a combination of sun, bumping, and falling into the water).  I did not have access to any medication.  But it was so bad we where out on the gulf and I was falling asleep just to be woken up by a splash of water in my face.  As soon as I got on land, I took one ibuprofen that is all I had.  After the one hour trip home I took a frova, and again two hours later.  This did not help at all.  I later took a percocet, and this did not help.  I felt helpless because it was a saturday night, and all the 24 hour pharmacy could tell me was I took every thing to late.  I was debating hard and long about going to the hospital or not.  I finally fell asleep from the percocet.  Anyways it all started again the next day except I didn't have any frova left.  So I guess what I am saying is can the hospital really help even after you took so much stuff and is it worth the $500 and 5 hours waiting time to go.  I went when this first started and if I didn't make them call my primary they would have sent me home with nothing instead they gave me imitrex which didn't help.  They didn't even give me a room just a bed in the hall way.  And that time my doctor made me go right then and there I had no choice. 

It's actually better if the ER doc you see is knowledgable enough about migraine disease to not give you a narcotic as the front line approach.

I've had the experience of receiving a narcotic injection, which knocked me out and allowed me to sleep for a few hours. Then I woke up and the migraine returned to the same excruciating level, sending me back to the ER for help. :(

IVs of dexamethazone, magnesium, antinausea meds, etc. (usually a combo) can do a much more effective job of aborting the migraine.

It does suck to be treated like a drug seeker, but there are other reasons why they might prefer not to head straight to a narcotic for treatment.

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Visit me at Somebody Heal Me: The Musings of a Chronic Migraineur

This is true -- the combo treatments with phenerghan and magnesium and depokote work well treating my hemiplegic migraines in the ER.  I hate getting narcotics because any nausea I had before I got there is compounded by them  They usally want to start out giving you narcotics one if your heart rate is off the charts due to the headache. 

I see a lot of ppl here talking about treating the pain of a migraine. I have been a migraine sufferer for most of my life, and the best advice I can give here is this....Whatever pain medication you take, you should take it ASAP. I have found that the more time the headached has to build up without the pain medication, the harder it is to get under control. What this means is that if you go to the ER for pain, your pain will probably be so horrible by the time they get to you, that you might have been better off with some ibuprofren at home at the first sign the headache was coming. Your doctor should be able to give you a prescription that you can keep on hand in case the migraine comes.

I have had to resort to the ER a few times...and what an aweful experience it was every time! THe bright lights....the stupid questions....the dumbfounded looks....the stupid comments like, "oh....heh...you just THINK your hand is going numb b/c you are scared"