Migraines: Treating my (MJ free) girlfriend

[AJS]

I believe the endocannabinoid deficiency theory! I believe EDS also causes chronic depression.

A few years ago, before I had ever heard of this, my professor was discussion serotonin deficiencies, and I mentioned the possibility of a cannabinoid deficiency, at which he replied "ha, so everyone would have to smoke weed. Nah I can't see that being a thing", and the class let out a little giggle at me.

There is no doubt that this deficiency exists.

My stress management professor would get migraines monthly, and biofeedback therapy helped her get it down to the point where she hasn't had a migraine in 10 years.

Don't forget to treat your stress!

 

[ander]

@hibeam @AJS
Thanks for your contribution. The EDS theory could really explain how treating her with small doses of vapor works so well... Surely there's a genetic origin, and without doubt the stress is a factor that triggers its crisis.
In any case, it's a fact: this uplifting Sativa strain that I'm using, for the moment, does a magic...

 

[ander]

We have never stopped experimenting with cannabis instead of "Novalgina" as a cure for migraine and I must say that in the last 2 years we have almost always had successes. Lately, and this is the news for us (and the reason to resurrect this thread), even with extremely low doses of THC. She started to vaporize with a VC "M" a mix of outdoor naturally grown Sativa (0.2% THC and 6% CBD) where I put a pinch of my not completely exhausted AVB (composed of the same Sativa and a random variety of Indica from my stash: that is my daily vape mixture)...in short, nearly zero THC.
She starts to feel the relief in about half an hour, and the most interesting thing is that she describes the same feeling when taking the traditional medicine: "When I take Novalgina, the feeling is that part of my throat that gets dry, then I know it's doing effect.The same thing happens by vaporizing" Quite amazing, I have to say... looks like the components act on the same receptors (as known anyway). And it looks like it isn't the THC that makes the magic for her, perhaps the CBD ... or maybe it is the set of known and less known components Cannabis has.

 

[C No Ego]

We have never stopped experimenting with cannabis instead of "Novalgina" as a cure for migraine and I must say that in the last 2 years we have almost always had successes. Lately, and this is the news for us (and the reason to resurrect this thread), even with extremely low doses of THC. She started to vaporize with a VC "M" a mix of outdoor naturally grown Sativa (0.2% THC and 6% CBD) where I put a pinch of my not completely exhausted AVB (composed of the same Sativa and a random variety of Indica from my stash: that is my daily vape mixture)...in short, nearly zero THC.
She starts to feel the relief in about half an hour, and the most interesting thing is that she describes the same feeling when taking the traditional medicine: "When I take Novalgina, the feeling is that part of my throat that gets dry, then I know it's doing effect.The same thing happens by vaporizing" Quite amazing, I have to say... looks like the components act on the same receptors (as known anyway). And it looks like it isn't the THC that makes the magic for her, perhaps the CBD ... or maybe it is the set of known and less known components Cannabis has.

it's all happening in the endocannabinid system ECS with the neuronal connections provided from the lipophilc plant cannabinoids ( all of them are active in that respect)... so you know what you are dosing- ABV still will be whatever the main compound was to begin with. so if it was a high thc strain then the abv will be thc. the heat settings on your vape somewhat determine the effects from the same strain. low heat will be less body high and higher heat above 420 F will be more sedative ( most likely more compound extraction per volume of vapor).
too, up to 50% of approved doctors prescribed medications are made for actively targeting the G-coupled protein receptors ( 7 trans membrane receptors). the G-coupled protein receptors are what make up the endocannabinoid system where plant phytocannabinoids have activity too.... We only have a few physiological systems in humans and the ECS is one of the main ones managing all bio-chemical reactions. I'll present a few articles for your consideration. one is about D-limonene (most likely in your strain you mentioned )
taming THC https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3165946/
cannabimimetics https://www.researchgate.net/public...bis_Plants_and_the_Endocannabinoid_System#pfb
https://www.sativaisticated.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Cannabimimetic-phytochemicals-in-the-diet-–an-evolutionary-link-to-food-selection-andmetabolic-stress-adaptation-Gertsch-Medical-Cannabis-Medical-Research-for-the-Endocannabinoid-System-ECS.pdf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2449371/
https://www.leafscience.com/2013/11...etary-cannabinoid-make-synthetics-irrelevant/
this specifically is about what you posted about https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3566631/
Low Dose Vaporized Cannabis Significantly Improves Neuropathic Pain

and adding more omega three and six to diet will increase endocannabinoid tone for managing pain signals or Toning them out ( Hell yeah!)
http://themodern.farm/studies/Omega-3 Deficiancy Abolish Endocannabinoid Function.pdf

and for your doctor LOFL man!
https://themedicalbiochemistrypage.org/bioactivelipids.php halfway down the page @
Fatty Acid Amides and Cellular Signaling
edit- diet too
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3062638/#R70
Is lipid signaling through cannabinoid 2 receptors part of a protective system
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5884427/
Resolving Inflammation by using Nutrition Therapy: Roles for Specialized Pro-Resolving Mediators

 

[MegaMan2k]

Im using MJ to combat my migranes aswell,

But I dont medicate when i feel the migrane onsetting,
Instead i medicate morning, noon, afternoon, evening, and night,

This way i feel i can keep the migrane from even triggering in the first place.


However there is also downsides to being medicated "all the time"


I would love to learn more.

 

[His_Highness]

We've been dealing with migraine pain for decades but they increased to 24/7, level 10 pain. The only effective treatment (and we've tried them all from amytriptilne to topirimate, brain surgery and beyond) is Botox for migraine.

We've tried the low THC-high CBD's both over the counter and purchasing through MJ certification and it doesn't work for us. Years ago we had some limited success with mid-level THC and high CBD if taken at onset or slightly before but that stopped working and even when it did it wasn't dependable and only lessened the pain but didn't stop it.

We've tried enhancing the ECS with omega 3s, pure CBD and low dose medical MJ and it didn't work.

Don't get me wrong. Using cannabis is a must....when my wife's Botox wears off 3 weeks before each treatment it's a nightmare of 24/7 level 10 pain that comes with nausea and serious weight loss. Cannabis relieves the nausea, increases the appetite and masks enough of the pain to keep us out of the emergency room for relief.

 

[C No Ego]

Im using MJ to combat my migranes aswell,

But I dont medicate when i feel the migrane onsetting,
Instead i medicate morning, noon, afternoon, evening, and night,

This way i feel i can keep the migrane from even triggering in the first place.


However there is also downsides to being medicated "all the time"


I would love to learn more.

that is the preventive medicine aspects of cannabis use

 

[Madri-Gal]

I had migraine for years. Then I was in a car accidents, hit my head on the windshield, and ended up with chronic migraine. Constant pain, light sensitivity and nausea. There were days with aura, and days without, but always head pain. I was fortunate to be treated by Niel Raskin, MD, at University of California Medical Center San Francisco, one of the best migraine specialists in the world. Unfortunately, I couldn't tolerate most of the meds. I developed multiple allergies as over 70 medications were tried over many terrible years. I wasn't happy with opiates, and I had to take nausea meds for so many years they started causing seizures. Because of the nausea meds, I was in a wheelchair, had difficulty speaking, slept in a hospital bed, had a full time care giver, and for a time was in a day program at a nursing home so my caregivers could get rest. I had a service dog for respiratory alert, and got a second service dog for seizure alert. After 18 months off nausea meds ( and everything else but a few asthma meds), I gradually started getting better. Still, there were migraines.
My family doctor gave me a "script ". He said I'd tried everything else, might as well try something that helps.
It helps.
I wasn't a smoker, and hadn't even heard of vaping at that point. I was on the kitchen floor, crying and holding my head, had been throwing up for hours. Someone lit a joint, held it for me, instructed me to inhale. The nausea stopped . The pain stopped soon after. I didn't care for smoking, but finding something that worked was a lifesaver. After 20+ years, relief. Within a year I was vaping. Now I always have something for migraine and the occasional seizure, at least. I can talk, I don't choke all the time, I can walk, don't need a caregiver. Part of this was getting rid of meds and letting my body heal, but being able to deal with the pain and nausea without pharmaceutical was huge. I'm able to garden again, and am able to grow meds for myself. That's the best feeling, knowing I can lay in a crop and have a way out when migraine strikes . I have made tincture and elixer with both fresh trim and ABV. I've made up coconut oil for edibles , and am experimenting with water curing as I think odorless and tasteless bud will be helpful as an option.
The only thing is, the edibles might seem to be the best idea , but with nausea it's a bad idea as it might be thrown up right away. Try vaping, then when the headache and nausea are better, then try an edible for longer relief .

 

[ClearBlueLou]

I started having headaches in my teens, sometimes it would be localized, and sometimes it felt like my skull was trying to squeeze my brain ‘til it died. Lying down in a dark quiet place didn’t help so much as it got me away from the lights and the motion and the voices which all made it worse.

Early years, I wondered if cannabis was somehow connected to these headaches, but I never got a read on it until after I began regular and increased cannabis consumption in ‘81. LONG after, when I thought about it and looked back: I’ve had ONE such headache since, and *it* was back in the 80s.

I don’t have nausea so much as rare dramatic reflux incidents, but I understand your concern about edibles. Personally, I consider myself lucky, as I *like* the flavor cannabis gives to butter, and luckily, I’ve never been so ill that I couldn’t take a quarter teaspoon of medicated ghee. I heat it every few days, and the green just gets deeper and darker, so I’ll add a tablespoon of ghee now and then, heat it good every other day, feed it a little more rosin, and it keeps getting stronger. I’ve just taken a week off from the ghee, actually, and I can feel the difference in my body.

For me, edible is going to be my main pathway going forward, because my lungs have trouble handling even vapor at this point (though I expect I’ve been dabbing too hot; last night, one hit had me coughing for 40 minutes...I’m taking steps). Still, with a stable supply of user-extractable material, neither vaporization nor combustion is even necessary, so at the very least, my tired old bags can get some downish time.

 

[Madri-Gal]

I started having headaches in my teens, sometimes it would be localized, and sometimes it felt like my skull was trying to squeeze my brain ‘til it died. Lying down in a dark quiet place didn’t help so much as it got me away from the lights and the motion and the voices which all made it worse.

Early years, I wondered if cannabis was somehow connected to these headaches, but I never got a read on it until after I began regular and increased cannabis consumption in ‘81. LONG after, when I thought about it and looked back: I’ve had ONE such headache since, and *it* was back in the 80s.

I don’t have nausea so much as rare dramatic reflux incidents, but I understand your concern about edibles. Personally, I consider myself lucky, as I *like* the flavor cannabis gives to butter, and luckily, I’ve never been so ill that I couldn’t take a quarter teaspoon of medicated ghee. I heat it every few days, and the green just gets deeper and darker, so I’ll add a tablespoon of ghee now and then, heat it good every other day, feed it a little more rosin, and it keeps getting stronger. I’ve just taken a week off from the ghee, actually, and I can feel the difference.

The ghee sounds interesting. I don't dislike the flavor, but would like the option for when I'm making a dessert that would benefit from it not being there. It hasn't come up yet, but I am loving being able to make things from trim and ABV. I just used a few drops of tincture under my tongue, and I could see that helping a migraine if I couldn't keep anything down. The bigger issue with the medibles is the length of time before they kick in. Vaping is faster, and I want relief Now. I'd do dabs if someone set them up and there was rosin on hand.
@ClearBlueLou, I'm so pleased you aren't having the headaches any more.

 

[His_Highness]

I've said this before: Botox migraine treatments (Given every 3 months) gets my wife migraine free for 2.5 months. The Botox wears off 2 weeks before the next treatment at the 3 month mark and then it takes 5 days to kick in ..... so with just the Botox she would have migraine pain at level 8 and mostly above for 3 weeks out of every 3 months. Cannabis during those 3 weeks where the Botox wears off was the only thing keeping us out of the emergency room where all they do is jack her up with dilaudid to force her to sleep and grogginess. I didn't even think they gave dilaudid anymore. It took a decade to find the Botox. We had no life before it. She even jumped at the chance at brain surgery to remove a benign aneurysm even though she was told it wouldn't help and it didn't. In fact it made things worse during the recovery because she had to deal with the pain of the surgery with the migraines.

Vaporizing relieves the nausea 100% and provides enough "happy" and "chill" and minor pain relief to take the edge off but she had to wake and bake immediately "If she even got some sleep". During that ugly 3 week period she had to go hard at the cannabis 24/7.

What I haven't said before: Recently she was given that new drug from Amgen called Aimovig. It's not a cure but in it's own way it was a miracle drug for her. Aimovig lasts 30 days so we staggered it so she takes it just about 3 days before the Botox wears off hoping to bypass that ugly 3 week period of pain. The doctor had an emergency of his own so her next Botox appointment got postponed by a week. Between the Botox and Aimovig she was almost pain free for 6 months straight even with the postponement which is why I called it a miracle. Even when the migraines tried to assert themselves it was at a level well below what she would normally feel. The migraine doctor/neurologist said we were finding out what some of his other patients were finding .... Aimovig in conjunction with the Botox, staggered to be at its peak when the Botox weakens may be the combination she was looking for. Fingers crossed....

EDIT: Forgot to mention that Aimovig on it's own isn't the cure for her....we know because as I mentioned above ... it did help a bunch when the Botox wore off but it didn't keep her 100% pain free like the Botox.

 

[Madri-Gal]

I've said this before: Botox migraine treatments (Given every 3 months) gets my wife migraine free for 2.5 months. The Botox wears off 2 weeks before the next treatment at the 3 month mark and then it takes 5 days to kick in ..... so with just the Botox she would have migraine pain at level 8 and mostly above for 3 weeks out of every 3 months. Cannabis during those 3 weeks where the Botox wears off was the only thing keeping us out of the emergency room where all they do is jack her up with dilaudid to force her to sleep and grogginess. I didn't even think they gave dilaudid anymore. It took a decade to find the Botox. We had no life before it. She even jumped at the chance at brain surgery to remove a benign aneurysm even though she was told it wouldn't help and it didn't. In fact it made things worse during the recovery because she had to deal with the pain of the surgery with the migraines.

Vaporizing relieves the nausea 100% and provides enough "happy" and "chill" and minor pain relief to take the edge off but she had to wake and bake immediately "If she even got some sleep". During that ugly 3 week period she had to go hard at the cannabis 24/7.

What I haven't said before: Recently she was given that new drug from Amgen called Aimovig. It's not a cure but in it's own way it was a miracle drug for her. Aimovig lasts 30 days so we staggered it so she takes it just about 3 days before the Botox wears off hoping to bypass that ugly 3 week period of pain. The doctor had an emergency of his own so her next Botox appointment got postponed by a week. Between the Botox and Aimovig she was almost pain free for 6 months straight even with the postponement which is why I called it a miracle. Even when the migraines tried to assert themselves it was at a level well below what she would normally feel. The migraine doctor/neurologist said we were finding out what some of his other patients were finding .... Aimovig in conjunction with the Botox, staggered to be at its peak when the Botox weakens may be the combination she was looking for. Fingers crossed....

EDIT: Forgot to mention that Aimovig on it's own isn't the cure for her....we know because as I mentioned above ... it did help a bunch when the Botox wore off but it didn't keep her 100% pain free like the Botox.

It's wonderful to hear you have a workable system for your wife. I did Botox for a few years, and wouldn't hesitate to get them again if I didn't have my migraines under control. She's lucky to have you.

 

[His_Highness]

She's lucky to have you.

I tell her that all the time!

Seriously - WE'RE lucky to have each other. Happy wife...happy life.... but more importantly when she can't enjoy OUR life neither can I. Her strengths are my weaknesses and visa versa. When it comes to the migraines taking over she can't advocate for herself due to the pain so it's my job and I love my job because WE both benefit greatly.