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Do
you suffer with daily headaches or migraines? How do
you cope? Are you constantly reaching for the paracetamol,
aspirin or some other over the counter remedy in the
hope of getting some relief? Or maybe you have got to
the stage where the over the counter medications don’t
work and you have moved on to medication prescribed
by your GP . . . and that doesn’t work either!
It is possible that you are suffering from Medication
Misuse Headache (MMH) which is a condition that has
come to light over the last 10 to 15 years.
The problem was first noticed in association with the
migraine preparations containing ergotamine. Due to
the slow elimination of ergotamine from the body it
can very easily accumulate if taken too frequently and
can lead to exactly the same headache and nausea symptoms
that it is supposed to treat. The end result is that
the migraine sufferer takes yet another dose thinking
it is the start of another migraine and a vicious cycle
begins. As well as having the original headache problem
the medication itself produces a chronic daily headache.
This is MMH.
Whilst ergotamine is rarely used now-a-days it is now
recognised that the same cycle of events can occur with
long term overuse of over the counter analgesics such
as paracetamol and aspirin. Even the new generation
of migraine drugs which includes sumatriptan (Imigran)
and zolmitriptan (Zomig) can produce the same problem.
So what is the answer to MMH? The obvious answer is
to stop the medication but for chronic headache and
migraine sufferers this is easier said than done. Often
a gradual weaning off process is needed but additional
support to help with headache symptoms can make life
easier. This is where regular osteopathic treatment
to release chronic neck tensions can help. Backed up
with self help advice, such as the use of exercises,
recovery may not be easy but it is possible.
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