• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2026 Survey »

Migraine when hypo

MH2010

MH2010

Well-Known Member
Messages
438
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Xmas eve and most of Xmas day, my bgl was very low, nothing would bring it up and for the first time in my life I actually felt like death with a MAJOR migraine which lasted 3 days.

Yesterday I started getting a headache and checked levels, 1.3, no rhyme or reason for it, was sitting at 5.4 about 20mins earlier and had done nothing but laze about.

Tonight again, major migraine, head pounding, level has dropped to 1.6.

2 questions,

1) Does anyone have any idea why this would be happening?

2) What's the best thing to do about the migraines? Painkillers arent doing anything and I dont want to bother NHS24 for the sake of a few headaches when DR is open on Tuesday.
 
I'd start with some basal tests just to make sure your not injecting too much basal insulin, once you know the basal dose is right you can then look at your I:C ratio's.

I'm not sure which meds work best for a migraine, but dropping so quick would make anyone feel awful, hope you get things sorted @MH2010
 
As a migraine sufferer myself there isn't much I can do about it once it has started. Some minor relief can be achieved with over the counter pain killers (Ibuprofen works best for me) but I just have to let it run its course. Doesn't normally trouble me for more than a few hours though, never had the 3 day type!

I also get the pounding head symptoms when my BG's go too low but that's not in itself a migraine. Do you get any other symptoms? Nausea? Disturbed vision?
 
@urbanracer nausea is the only other symptom. Ibuprofen does nothing for me :(

@noblehead basal is perfect so are ratios.

I havent been eating too much lately cause just havent been in the mood and one of my friends said it could be a starvation headache or something?
 
MH2010 said:
I havent been eating too much lately cause just havent been in the mood and one of my friends said it could be a starvation headache or something?
Click to expand...

Or possibly dehydration, make sure to drink plenty even when you don't feel like eating.

You say your basal insulin is fine @MH2010, but if your going hypo in the absence of food & fast-acting insulin then this means that your taking too much basal, basal is a background insulin and is meant to keep your bg levels stable even in periods of fasting.
 
Some migraines are triggered by particular foods or food combinations.

(I know someone who gets one if they eat chocolate and orange within 4 hours of each other)

I can't help you with insulin advice, but is there anything that you have recently introduced to your diet (maybe an Xmas food?) that could have overloaded your system?
 
I get migraines and find the pink Migraleve tablets help a lot if taken early enough. Then the yellow ones if needed.

You say you've been eating less - have you adjusted your meal time insulin to allow for that?
 
MH2010 said:
1) Does anyone have any idea why this would be happening?

2) What's the best thing to do about the migraines?
Click to expand...

Poor you - migraines are horribly debilitating and often seem to strike just when it's least convenient. My answers to your questions are:

1. Hypoglycaemia is one cause of migraines: it used to trigger mine even before I developed diabetes. Thus it makes sense that hypos could be a trigger - so work out how to avoid them and you'll be solving two health problems in one :).

2. I find that ibuprofen helps more than paracetamol, especially if I take it with strong black coffee. However, Naproxen, another NSAID that's marketed as a period painkiller, helps a lot more. I get mine on prescription, and the doctor prescribes Losec, a proton pump inhibitor, to avoid the risk of damage to the stomach lining from taking an NSAID on an empty stomach. But I know migraine sufferers for whom NSAIDs do nothing but who gain relief from Paramax, a combination of paracetamol and the anti-nausea drug maxolon, which I think is prescription only.

Good luck,
Kate
 
Hypos can cause migraines, but migraines can also cause hypoglycaemia as, for many people, their digestion 'shuts down' and doesn't absorb food as normal. This happens to me.
 
So the question I'd have is is this the first time you've had a migraine?
 
I'm type 2 (diagnosed just over 2 years ago) and I've been a chronic migraines suffer since my teens, and take beta blockers as a preventative and sumatriptan (both on prescription) to help stop an attack once it's started. No over the counter medications have ever worked for me. Stress, changes in air pressure - e.g. stormy weather, hunger, and a few foods or certain combinations can be triggers - one of the worst I had being a combination of red wine and blue cheese.

kesun said:
1. Hypoglycaemia is one cause of migraines: it used to trigger mine even before I developed diabetes. Thus it makes sense that hypos could be a trigger - so work out how to avoid them and you'll be solving two health problems in one :).Kate
Click to expand...

Kate, I never knew about a hypoglycaemia connection, but I do know that many years ago before I was put on sumatriptan I would occasionally get the start of a migraine and have the most awful sugar cravings to the extent of sitting and scoffing the contents of the sugar bowl, in spite of thinking "YUK! I don't really fancy eating all this..."

But certainly eating regularly as well being aware of food triggers helps me. And since starting a low carb diet and getting my sugar levels down I get both less frequent and much less severe attacks.

azure said:
Hypos can cause migraines, but migraines can also cause hypoglycaemia as, for many people, their digestion 'shuts down' and doesn't absorb food as normal. This happens to me.
Click to expand...
I was told about inability to digest by a previous doctor, many years ago, as it may also stop medication being absorbed after a migraine's started - which is often why painkillers may not work. Some bad sufferers may need injections or suppositories instead.

So please see your doctor and if you get a definite migraine diagnosis you'll hopefully be able kill two nasty birds with one stone, as Kate's suggested.

Robbity
 
azure said:
Hypos can cause migraines, but migraines can also cause hypoglycaemia as, for many people, their digestion 'shuts down' and doesn't absorb food as normal. This happens to me.
Click to expand...


Didn't know that could be possible @azure
 
azure said:
I believe it's why they recommend taking meds at the first sign of a migraine as they may not be absorbed so efficiently in the midst of an attack. I've certainly found that true.
Click to expand...
I find the same. The reason I wash the medicine down with black coffee is that the coffee helps absorption. Some people say that putting something warm into your stomach as soon as a migraine begins also slows the digestion shutting down.

This probably belongs in the "silly things doctors have said" thread, but when I first developed migraines with the onset of puberty my GP said comfortingly "Never mind, they'll probably stop once you reach the menopause." A cheering thought for a 12-year-old.

Kate
 
Back
Top