I don’t wanna wear anybody out on this thread.. but my pain has increased so much it’s been an especially terrible week… I had to take anti-nausea today because I was going to throw up from the pain.. I have a neurologist that manages my migraines so she gives me medicine but she’s all cash pay and we need to save our pennies right now to go to Scottsdale… Spoke to my nurse practitioner today and she said I need to see a group that does pain management until I get this all done with surgery…
I don’t respond to any of the abortive drugs that the neurologist tried -(now I see why) occasionally Nurtec will lighten a headache, and when it gets really bad I take hydrocodone. I’m excellent at not taking too much and being very careful with it but it’s been so bad lately that I’m taking more than normal… and not only am I almost out I’ve been feeling like I was gonna throw up all day..
I live and function at an eight(pain wise) but 9.5 I can’t take… my nurse practitioner wanted me to go to the ER just to get IV of something until I can see the pain management group Monday-but the ER is so freakishly expensive and I haven’t been able to work because of all of this.
The eye pain, headache jaw pain neck pain they’re so bad today…
How do any of y’all handle this?
I’m so sorry that you’re feeling that bad, I don’t know how you function at an 8 pain-wise, never mind being at a 9.5, so sending you a very gentle hug 
I think to be honest all the usual pain relief options we suggest wouldn’t help if you’re in that much pain; the nerve pain meds can take a couple of weeks to work, lidocaine patches probably wouldn’t be enough, nor magnesium, heat or ice… I think hydrocodone is pretty much the strongest medication that members have used for pain relief… If you have vascular ES symptoms, & the headaches are part of that, if it’s IJV compression then blood thinners can help with that, but if it’s carotid artery compression then that wouldn’t be advised I wouldn’t think…The only other suggestion (I’m Uk so I don’t know if it’s legal ) is medical marijuana, there’s some info in these posts:
Medical Marijuana - general information - Symptoms and Treatments / Complimentary Therapies - Living with Eagle
Medical marijuana for IIH, case report - Symptoms and Treatments / Complimentary Therapies - Living with Eagle
I’m sorry that I can’t offer you any help with this, I hope that the pain management team can offer you something, praying that this eases 
Thanks for that… We may end up at the ER before today’s over.. I have odd reactions to things magnesium always makes my headaches worse… oral or in an IV. A lot of times things natural and medicine do the opposite on me… Kind of the story of life.
I do pretty good managing an 8
I can handle it OK I read on previous pain threads different techniques and I do a lot of them already I know how to focus on something else -changing positions-the hot bath helps me and then cool water on my head-propping up sleeping helps too- like everybody probably on here I have a lot of things I do but 9 1/2 pushes me over the edge and I feel pretty defeated.
marijuana is illegal in Texas I guess medical is not I don’t really know about that… But I do know that I can’t even handle CBD which by the way did help my migraines but after about a month I had such a buildup of THC that I had to go to the hospital… My genetic report specifically says no THC. I told you I’m odd on what I can handle…
@Minh2025 given your IJV compression at C1, I highly suggest you purchase a pillow wedge to prop your head/neck up a bit while you sleep. It will help the IJVs drain while sleeping and may make the starts to your days a bit less groggy and head pressure.
You can get them for around $30 on amazon
I’m sorry too that you react badly with different meds, that makes things even tougher!
I’m also sorry for how much you’re suffering, @Minh2025. It’s awful when symptoms flare up like that for no apparent reason. I think you’ve gotten some good advice from @TML & @Jules & can’t think of anything else to offer at the moment. Getting an Rx to a blood thinner like Plavix or Xarelto could help a lot so if you haven’t gone that route yet, maybe talk to the pain management doctor/therapist you see this week about that.
Thanks i appreciate all the encouragement. Getting IV right now with vitamin C as it is a natural blood thinner, vitamin D because it’s anti-inflammatory and Toradol. I’ll let you know if it helps
@Minh2025 - I sure hope those help. It’s good there are alternatives to the traditional meds used for blood thinning, anti-inflammation & pain.
Maybe I can give back to this forum a little bit with my nutritional experience… A good quality fish oil is a natural blood thinner and it’s anti-inflammatory…
I definitely use a combination of natural and western…
Let me know how they all help, it would be good to have some more natural remedies to add in to the treatments section!
It made a big difference… headache went down didn’t have to take anything else in today is a pretty good day-I think I needed it…
I did vitamin C, lysine, Toradol, B complex and a vitamin D shot…
@Minh2025 - Now that you mention it, I have had to stop my fish oil supplements a week or more before several surgeries I’ve had. I remember now that it was because it’s a natural blood thinner. Thank you for the reminder!
I’m really glad the more “natural” treatment you got at the hospital has helped you. I also practice a mix of natural & western meds. 
I just went through a “Hell” week myself and the best thing for me was to find a position in which symptoms are less painful and then go quiet for many hours at a time.
Since also in TX, Cannabis is a no-no for me as well.
I also took one hydrocodone during this week. It does not really take the pain away, just makes it more tolerable for the 6 or so hours.
My symptoms are different from yours, I mostly have nerve facial pain. I’m also new in these forums, so other than a revealing CT, I do not have an official diagnosis.
That said, I use Gabapentin on an ongoing basis, but I’ve also been given Carbamazepine chewables for acute episodes. For just nerve pain, there are also other medicines – nortriptyline/amitriptyline, oxcarbazepine.
There are also benzodiazepines (e.g., temazepam or lorazepam) used for calming and against anxiety, but one should be just as careful with these as with opioids. Addictive.
In terms of opioids, besides hydrocodone there is tramadol (synthetic). It does not work as well for me, but thought I’d mention.
Oh, and lastly cyclobenzaprine, a muscle relaxant. This one “melts” me, I don’t like taking it.
I juggle these for pain, but I mostly avoid all of them, except for the chewables sometimes and codone sometimes.
However, my motto is to talk to a doctor, get things prescribed for acute episodes, so I can have options.
There is also an ER protocol for patients with nerve pain, but it may not work for you or others (if your pain is not pure nerve agitation).
Truly, for me the best solution is to find my trigger and then try to avoid it. I’ve been partially successful only. If not that, calming and not moving works, but it is difficult.
So, long story long, that’s how I handle my really bad days. I truly hope you’ve managed to recover. 