At what rate does the headache start?
Thank you for the support. Todays the last day.I have missed my babygirl soo much i cant wait to see my duaghter. We have never been apart to much up until i started these infusions but back home before my birthday.Yayyyy!! The headache was almost bearable yesterday and today. Last night was the really high fever,chills and body aches. Didnt want anything to eat much but the headache is at a dull ache at the moment. Using ice packs.
Shelly the headaches for me is almost constant. Its at every infusion rate. I usually get up to 225 by the end of the day. I have to take 5 bottles a day when i come for 5 days every 8 weeks.They have ran saline along with my ivig meds and thats helped tremendously!
Amy, There’s a magazine called IVIg Life or IVIg Today that is free. Do a search and get a subscription.
Have you tried 5mg of prednisone with your IVIG? When I first started my infusions my blood pressure dropped to 50/30 and I passed out in the hospital ICU, freaking them all out. I was still paralyzed at the time and they had to quick lift me from the chair they had me in back into the bed using a crane and rewarm my body. They then lowered the infusion rate and started me on a prednisone drip and I finished the 5 day treatment with no further problems and no headaches. After returning home I continued the monthly 5day infusions but I would take a 5mg tab of prednisone and some benadryl before each and never had a problem. I hope this helps, I hate to see you suffer so.
The magazine is called I.G. Living. Here is the link to their home page:
http://www.igliving.com/
DocMac said:
Amy, There's a magazine called IVIg Life or IVIg Today that is free. Do a search and get a subscription.
Hi Amy,
(sorry, cat jumped on keyboard…lol).
I uses to get wicked migraines after my infusions. I do get premedicated w Benadryl & Motrin, but I do get IV Toradol (30mg) @ the end of each infusion which almost has eliminated all my infusion migraines. I was also told the preservatives, rates of infusion & brand of IgG can also cause headaches (all of which I have discussed with my doc & changed to my benefit to decrease side effects & help me feel better). Also, hydrate copiously prior to, during & after infusions helos with headachs. But definitely aubscribe to IG Living! Its a tremendous resource. Hope that helps. Take care
Thank You sweetheart i will do that.I appreciate the info!
lfreckleton said:
The magazine is called I.G. Living. Here is the link to their home page:
http://www.igliving.com/
DocMac said:Amy, There's a magazine called IVIg Life or IVIg Today that is free. Do a search and get a subscription.
Thank You sooo very much i will look into the tradol. I do drink lots of water before ,during and after my infusions. I also use the benadryl as well as tylenol 3 but found that towards the end of the first set they ran saline along with the IvIg-gammagard towards the end of the infusions which started to help but i was already to far gone into the miagranies to get much relief. This past week they ran saline the whole time and it def helped. The headaches were much better but was more nausated and vommitted alot during this set. But my infusions last for 5 days straight.Smiles lots at the cat jumping on the keyboard. ..i have chiwawas that are 2 and 4 pounds they are full grown to..they are my babies!! Big hugs and thanks again!
NiteOwl said:
(sorry, cat jumped on keyboard...lol).
I uses to get wicked migraines after my infusions. I do get premedicated w Benadryl & Motrin, but I do get IV Toradol (30mg) @ the end of each infusion which almost has eliminated all my infusion migraines. I was also told the preservatives, rates of infusion & brand of IgG can also cause headaches (all of which I have discussed with my doc & changed to my benefit to decrease side effects & help me feel better). Also, hydrate copiously prior to, during & after infusions helos with headachs. But definitely aubscribe to IG Living! Its a tremendous resource. Hope that helps. Take care
Hi Amy:
Yes, with my first loading dose of IVig, I had one of those horrible 10 day migraines you describe. I felt fine a day or two after the infusion but by day 3 afterwards I was in some big time hurt. Since then, my infusion nurse has slowed down the rate and I get saline before and after my infusion and drink plenty of water as well as take the benedryl and the tylenol. The last few infusions were better, but then the doc decided to give me 120 mg of Solumedrol before my infusion and then my blood sugars went thru the roof and I felt weak, shaky, heart palpitations, and faint. It was awful. So the doc took me off IVig altogether in may and switched me to Cellcept and Prednisone. I had horrible diarrhea from the Cellcept which lead to diverticulitis and then I was switched to Imuran and Prednisone in May 2012. A few days before Christmas I started IVig again, felt great and then ended up in the hospital with a blood clot in my arm. So, no two people share exactly the same reactions to the same medications. Each person's body is different. But if I can speak for most, the biggest problem is the headaches post IVig.
Lisa in Mich.
Hello Amy,
Sorry you are having such a hard time. I had a very difficult time when I first started with IVIg too. My nurse and I found that the Toradol works better (for me at least) if I have it before my IVig. Just a thought. Also, my nurse always keeps powerade stocked for us. Try sipping on a Powerade or a Gatorade.For some reason it also helps me with the nausea that comes along with the migrane. I am also diabetic so make sure and grab the sugar-free one because the regular one will make your sugars skyrocket. The powerade had helped me a lot. Just a couple of tips that may help you. Good luck.
I had my infusions at a rate of 50 and experienced no side effects except for a little sweating.
You shouldn’t have that- I had THE WORST migraine after my infusions- and went to the ER. They will give you pre-treatment to prevent it!! My pretreatment was prednisone!
I imagine we’re talking bout the same thing!
Hope this helps!
I don't have migraines but I do have severe "back of the neck" pain and severe headaches - I take treatments every 3 weeks so it's pretty much non stop. I was told to hydrate really well the day before. My nurse didn't see any benefit to that other than finding veins for the IV. I tried it and didn't really seem to make a difference. I wish I had advice for you - just sharing similar experience.
Former Pilot another reason for hydrating during and after is because ivig has large proteins that your kidneys need to filter out. It is really important to flush them out after treatment.