Migraines & Pepsi (pain, cold, plague, doctor)

[Wow009]

My boyfriend gets horrible headaches, randomly.
He says it's happened ever since he was very young. He is now 18, almost 19.
Usually all that can make it go away is a shower and some tylenol..
sometimes that doesn't even help.
He claims that it usually happens when he doesn't drink Pepsi and that drinking Pepsi is the best cure for his headaches.
I think he's crazy.
What do you think?

[ICN2U]

pepsi contains caffeine...he may be getting a "caffeine" headache if he usually drinks it.............
and then misses it.......( as in skips it).

[averagejoe76]

Im used to having caffeine by 8Am and if i sleep in really late on the weekend..
I get horrible headaches.Like ICN2U said its probably the lack of Caffeine.

[Wow009]

Originally Posted by averagejoe76

Im used to having caffeine by 8Am and if i sleep in really late on the weekend..
I get horrible headaches.Like ICN2U said its probably the lack of Caffeine.

I agree that it could be this.
Is there any way to avoid it/prevent it besides not drinking Pepsi ever again (that you know of)?

[Viralmd]

Those do sound like caffeine-withdrawal headaches. Those aren't migraines. Migraines are accompanied by nausea, vomiting, sweating, sensitivity to light and noise and they essentially ruin one's life. If acetaminophen (Tylenol) and a shower sometimes help - even if those measures don't always help but sometimes do - that's not a migraine.

[Wow009]

Originally Posted by Viralmd

Those do sound like caffeine-withdrawal headaches. Those aren't migraines. Migraines are accompanied by nausea, vomiting, sweating, sensitivity to light and noise and they essentially ruin one's life. If acetaminophen (Tylenol) and a shower sometimes help - even if those measures don't always help but sometimes do - that's not a migraine.

Obviously you know much more than I do on the subject, but his headaches do usually include those symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, sweating, and sensitivity to light and noise...
That's why I think it's more than just caffeine-withdrawal.
When he gets these headaches he literally can not do anything but lay in bed with his head covered up until someone else makes him get into the shower or take some Tylenol.

[HealthInRecovery]

Caffeine and sugar. Addictive. Like everyone else said. If he wants a healthy alternative, I have lots of people successfully wean off coffee or caffeinated soda with grean tea. It's got about a third the caffeine of coffee but prevents the withdrawl headaches plus it also has health benefits since it's an antioxidant. Not to mention that anything carbonated can deplete your body of calcium.

[annika08]

Originally Posted by Wow009

Obviously you know much more than I do on the subject, but his headaches do usually include those symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, sweating, and sensitivity to light and noise...
That's why I think it's more than just caffeine-withdrawal.
When he gets these headaches he literally can not do anything but lay in bed with his head covered up until someone else makes him get into the shower or take some Tylenol.

Then it could be a migraine. When I get my migraines, I have to lie down very still in a cool, dark, quiet place. My migraines are intensified by bright lights (especially fluorescent lighting) and loud noises, and I often vomit from them. I've been on prescription medicine (Topamax and Flexirol) for a little over a year now and it does help.

Everyone's triggers and reliefs are different. For some people, caffeine is a major trigger. For others, it helps to relieve them. I have no problem with cola after cola but one cup of coffee can give me an excruciating migraine from h***.

I suggest your boyfriend try keeping a 'headache diary' in order to track when he gets headaches-what types of food he's eaten, what liquids he's drank, other circumstances that may help to define what may have brought the headache on and what may help to alleviate it. It sounds like a pain and alot of work but it'll help in the long run.

On a side note, many over the counter migraine pills (Excedrin Migraine for one) contain caffeine.

[StarryEyedSurprise]

Originally Posted by Wow009

Obviously you know much more than I do on the subject, but his headaches do usually include those symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, sweating, and sensitivity to light and noise...
That's why I think it's more than just caffeine-withdrawal.
When he gets these headaches he literally can not do anything but lay in bed with his head covered up until someone else makes him get into the shower or take some Tylenol.

One of the worst days of my life was the first day of vacation during the summer of 2007. I woke up, and was off my routine (I was a big time soda drinker). Had no caffeine all day, and at 7pm that night on the way to a restaurant, the worst headache of my entire life began. My poor husband thought I was dying - shaky, clammy, nauseous. I made him turn off the radio, and SPEED (in a tourist trap area) the entire way back to the hotel, where I proceeded to be carried in, laid in bed with a cool washcloth covering my eyes, with all the lights turned off. He had to close the blinds (oh how I love how dark hotel rooms can get), and read outside because I wouldn't even let him turn the TV on.

Keep in mind - I was NOT a coffee drinker, only the occassional cup of cappucino when we were out. This can definitely happen with just soda.

Caffeine withdrawal can be THAT debilitating. As a result, my husband and I went cold turkey and quit caffeine entirely (and his migraine was even worse than mine, and I swear I was crying that night). We ended up finding out later on that he was actually ALLERGIC to caffeine - if he has even the smallest dose, he gets heart palpitations.

This sounds exactly like what your boyfriend is going though, best to take it seriously, and I would highly advise he quit caffeine. The only annoying thing for us is that we can't order rum and cokes when out to dinner anymore, since I have yet to find a bar with caffeine free diet soda, but there's plenty of other carbonated beverages he can choose to drink (sprite being one).

[SXMGirl]

My doctor says that caffeine is the best thing for a migraine and that the migraine medications are all caffeine-based. I only get a migraine every few years, and I have the nausea, vomiting, need to be in a dark room with no lights, etc.; but I drink a McDonald's coke and it works for me. I have the greatest sympathy for those who are plagued with migraines.