Excedrin Migraine

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dr150

Diamond Member
Sep 18, 2003
6,570
24
81
Originally posted by: ebaycj
Originally posted by: AVAFREAK182
Anyone tried it? I have chronic migraines which only heavy meds seem to fix (vicodin, etc.)

Today I decided to try Excedrin Migraine.

I must say it works well!

Excedrin Migraine is the EXACT SAME THING as Excedrin Extra Strength (and the generics of said extra strength). Look at the active ingredients.

250mg Acetaminophen
250mg Aspirin
65mg Caffeine

Paying more for marketing = FAIL.

It gets even cheaper if you buy a $3 bottle of aspirin, and a $5 bottle of extra-strength tylenol at costco, and use those + coffee to acheive the same effect.


You FAIL......miserably.

Ya. So when people like us get headaches while driving I'll just reach for the aspirin bottle, tylenol (just as expensive) bottle, and hit Starbucks for a $4 cup of coffee........great cost savings, time, and clutter. :thumbsdown:

Nope. I'll just go to Costco with one of those coupons and stick with Excerdin.

 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
65,650
14,042
146
Save some money and buy the generic equivalent of Excedrin at Target or Walmart.

For me, they work the same.
(my wife is one of those people who is convinced that Bayer is better aspirin) :roll:

You can get about 200 "extra-strength pain reliever" pills at WalMart for about the price of 20 Excedrin...
 

AyashiKaibutsu

Diamond Member
Jan 24, 2004
9,306
4
81
what takes four ibprofen only takes two extra strength excedrin (or equivilent). I like the stuff, but get along with other stuff as well in the right doses.
 

thomsbrain

Lifer
Dec 4, 2001
18,148
1
0
Excedrin works pretty well for me but I don't drink much caffeine so that much caffeine in one shot tends to make me feel weird and sweat. It's a trade-off. If my migraine isn't a bad one, I can usually nip it in the bud with Advil.
 

Gooberlx2

Lifer
May 4, 2001
15,381
6
91
There certainly seems to be a large range of symptoms, even on ATOT. I wonder how the distribution of diagnosed migraine sufferers on ATOT would look like for severity and symptoms.

For my wife's monthly migraine, pain will range from moderate (can work, under medication. Hates life) to agony (can't do anything but try to survive in a cool, dark, quiet place).

Her symptoms usually start with a light headache, then an aura, then metallic taste. Then the headache really starts to set in. Then spots and shapes appear in her vision as the headache gets worse. Every sense is painfully heightened, especially light and sound.

I can understand her frustration when a co-worker will say "oh I've have such a bad migraine today." Then pops a couple asprin drinks some coffee and is fine a half-hour later.
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
65,650
14,042
146
There is a HUGE difference between a bad headache and a clinical migraine.

MOST people don't actually get migraine headaches (or cluster headaches) but instead, have severe headaches from other causes and call them migraines.

Excedrin and other OTC concoctions aren't likely to do much for the clinical migraine. There is a wide variety of prescription drugs that MIGHT help...but each person's migraines are different, so it's often just "trial and error" as the doctor tries different things to try to alleviate the debilitating pain of true migraines.

MOST people who have clinical migraines have some type of "aura" at the onset. That can vary from vision effects to olfactory effects, to tastes.
Mine always started with the metallic taste of blood...like when you have a bad bloody nose...I knew I was in for a bad day or two when that hit me.
Often, I'd just stay in a dark bedroom until it passed. Not much helped. My doctor sent me to the ER a few times for morphine...which provides a great buzz...but for me, did next to nothing for the migraine.

As I said earlier, I seem to have "outgrown" the clinical migraines, but they've been replaced with something nearly as bad...although usually shorter in term, and somewhat controllable with Excedrin.
 
Aug 23, 2000
15,509
1
81
Originally posted by: Phoenix86
Originally posted by: ebaycj
Originally posted by: AVAFREAK182
Anyone tried it? I have chronic migraines which only heavy meds seem to fix (vicodin, etc.)

Today I decided to try Excedrin Migraine.

I must say it works well!

Excedrin Migraine is the EXACT SAME THING as Excedrin Extra Strength (and the generics of said extra strength). Look at the active ingredients.

250mg Acetaminophen
250mg Aspirin
65mg Caffeine

Paying more for marketing = FAIL.

It gets even cheaper if you buy a $3 bottle of aspirin, and a $5 bottle of extra-strength tylenol at costco, and use those + coffee to acheive the same effect.

And yet he probably didn't try it until it said migraine on it. Marketing WIN.

Of course he's better educated and can now purchase the extra strength knowing it's the same.

It's the same price so what's the difference which one he buys?
I just grab the migraine stuff and call it a day.
I go through bouts of severe headaches and 1 Excedrin will take care of it. Or I can take 6 tylenols.
 

Gooberlx2

Lifer
May 4, 2001
15,381
6
91
Originally posted by: BoomerD
There is a HUGE difference between a bad headache and a clinical migraine.

Yeah, that's pretty much what I meant. My wife just wants to punch those people in the noggin', hoping to induce a real migraine so that they might get a clue.
 

moshquerade

No Lifer
Nov 1, 2001
61,504
12
56
Originally posted by: Phoenix86
Originally posted by: ebaycj
Originally posted by: AVAFREAK182
Anyone tried it? I have chronic migraines which only heavy meds seem to fix (vicodin, etc.)

Today I decided to try Excedrin Migraine.

I must say it works well!

Excedrin Migraine is the EXACT SAME THING as Excedrin Extra Strength (and the generics of said extra strength). Look at the active ingredients.

250mg Acetaminophen
250mg Aspirin
65mg Caffeine

Paying more for marketing = FAIL.

It gets even cheaper if you buy a $3 bottle of aspirin, and a $5 bottle of extra-strength tylenol at costco, and use those + coffee to acheive the same effect.

And yet he probably didn't try it until it said migraine on it. Marketing WIN.

Of course he's better educated and can now purchase the extra strength knowing it's the same.

Yeh, I think Excedrin has a Migraine, Extra Strength, Back and Body Pain, Tension Headache, etc. that all contain the very same amount of ingredients.

But it's likely cheaper to buy generic Excedrin than to buy a bottle of 250mg aspirin and a bottle of 250mg tylenol and then ingest enough coffee to get 65 mg of caffeine, like you've suggested.
 

SlowSpyder

Lifer
Jan 12, 2005
17,305
1,002
126
I've tried a lot of different things for some chronic pains as well as infrequent migraines. For me 550mg of naproxen (Aleve is the OTC of this) 750-1000mg of acetaminophen (Tylenol), and a diet coke works well. :) I don't know if I need the diet coke, but I figured at the time I'd just go with a little caffeine since it's in headache meds typically, and that mix worked so I haven't changed it. :p Other then that 100mg of tramadol doesn't hurt, not sure if they help either but I usually have those laying around so why not.

Oddly enough, 'real' opiates don't generally seem to help my headaches when I have them. That's a shame because any excuse for some oxycodone works for me. :p
 

BoomerD

No Lifer
Feb 26, 2006
65,650
14,042
146
Originally posted by: SlowSpyder
I've tried a lot of different things for some chronic pains as well as infrequent migraines. For me 550mg of naproxen (Aleve is the OTC of this) 750-1000mg of acetaminophen (Tylenol), and a diet coke works well. :) I don't know if I need the diet coke, but I figured at the time I'd just go with a little caffeine since it's in headache meds typically, and that mix worked so I haven't changed it. :p Other then that 100mg of tramadol doesn't hurt, not sure if they help either but I usually have those laying around so why not.

Oddly enough, 'real' opiates don't generally seem to help my headaches when I have them. That's a shame because any excuse for some oxycodone works for me. :p

Be careful with the large doses of acetominophen. They're trying to reduce the daily dose and the level at which it can become toxic/cause liver problems.

For decades, 4000 mg was the maximum daily dose. The last story I read said that 3000 mg was too much.

I don't know how you can take tramadol. I have 2 different formulations of it.
Does NOTHING for pain, doesn't get me "buzzed" like the "good candy" such as oxycontin, yet the next day, all I want to do is sleep... Wierd stuff for me.

IME, oxycodone is best when you wash it down with a couple of beers...or good strong mixed drinks.
(WARNING! this is not for those with weak "constitutions." It just might kill the average person...)
 

DT4K

Diamond Member
Jan 21, 2002
6,944
3
81
Originally posted by: thomsbrain
Excedrin works pretty well for me but I don't drink much caffeine so that much caffeine in one shot tends to make me feel weird and sweat. It's a trade-off. If my migraine isn't a bad one, I can usually nip it in the bud with Advil.

I call BS.

No way can you prevent or get rid of a migraine with just Advil.

The only reason Excedrin might help (a little) is that caffeine actually does help with migraines and the aspirin and acetaminophen probably take a tiny bit of the edge off the pain.

I've had headaches on a fairly frequent basis as far back as I can remember. Once in awhile, I would get one bad enough that I wondered if it was a migraine. Then about 3 years ago I actually had my first migraine. Totally different.
 

SunnyD

Belgian Waffler
Jan 2, 2001
32,674
146
106
www.neftastic.com
Ibuprofen gets me buzzed. I take two at the first sign of a headache before a migraine gets to the point where I want to gouge my eyes out with an ice pick cooled to near absolute zero temperature.

The nice little side effect of the ibuprofen is that it usually gets me "high"... to the point where I've got shitloads of energy. God forbid I have to take two before bed.
 

Cogman

Lifer
Sep 19, 2000
10,284
138
106
Just watch out, for many, caffeine (or lack there of) can CAUSE headaches. Don't get yourself hooked on it.
 

Tremulant

Diamond Member
Jul 2, 2004
4,890
1
0
Usually when I get a migraine I get the aura and start seeing spots. It gets really hard to concentrate and then it's just PAIN PAIN PAIN PAIN PAIN.

The last one I got, on Sunday night, skipped the aura and spots, since I was sleeping.. just woke up with the pain instead. And it's Wednesday now and I still have a slight headache. I wonder if something I ate on Sunday triggered it. I don't recall eating (or doing) anything out of the ordinary over the weekend.
 

JDub02

Diamond Member
Sep 27, 2002
6,209
1
0
Originally posted by: Clair de Lune
Don't you love it when you finally find meds that works beautifully with your body?

I had these severe seasonal allergy and none of these Claritin or Benadryl would treat it. Then I tried the god-send known as Zyrtec. OMFG, it's my life saver. SO IS PRILOSEC!

i wish zyrtec would work for me. cleared up my sinuses, but it made me so drowsy and loopy that it was unbearable.