Botox for headaches and migraines?

botox for migraine headache migreeni päänsärky

In a collaboration with Ebeling dentists
/ treatment gifted

 

I’ll never forget my first migraine. I puked, suffered the worst headache I’ve ever experienced and felt horrible for three days straight. These were my migraines as a child.

As I got older, my migraines turned less severe. They usually lasted only for a day. But even that one day was torture. The next day after my migraine I always felt reborn and amazing. Just because the contrast between being in migraine versus feeling normal was huge.

Anyone who’s experienced migraines probably gets what I’m talking about.

Botox for migraine and headache

I’m very lucky, because nowadays my migraines are very mild. I don’t know what has happened, but I’m not complaining. I only get headache that is nowhere near as bad as it could be. It’s been several years since I last had a proper migraine (though the possibility and fear of having one never really leaves you).

As you might know, I take botox for bruxism and it’s been a tremendous help. Bruxism can also cause headaches and it’s weird, how it shows up in different parts of the body – not only the jaw area.

Headaches are still something I get occasionally. I also sometimes get this migraine-like pain around my eyes, so I was eager to try botox. Another big thing is that I frown a lot. I do it constantly. I also frown when it’s sunny or bright outside. Frowning can cause headache too. Obviously it also causes wrinkles and can make you look a bit angry. Some take botox just for this reason and I understand that.

Lifting your eyebrows a lot can also cause headaches and horizontal lines on the forehead.

On my latest appointment my dentist Sakari Ebeling injected botox on my jaw, temples (those are the ‘regular areas’), neck and between my brows. Where the botox is injected is always personal so these areas and the amount vary depending on the person.

My dentist Sakari Ebeling said this about treating migraine with botox:

“We’ve got good results with botulin toxin for patients that suffer from migraine. The migraine episodes are milder, they are less frequent and they can even stay away. Patients have also received good results for bruxism or tension headaches. When treating migraine, the typical areas which are injected are the muscles on the temples, forehead, between brows and muscles on the base of the skull. It must be taken into account though, that the results vary and not everyone necessary get the help they hope to get.”

 

Before & after botox for frown lines

botox for frown lines before and after

I noticed a change in my frown lines about a week after taking botox. I couldn’t frown as hard as I used to. I was shocked to see how well it has worked and these photos also explain why botox in the jaw works so well. The muscles simply can’t work as hard as they used to, therefore you can’t clench your teeth together as much and therefore there is less pain and problems.

 

How long does the effect last?

The time between my appointments this time was nine months. That’s a long time, because there’s no promise as to how long the effect lasts. It’s usually around 3-6 months. The results tend to get better with second appointment, since the symptoms have not gotten as bad as before. At least in my experience that has happened, because on my first time, the result lasted for 4 months, but after that it’s been 6-9 months. I can’t say if I’ve seen some long term improvement, but it sure feels like that.

As always, I’m happy with my results. If you want to read more about my experience with taking botox for bruxism, I recommend reading my earlier posts (here and here). My dentist also answered some questions there!

If you would like to try botulin treatment, I got a discount for you. When taking the treatment for bruxism (399€), extra areas are 50€/per area (normally 100€). You can take it for example on your forehead, on your frown lines or back of the skull. For aesthetic botulin treatment only, you can get it for 99€ per area (normally 199€). You can only use the discount once.

 

Info & booking
Ebeling hammaslääkärit

 

Have you tried botox for either bruxism or frown lines?

P.S. This makeup look can be found on my IG highlights – it was one of the #fullfacefriday tutorials!

A ferritin test revealed that I had iron deficiency

 

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Last December I went to get my blood tests done. I bought a blood test set from *Puhti. It’s a new service, where you can choose what tests you want to get done, without doctor’s referral.  I didn’t even know about it until Risto told me. He’s very excited about everything health related and he wants all the information he can get. Once again, I was lucky to have him push me in the right direction.

 

I went just to check that everything’s fine. You don’t really get blood tests done in a normal appointment on the public side, unless you have some problems or symptoms. I felt fine, except that I was a bit tired. I though it was just the winter. Well – if I hadn’t gone I don’t know how bad my situation would have got. Because the ferritin test revealed that I was actually very low on iron.

Puhti blood tests – my experience

It’s easy to choose and buy the tests you need and then you can just schedule an appointment in a lab. It’s actually awesome – normally going in a lab you need to wait about an hour, or more. Now I could just go and have it done in less than 10 minutes.

I bought *the test set for active women, since I exercise a lot. It has basically all the information you can get, including your cholesterol, vitamin levels, creatine, blood sugar, CRP, thyroid and liver levels. I was interested to get an idea of my overall fitness.

I’m also a vegetarian so I was intrigued to see how my B12 and D levels were.

I got the tests done in December 2019. I got some of the results on the same day and the rest the next day. And guess what? I was almost as healthy as a horse! My vitamin D and B12 were great. I actually do take supplements for them.

 

Low on iron & magnesium

The bad news was my low ferritin level and also low magnesium level. They both may have something to do with the fact that I run a lot. Low iron is also explained by my diet. I don’t really get iron from my food easily, since I’m a vegetarian.

Getting that information was a shock and a relief. I realized I had been tired. And just trying to push through. I felt bad for feeling tired, which made me feel lazy. Now I know I had a good reason for sleeping late and napping!

Immediately I bough iron drink and Risto bought me iron tablets from amazon. He orders most of our vitamins there and judging on the data, I’d say they’re working pretty great.

The iron I take is *natural element’s EISEN, which has 40g of iron and vitamin C. I took it every morning on an empty stomach for about 3 months. The last month I have been less precise with it and just taking it a few times a week maybe.

I also started to take magnesium in the evening more religiously. Before I only took it every so often.

New tests in five months

On May 2020 I took my ferritin and magnesium levels again and was pleased to find out they were both fine! This time I only bought these two tests.

In just five months, my ferritin level rose from 16,6 to 50,9 μg/l. I had heard that getting your ferritin up is difficult, but I think it happened pretty fast. I also started to feel better – less tired and I did not get out of breath as easily as before.

One of the important questions: what does my stomach think of the iron supplement?

I’ve heard that iron can be rough on your stomach. And I was a bit worried, since my stomach is sensitive. At first it took some getting used to to taking iron every day. I had some mild stomach issues, but nothing serious. Very quickly I got used to it and it didn’t affect me at all. I think the fact that I take it on an empty stomach and that it has vitamin C helps it to absorb.

All in all I would definitely recommend the service, if you want to get an idea of your fitness. You can also choose specific tests, so if you doubt that you’re low on iron for example, you can just buy the ferritin test or get the ferritin + vitamin D set. See all the tests and sets on *Puhti.

Have you ever experienced iron deficiency? Do you think paying for blood tests is crazy?

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