Top Tips on Taking Pain Medication for Migraines

1. It may be best to take the maximum allowed dose as soon as the headache begins rather than taking smaller doses.

2. Take the full dose of painkiller. For an adult this means 900 mg aspirin (usually three 300 mg tablets) or 1000 mg of paracetamol (usually two 500 mg tablets). Repeat the dose in four hours if necessary. Soluble tablets are probably best, as they are absorbed more quickly than solid tablets.

3. Ideally, take an anti-inflammatory medicine with some food or milk. This helps to reduce the risk of developing a stomach upset which some people have with these medicines. However, this may not be possible if you feel sick (nausea) or are sick (vomit).

4. One brand of ibuprofen dissolves and disperses in the mouth, and is swallowed with saliva. This may be easier to take than other tablets if you feel sick.

5. One brand of diclofenac comes as a suppository. This may be useful if you usually vomit with a migraine attack.

6. It is best not to use codeine and medicines containing codeine, such as co-codamol, to treat migraine. This is because codeine can make feeling sick (nausea) and being sick (vomiting) worse, which can make migraine worse. They are also more likely than paracetamol or aspirin to cause a condition called medication-overuse headache (also called 'medication-induced headache') if you use them frequently.