Acute Migraine Therapy: Effective Treatments and What Actually Works

When a migraine hits, time isn’t just money—it’s relief. Acute migraine therapy, the immediate treatment used to stop a migraine attack once it starts. Also known as abortive therapy, it’s not about prevention—it’s about stopping the pain before it takes over your day. This isn’t about popping a generic painkiller and hoping for the best. It’s about choosing the right tool for the right attack, because not all migraines are the same, and not all treatments work for everyone.

Most people start with NSAIDs, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen or naproxen. They help if the migraine is mild to moderate, especially when taken early. But if you’re past that point—feeling nauseous, light-sensitive, stuck in a dark room—NSAIDs often fall short. That’s where triptans, a class of drugs designed specifically to target migraine pathways in the brain come in. Sumatriptan, rizatriptan, eletriptan—these aren’t just stronger painkillers. They work by narrowing swollen blood vessels and blocking pain signals. Studies show they stop migraines in under two hours for about 70% of users. But they’re not for everyone. If you have heart disease, high blood pressure, or a history of stroke, triptans can be risky.

Then there’s ergotamines, older migraine drugs like dihydroergotamine (DHE). They’re still used, especially in hospitals or for long-lasting attacks, but they come with more side effects—nausea, vomiting, even leg cramps. Newer options like lasmiditan and ubrogepant are changing the game. They don’t constrict blood vessels, so they’re safer for people who can’t take triptans. And injections or nasal sprays? They work faster than pills when you can’t swallow anything down.

What you won’t find in most acute migraine therapy guides is the truth about overuse. Taking painkillers or triptans more than 10 days a month can turn your migraines into chronic ones. That’s medication-overuse headache, and it’s a trap many fall into without realizing it. The goal isn’t to numb the pain forever—it’s to break the cycle.

There’s no one-size-fits-all here. What works for your neighbor might do nothing for you. That’s why knowing your triggers, tracking your attacks, and working with a doctor to match the right drug to your symptoms matters more than any trend or supplement. The posts below give you real comparisons—what’s in your medicine cabinet, what’s prescribed, what’s been tested, and what actually gets people back on their feet.