Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan (Imitrex) & Other Triptans: Reddit Reviews

“I have tried it. It doesn’t really prevent headaches for me but clears them up really fast with no side effects.”

Imitrex is in the same family of meds as Nurtec so it also works for me, but Imitrex makes my neck sore/weak. I like Nurtec a lot more!”

“Sumatriptan sucked for me but Nurtec works so well it’s my preventative now. As an abortive, it worked for me in about 20 minutes and the next day I felt great, with no side effects.

Ubrelvy is another good option if Nurtec doesn’t work for you (it seems either one or neither works for most people)

“I am so excited. I am on my 4th Nurtec pill. I take it every other day. I’d been using it as an abortive and it was life-changing.

It has been the only medicine that has kept me from needing to go to urgent care for a Toradol shot. Zero..and I mean ZERO side effects. It works 9/10 times. So I can’t wait to see what it does as a preventative”

“I’m a big fan of Nurtec ODT. It does not preclude you from using triptans. It has fewer health risks than triptans (none for Nurtec I think, vs stroke & serotonin syndrome for triptans).

It has fewer side effects than triptans (none for me, none for most people). As far as I can tell, there is no risk of rebound headaches, although you will find it hard to get more than 8 pills per month to test that hypothesis.

For me, triptans were brutal, and it was always hard to decide whether the migraine symptoms or the triptan side effects would be worse. Nurtec is so much better”

“I love Nurtec and it works amazingly better than any triptans I’ve ever taken. No headache from the triptan.

You know, the triptan gets rid of the headache but then you have a different kind of headache following it”.

“Hit my highest migraine count in a single week, didn’t want to push another triptan fearing rebounds, so finally caved and took the Nurtec sample after months of fretting and avoiding.

I am satisfied with how it worked and will most likely fill an Rx to intermix use with my tried and true sumatriptan”

“Nurtec works wonderfully for my regular migraines but it doesn’t touch my menstrual migraines, I still need my Triptan for those.

Nurtec doesn’t cause rebounds according to my neuro, and it usually gets me through a rebound/MOH cycle from triptans/NSAIDs”.

“Triptans work to dull the pain for like a minute, then I’m right back at full if not greater strength”

“I had good luck with Nurtec, since nausea is now one of my prodrome and migraine symptoms. It dissolves on the tongue, and combined with a Zofran, helps to knock things out pretty quickly.

I’ve only had to add a Fioricet to the mix once for a particularly nasty attack.”

“Ubrelvy/Nurtec don’t seem to have reported side effects – at least not many. I’m sure we’ll get more of a picture as they’re out longer, but with triptans, people feel side effects right away. They also don’t have major contraindications (yet).”

“They might take longer to work, but on the other hand, you don’t have to time them perfectly to your migraine like a triptan.”

“Triptans, on the other hand, have side effects. They’re different for different people and different triptans, but they can be quite severe.”

“For me, they make me feel like my whole body is cramping and I have spasms when I swallow. You can’t take triptans if you have a heart condition. There might be a risk of serotonin syndrome.”

“I was thrilled to get abortives that are not triptans. They seem to be both less dangerous and for me, the side effects of triptans sometimes were worse than the migraine.”

“I haven’t filled the actual Rx yet and I’m glad since this didn’t touch the pain at all and the migraine is still 100% present”

“Going to call in tomorrow and see how long I have to wait till I can take the other sample they sent me home because the internet says 72 hours and I don’t want to wait if I don’t have to.

Plus now I need to know if I can take my sumatriptan even though I hate the side effects”

“This is anecdotal, but I just got prescribed Nurtec to take along with triptans (specifically eletriptan if it matters).

So I’m supposed to take a triptan at the first sign, and then two hours later if it hasn’t worked, worked well enough, or if the migraine is coming back, I take the Nurtec”.

I started that last week and it’s incredible. I’m also taking the Nurtec every other day during my period (because it’s longer-lasting) and I can still take triptans for breakthrough things.

Obviously, everyone is different, but I highly recommend it! ETA: I have a big concern about rebound headaches too because I get 20-25 migraines a month.

I like the idea of Nurtec because it’s so much longer acting that I take half as many pills”

For me, I was prescribed 75mg Nurtec every other day preventative. I prefer it over Topamax or Dopamax as I called it.

It made me dumb after. So anyway, I still have 100mg of sumatriptan for break-through pain, and my word!

This combo has reduced my frequency by over half. My only fight rn is with insurance. I’m getting by with samples.

“I’m on Nurtec as a preventative, once every other day, and also have triptans for whenever I feel a migraine coming.

I’ve gone from 2-3 a week to 1 every week and a half-2 weeks. I’m combining this with physical therapy to strengthen muscles around my neck and shoulders, and a Cefaly device.

I would say the only reason not to try it is if your insurance doesn’t cover it as it can get pricey (with no insurance $900 for an 8-tablet supply.)