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

Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan

Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan (Imitrex) and other Triptans is a comparison of the patient’s reviews of these two migraine medications.

Some reviews of Ubrelvy’s comparison with other Triptans including Sumatriptan have also been mentioned here.

Likewise, other than Sumatriptan (Imitrex), reviews of comparisons of Rizatriptan (Maxalt) and Eletriptan (Relpex) with Nurtec or Ubrelvy have also been mentioned here.

Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan (Imitrex)

FDA-Approved Indications of Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan:

Nurtec and Triptans (Sumatriptan, Rizatriptan, Eletriptan, Zolmitriptan, Almotriptan, Frovatriptan, etc) are both FDA-approved medications for the treatment of acute migraine headaches (as an abortive medicine).

However, Nurtec (Rimegepant) has also been FDA-approved for the prevention of episodic migraine headaches.

Onset and Peak Effects of Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan:

Nurtec is available as ODT (orally disintegrating tablets). It has an onset of action in about 20 minutes with a peak effect in about two hours.

Imitrex (Sumatriptan) has an onset of action of 10 to 30 minutes, depending on the route of administration of the drug. When administered subcutaneously, it has the fastest onset of action of 10 minutes compared to intranasal and oral administration (15 – 30 minutes).

The peak effect of Imitrex (Sumatriptan) can be observed within 2 to 4 hours of administering the drug.

Side effects of Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan:

Nurtec has comparably very few side effects as Sumatriptan (Imitrex). Nurtec is especially considered to be safe in patients with hypertension, ischemic heart diseases, and cerebrovascular conditions.

Unlike, Nurtec, Sumatriptan (Imitrex) is contraindicated in patients with ischemic heart diseases, peripheral arterial diseases, angina, uncontrolled hypertension, and those with a history of hemiplegic migraine.

Nurtec and Sumatriptan Together:

Sumatriptan (Imitrex) like any Triptan can be used as an abortive medicine to treat acute migraine headaches in patients who are already using Nurtec for the prevention of episodic migraine headaches.

When combined with Sumatriptan (Imitrex), Nurtec (Rimegepant) does not increase the vascular side effects associated with Imitrex.

Reviews of Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan (Imitrex) on Reddit:

Some people related and compared their experiences using other abortive drugs such as Sumatriptan. Most people had to switch to Nurtec because of the bad side effects associated with the Triptans.

Only a few migraine patients had a comparatively better experience with Sumatriptan (Imitrex) compared to Nurtec (Rimegepant).

The majority of migraine patients had a better experience using Nurtec and wrote positive reviews about Nurtec (Rimegepant).

Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan: Reviews of people who found Nurtec better than Sumatriptan (Imitrex):

 

Nurtec worked freaking great!

“I started seeing a neuro only a few months ago. The first abortive we tried was sumatriptan, which didn’t really do anything for me.
Next visit, she gave me samples of Nurtec and they worked freaking great so I just have to call her for a script when I need them”
 

If Nurtec Works, It Really Work!

“If Nurtec works for you it works. Sumatriptan and any other triptans make my migraines worse. Nurtec on the other hand solves most of my migraines.
Like I’ve literally never found any relief for mine and Nurtec just evaporates my migraines. With zero side effects”
 

I like Nurtec a lot more!

“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!”

 

Nurtec is my Triptan

Nurtec has become my triptan replacing saving grace, hope it does the same for you. Literally had one help me today.
 

Nurtec Works Well!

“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 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”

 

It works 75% of the time

“So I just started it has worked well 75% of the time, though this was better than my triptans”
 

Nurtec is better than triptans

Nurtec is so much better than Triptans!
 

I am a big fan of Nurtec

“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!

“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”.

 

I am satisfied with how it worked

“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”

 

Its amazing!

“Nurtec is what I got put on when my triptan stopped working well for me it’s been amazing. I don’t get any notable side effects”.
 

Nurtec works wonderfully

“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”.

 

Nurtec was very effective

“I switched to using Nurtec as an on-instance med instead of rizatriptan about a year ago. It was very effective at stopping a migraine from getting past a 3 or 4 on the pain scale, and I felt like I had fewer migraines a month (down from 8 to 4 a month).
Maybe about 7 months in, I noticed that it only was working about 60% of the time and now I feel like it only stops the migraine every 1/5 times, though it prevents the migraine from going past a 7 on the pain scale”.
 

I had a good luck with Nurtec

“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.”

 

I like it a lot!

“I like it a lot. Usually works within an hour, and has no side effects. So much better than sumatriptan.”
 

Few side effects!

“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.”

 

Nurtec is amazing!

“Nurtec is AMAZING. I was experiencing 12-48hr migraines twice a week when I finally sought out medical treatment.

I was first prescribed gabapentin and sumatriptan (Imitrex). I’m still on the GABA and find that it’s helpful for reducing my anxiety which is one of my triggers.”

“The sumatriptan worked but it would give me brain fog, made me sleepy, and I’d get tingly arms. It would get rid of my migraines but I couldn’t function properly at work, so I’d avoid taking them during the day.”

“Nurtec has changed everything for me. When I take it at pain onset, my migraine is gone in two hours and I have zero side effects.

I’ve been using it for 6 months now and while my pain onset frequency hasn’t changed, migraine duration is never more than 2-4 hours.”

“It can also be used as a preventative. I’m not formally using it that way (waiting on more long-term research), but my neuro encouraged me to take it in the morning on days I was worried about migraines.

For example, I took one the morning of my wedding to avoid a migraine, and whaddya know? No migraine!”

“It has seriously changed my life. I really hope it works for you too.”

 

I really like Nurtec!

“I really like Nurtec. It doesn’t give me the rebound headaches that eletriptan does.”

 

I switched to Nurtec

“I switched from Maxalt to Nurtec. I like Nurtec a lot better and overall my migraines are less intense since starting Nurtec. I’m using it as an abortive not preventative”

 

Never looked back!

“Made the switch and absolutely never looked back. I can’t stand needles so the injection-based ones are out, and one of my best friends’ moms uses a self-injector and says the site hurts for 2-3 days after even if it keeps migraines away.”

 

Nurtec takes my symptoms away!

“I have found Nurtec to be the one thing that takes my symptoms away, without any weird side effects, and gets me back to “non-headache me” not a “different version of me but with no headache” like triptans did.”

 

Nurtec has been great!

“Nurtec has been great for me. I still rotate it with Maxalt but it’s my favorite. More effective, you can take it later in the migraine and still get relief, and fewer side effects.”

 

Clears up my migraine completely

“As long as I take it in time, it usually clears up my migraine completely. When it doesn’t, it takes them from like an 8/10 to a 2-3/10.”

“I’m also on Ajovy which is a CGRP blocker, so my migraines have been less intense than they used to be and less frequent.

On the rare occasion, I haven’t taken it timely, it doesn’t work at all but that’s been my own fault for waiting”

 

Nurtec is amazing!

“Nurtec is amazing for me. I’ve been on it since 12/2020. It is the best med thus far.”

 

Nurtec Vs Sumatriptan: Reviews of people who found Sumatriptan (Imitrex) better than Nurtec (Rimegepant):

 

Nurtec did nothing

“Nurtec did nothing for me. Ubrelvy on the other hand helps quite a bit. Unfortunately, there is nothing that can take the place of Imitrex (sumatriptan) though.
 

Nurtec doesn’t work

“Nurtec doesn’t work for me either, I use sumatriptan injections. Works every time”

 

People who use Nurtec and a Triptan Together:

 

I have to take Sumatriptan

“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”

 

I just got prescribed nurtec and triptans

“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”.

 

Its incredible

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”

 

I am on Nurtec every other day

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 have gained cognitive function back

“I’ve been on Nurtec every other day for 2 months and it’s given me a lot of cognitive function back with no side effects. I have naratriptan to use on days I take Nurtec”.
 

I am on preventative Nurtec!

“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.)

 

I use both – Nurtec and Sumatriptan

“I use both Nurtec and Sumatriptan. Absolutely love Nurtec and take it every other day as a preventative. I only use the sumatriptan now if I get a migraine and am within 24 hours of my Nurtec dose.”
 

Just started taking Nurtec!

“I just started taking Nurtec and it took a while for me to get used to it and I’d have to say it does work faster and better than Eletriptan. Side effect?
Just small shortness of breath which I’m ok with because Eletriptan makes me groggy and I can deal with this than feeling groggy.”
“But any small sign of headache I’m taking Excedrin tension headache pill right away and have an ice-cold eye mask on and if it doesn’t go away within a couple of hours then I revert back to Eletriptan.”

What do you think?

Written by Dr. Ahmed

I am Dr. Ahmed (MBBS; FCPS Medicine), an Internist and a practicing physician. I am in the medical field for over fifteen years working in one of the busiest hospitals and writing medical posts for over 5 years.

I love my family, my profession, my blog, nature, hiking, and simple life. Read more about me, my family, and my qualifications

Here is a link to My Facebook Page. You can also contact me by email at contact@dibesity.com or at My Twitter Account
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