Hello All I am asking for some guidance regard ICES use for Migraines. My daughter has suffer for several years with chronic almost continuous Migraine headaches. I purchased the ICES A-9 for her and she has had great success with neck and back pain but no luck with the Migraines. She has tried many different coils placements including inner thighs as mentioned in a previous post still no luck. If anyone has any suggestions please share maybe acupressure points or something we are missing. Thank you in advance for sharing your knowledge!
this doctor may be able to help you find the root cause
zack Bush MD
I would try the doubled coils on each side of the front of her forehead, just above the eyes (frontal lobes).
I do neurofeedback training for migraines and this is roughly the placement of the sensors of the system I use for that. I’m not sure if it will transfer directly, but if the frontal lobes are strong enough, they inhibit the migraine activity leading to fewer, milder, and/or shorter headaches.
What acupuncture points has she tried?
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I’ve had success aborting migraines when I catch them early (aura phase). I used the A9 on medium and placed the stacked coils on my neck below the ear on the side opposite of the eye with the aura. This has worked for years but has gradually taken longer to abort as time goes on. The last time I started to get a migraine, I placed the stacked coils on the back on my neck right at the base of my skull. It almost immediately stopped the aura.
My nephew has had this (under the ear on the neck) abort a migraine, too. His headaches are similar to mine. My niece also had success this way but her headaches are different. They are caused from a head injury 15 years ago and don’t involve the aura.
I gave an A9 to a friend who gets debilitating migraines and it helps with hers but unless she catches it right at the start, it doesn’t abort the headache. The problem is that she often wakes up with one already in process. She told me about the base of the skull location. Even though she can’t always stop one in progress, she says it shortens the duration and pain level. I suspect if she would quit smoking and take care of herself, she’d have less health issues. (diabetes, CRPS etc)
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Thank you!!! * will pass along your info*
none that Im aware of
You might also check out the Avacen technology, which was developed initially for migraines and seems to work for about 90% of users. Although the unit costs around $1,600, it can be used for a one month trial period for about $150
I don’t see that the Avacen research includes anything about migraines…?
@Dbailey – The behind the ear placements should be good for headache relief as this spot would be targeting the parasympathetic nervous system and generally “calming” the system.
Other easily found acupuncture points that have been associated with migraine relief are (1) in the space between the thumb and the first finger and (2) in the inside of the elbow, toward the outside. You could test sensitivity of either of these by applying some finger pressure. If they hurt like crazy, that might be a good spot. 
My suggestion for the the forehead placements would be to try to stop having the headaches all together - or lessen them at least. I forgot that she has the A9 with just the one pair of coils, though. In that case, maybe create a daily routine of above one eye for x minutes, the other eye for x minutes (balance will be important and stacking the coils will help get past the skull), then x minutes or longer below the ear. It might take a while, like with any other pain condition, but she may find that over time, it gets less continuous and less severe.
Just thoughts based on what I do in my office -
My understanding is that although the unit was initially developed as part of a migraine study, they do not as yet have FDA approval for that application. See this link https://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/08/prweb2810384.htm
for a press release just issued re migraine.
I have been using it get more oxygen penetration to treat peripheral neuropathy. Several members of my family use it for headaches, although not migraine per se
Thank you again for your help!
Interesting. But the site seems to just pop today’s date on the press release - today it says it’s new today. 
I’m guessing after 10 years since the pilot study, they must not have had such dramatic results for most people. The mechanisms for other kinds of headaches are different from migraine, so it makes sense to me that other headaches might respond better and more consistently.
Glad it’s making a difference for you – that has to be a huge relief!
Hmmm. Not very confidence inspiring, I agree. Looks like they don’t have the answer
I’ve had incredible success for migraines. The week prior to ordering I had two migraines that had me praying to every deity I could think of. Quite literally, crying in pain. But now if I have the start of one, blurry vision, I put it on and it stops any migraine cold.
I put it on both temples and turn it on max strength. I recommend rechargeable 9-volt batteries so you can leave in your pocket and go about your day.
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@steverhodes1 Have you tried infrared light therapy to help with peripheral neuropathy? Have had great success with it here.
Yes, I have. It works well for increasing blood flow for 3 or 4 hours to improve muscle response. I don’t have associated pain but all the reports I have seen indicate that it is very effective for pain relieve. The effects temporary, though.
About a year ago II replaced near infra red with PEMF with the hope I would get a permanent effect (using a B5 unit). It seems to be given a better response than the near infra red. I don’t know if it would be as effective for pain modulation, which I understand is function of improved blood flow.
Probably would be good to use both modalities, but not enough hours in the day.
Also using hyperbaric oxygen treatment for 1.5 hours weekly. I went on an economy drive a few months ago and dropped the frequency to once monthly. It was a disaster. Condition deteriorated so much in the next two months that I was more than happy to cough up the cash and get back on a weekly schedule.
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Thanks for sharing your detailed experience with all three modalities.
Hi Steverhodes1; just an FYI that is worth looking into. If you need weekly hyperbaric chamber therapy, you may want to look into LiveO2. It has both negative and positive oxygen settings while you exercise and it is supposed to give many of the benefits of hyperbaric, but in a much shorter amount of time. (you can Youtube it). You can buy a home unit for I believe around $4000 and do it daily. I use it professionally in my clinic and it is an incredible modality.
Thanks, SR. I will check it out.
steverhodes1 Reading back through this thread, I wanted to ask: are you dealing with unexplained peripheral neuropathy? I am finding the likely culprit of my unexplained peripheral neuropathy to be peroxynitrite and have had good results the last 3 months with taking the supplements that reduce the production of peroxynitrite and help scavenge the peroxynitrite that is produced.