Acetaminophen / butalbital / caffeine and Migraine: What Users Say

• Ash...
• June 27, 2015

Acetaminophen / butalbital / caffeine for Headache "I had a spinal tap recently and, unfortunately, was in the small percentage of people that have spinal headaches from this procedure. I've had migraines forever, but a spinal headache is by far the most debilitating experience. I was prescribed Fioricet and was taking 2 every 4 hours, it did nothing! I was back hospitalized the next day. So, this may work great for migraines, but anyone prescribed this for spinal headaches, it does not work."

• Nan...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• November 7, 2021

Acetaminophen / butalbital / caffeine for Headache "Chronic daily migraineur since 2004. Fioricet is hit and miss regarding relief. Constant long-term struggle trying many, many modalities. However, I think rebound migraines from 4 - 6 pills daily are contributing to never getting significant sustained relief. I would not recommend using it. I hope to eventually end the use of Fioricet."

• Sco...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• May 27, 2025

For Headache "Since age 16, I’ve suffered frequent tension headaches that quickly become migraines that last days if I don’t treat them at onset with Fioricet. Several other pills, injections, TENS units, therapies, and TMJ surgery have been tried with little to no success. I’m 50 now, and this medicine has given me a life worth living! The only problem is Butalbital causes physical dependence with long-term use. You must slowly taper to avoid withdrawal. It can cause seizures, anxiety, and migraines if you abruptly stop. Phenobarbital has helped as an easier taper substitute. This is the only downside I’ve had with Fioricet because it loses effectiveness every few years, but it returns when you restart it after these occasional 2-month breaks. I hope my experience helps similar users gain more knowledge on how to keep this great product working best for them!"

• Ano...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• July 19, 2025

"This stuff worked like a charm to knock out a migraine. I took this for about 2+ years until it stopped working. I feel like I overused this med and I started getting rebound migraines. I switched to Ubrevly and that didn’t work. It will subside a migraine but not take it away completely. Now I take Nurtec and I love it!"

• laz...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 7, 2017

Acetaminophen / butalbital / caffeine for Headache "Had a seizure for an entire day after not taking this. The situation was a headache, but migraine level, so maybe a migraine. Lights were overpowering, sound was too loud, I couldn’t focus on simply existing. So a hospitalist prescribed me this. After, I had the first seizure of my life, it lasted about half a day. My mother, luckily, was around the house and noticed something was off, but it was hours into seizing that she realized what was happening. I awoke in the hospital restrained to the bed and no idea how I got there. If you take multiple medicines, stay away from Fioricet. Now at every hospital visit, I’m put safely with towels around the bed and have no freedom to even walk. All because of this one experience. Beware of Fioric."