Anticonvulsant drugs are prescribed widely to treat a range of medical conditions. Among those are bipolar disorders, fibromyalgia, and nerve pain caused by injuries or diseases that adversely affect the nervous system. Treatment options exist for all three which may work better than an anticonvulsant. Some anticonvulsants have been linked to clear clinical benefits, however, and several have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use by people with bipolar disorder, nerve pain, or fibromyalgia. A variety of drugs have been specifically designed to treat migraines. In addition, some drugs commonly used to treat other conditions also may help relieve or prevent migraines. Medications used to combat migraines fall into two broad categories. Pain-relieving medications. Also known as acute or abortive treatment, these types of drugs are taken during migraine attacks and are designed to stop symptoms that have already begun. Preventive medications are types of drugs are taken regularly, often on a daily basis, to reduce the severity or frequency of migraines. Choosing a strategy to manage your migraines depends on the frequency and severity of your headaches, the degree of disability your headaches cause, and your other medical conditions. Migraine-specific abortive medications usually are necessary for moderate to severe migraine headaches. The abortive medications for moderate or severe migraine headaches are different than OTC analgesics. Instead of relieving pain, they abort headaches by counteracting the cause of the headache, dilation of the temporal arteries.