Overview

Migraine- A chronic medical condition that typically causes severe and painful headaches on one side of the head. It naturally occurs when an individual comes in contact with the triggers. Migraine’s triggers vary from person to person and react to light and sound. Migraine is a sharp excruciating pain which can leave a person in pain for hours and severe ones can go on for more than 2 days. This condition can happen with age and it is suggested that migraines don’t stay for long and can go away over time when dealt with proper and immediate care. Proper treatment is advised to keep this condition under control and if left untreated, it can cause numerous problems interfering with your day to day tasks. Read to know more.

Symptoms of Migraine

Migraine is a condition which is often misunderstood and ignored as regular headaches. Migraines can occur at any age but it’s most likely to start when an individual is a teenager. The symptoms can get worse over time, if left untreated. Migraine progresses through 4 stages, but every individual with migraine don’t necessarily experience all the stages. The stages include:

1. Migraine Prodrome
Before getting a migraine, you may notice these symptoms:
  • Crankiness
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Stiff neck
  • Frequent yawning
  • Loss of appetite
  • Constipation
  • Fluid retention
2. Migraine Aura
In aura, symptoms may show up early or during the headache. It can last for about 20 minutes. Symptoms include:
  • Loss of vision
  • Visual symptoms like flashing lights or zigzag wavy lines
  • Pins and needles feeling in an arm or leg
  • Numbness or weakness in one side of your body
  • Movements you can’t control
  • Trouble talking
  • Hearing sounds that aren’t there
3. Migraine Attack
Mostly considered as severe phase of migraine, where the actual pain occurs. In some cases, attack can be overlapped during an aura. Symptoms include:
  • Affects one side of the head or one eye
  • Nausea
  • Excruciating head pain
  • Vision gets blurry
  • Extra- sensitive to lights
  • Sensitive to smells
  • dizziness
4. Migraine Post-drome
The last phase of the migraine usually lasts about 24 hours after the headache ends. An individual might feel:

  • Drained or washed out
  • Confused
  • Elated
  • Moody
  • Dizzy
  • Sensitive to light and sound
Every person might experience the same symptoms, many individuals might go through a completely different set of symptoms. Since the symptoms vary from person to person, many people can start noticing these symptoms at the earliest stages and most of them aren’t even aware of any of this.

Prevention for Migraine

Migraine is manageable and can be cured by following these preventive measures to maintain your body. Measures include:

Avoiding triggers: An individual must be aware of their triggers and must stay away from or avoid direct contact to induce an easy atmosphere. You need to find out the allergens or irritants that flare up your problem and try taking preventive steps to avoid contact.

Stay hydrated: Dehydration is a key to migraine problems. Keeping up with good water quantity would avoid migraine attacks.

Maintain a healthy sleep schedule: An adequate amount of sleep is necessary for people who are caught up with migraine. By maintaining a good sleep cycle, you can notice the change in your everyday activities.

Manage stress: Stress is a basic principle of migraine and excessive stress can cause migraine which might last up to hours and days. Practicing deep breathing techniques, medication, muscle relaxation and yoga and help in managing stress.

Exercise regularly: Engaging in physical activity can reduce the frequency of stress and will also keep your body fit and healthy leading to a good life.

Inhibit skipping meals: Skipping meals can lead to stress and hormonal changes which isn’t a good sign for the individuals with migraine. It can cause low/ high blood sugar level which will trigger migraine attack eventually.

Limit smoking, alcohol and caffeine use: The consumption/ intake of toxic substances like alcohol, smoking and caffeine can lead to dehydration which is another trigger of migraine. To prevent any migraine attacks, individuals are advised to inhibit the use of the substances.

Causes of Migraine

Migraine can be sparked not only by sound and lights but also by weather conditions and fatigue. Researchers haven’t yet deciphered the exact cause of migraine eruption but genetics, environmental factors and abnormalities in the brain are believed to be causing migraine to an individual. Migraines can occur at any point of the day when an individual comes into direct contact with the triggers.

Migraine is believed to be caused due to abnormal brain activity that adversely affects the signalling of the nerve, blood vessels and the chemicals in the brain. Imbalances in the brain chemicals including serotonin and changes in the brainstem are supposed to regulate pain in the nervous system.

What are Migraine Triggers?
Migraine can occur due to various factors and the most common trigger includes stress. Stress causes a direct impact on the brain, hence misbalancing the system and chemical processes in the brain.

  • Loud sounds
  • Bright lights
  • Skipping meals
  • Hormonal changes
  • Dehydration
  • Severe heat
  • Genetics
  • Weather changes
  • Food additives
  • Caffeine
  • Physical activity
  • Changes in sleep schedule
  • Alcohol
  • Pungent/ unusual smells
  • Smoking/ tobacco intake
  • Usage of medications (oral contraceptives)

Types
It is necessary for an individual to know what type of migraine’s category he/she falls under. There are various types of migraines but the most common types of migraine are migraine with aura and migraine without aura, which basically incorporates headache that occurs on one side of the head along with blurred vision, changes in mood, and most importantly nausea. Many people experience both types of the migraines. While migraine can become a part of your health at any stage but knowing what type of migraine has caught you up is essential.

Types of migraine

Migraine without aura: The most common type of migraine, individuals experience at least five attacks and are sensitive to light and sound. The attack lasts for about 4 to 72 hours if medications doesn’t work. The pain level fluctuates with the physical activity.

Migraine with aura: Another common type of migraine, individuals experience at least 2 attacks and are prone to experience pain on one side of the head, including speech, vision, eye problems, flashes of light, blind spots, temporary blindness.

Menstrual migraine: This type of migraine flares up when it’s linked to periods. This type of migraine is usually without aura and happens 2 days before you start your period and last for 3 days after your period. An individual may also encounter other types of migraine with this.

Abdominal migraine: This type of migraine is not yet researched completely but it comes with hefty stomach pain, nausea and vomiting. It usually happens in children and may turn into classic migraine over time.

Vestibular migraine: Individuals with history of motion sickness usually encounters this type of migraine. A person with vestibular migraine is prone to experience balance problems, nausea, vomiting, vertigo with or without headache.

Silent migraine: An individual may experience aura symptoms without a headache and the individual is prone to have nausea and other common migraine symptoms. This is also known as an acephalgic migraine and it lasts for about 20- 30 minutes.

Ocular migraine: Also known as retinal migraine, causes partial loss of vision or in some cases total loss of vision in one eye along with tingling at the back of the eye which may spread across the head. It is advised to seek immediate medical help right away.

Hemiplegic migraine: An individual with this type of migraine encounters paralysis on one side of the body. They can feel numbness, vision changes and dizziness. These symptoms are often considered as the signs of stroke, so immediate action is mandatory for accurate treatment.

Ophthalmoplegic migraine: This type of migraine incorporates pain around your eye, including paralysis of the muscle around it. It is considered as a medical emergency but the symptoms can also be caused by the pressure on the nerves behind the eye. The symptoms also include double vision, droopy eyelid or changes in vision.

Status migraine: This type of migraine can cause pain and nausea in an intense manner. An individual is likely to visit a hospital for its treatment. It can last for about 72 hours and it is considered that the withdrawal of certain medications or medicines can trigger this type of migraine.

The determination of the types is necessary for doctors to prescribe suitable medications to the individuals. The customization of the treatments is the right approach and the identification of triggers will be the best information for the individuals so that they can stay away from irritants or triggers to prevent any migraine attacks. The severity of migraine must be kept under immediate consideration to provide effective treatment for the betterment of an individual.

Tests and Treatments for Migraine

To gain a proper understanding of the signs your body is trying to send you, the doctors will run certain tests to diagnose what the actual problem is. Your current symptoms will make it really easy for the doctors to identify whether you’ve migraine and what type of migraine category you fall under. Following are the possible outcomes to diagnose migraine.

Doctors will run through the medical history of the family and will perform certain physical exams to diagnose migraine. Tests include:

CT scans or MRI: These imaging scans will help to assess the criticality of the situation.

Devices for migraine

Doctors have recommended certain medical tools which will help in controlling and preventing the chances of migraine attacks by increasing or decreasing the nervous system activity. 4 neuromodulation treatments are:

  • Transcutaneous supraorbital neurostimulator
  • Transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulator
  • Single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulator
  • Multi-channel brain neuromodulation system
  • These stimulators help in preventing migraine attacks occurrence.
How will you differentiate between a migraine and a regular headache?

While both involve head pain, migraines incorporate severe symptoms like vomiting, nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound.

Can migraines be passed on through genes?
Can migraines be cured?
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Can flickering lights trigger migraines?