Yale Medicine
Migraine: A Neurological Condition That's Not Just in Your Head
For more information on migraine or #YaleMedicine, visit: https://www.yalemedicine.org/conditions/migraine.
Everyone gets headaches from time to time, but migraines are different. For an estimated 15% to 18% of women and 6% of men with migraine, they endure not just intense pain in their head but also nausea; an inability to tolerate light, noise, or odors; confusion; overwhelming fatigue, and more—to the point that they are unable to keep working or be present with family and friends. This inability to function separates migraines from headaches. The good news is that knowledge about them and treatments for them have increased exponentially to the point that most migraine sufferers are able to enjoy meaningful relief that allows them to go about their lives in a fairly normal way. Doctors may prescribe medications, behavioral treatments and lifestyle changes, and even electrical stimulation devices. Learning to distinguish warning signs of an impending migraine from what have traditionally been called “triggers” can greatly improve someone’s ability to manage these episodes. “The understanding of migraine biology and the treatments available have exploded in the last decade; with proper education, consistent use of the tools available can improve the lives of most migraine patients,” says Christopher Gottschalk, MD, a Yale Medicine neurologist and director of Yale Medicine's Headache and Facial Pain Center. “Unfortunately, migraine remains underdiagnosed, undertreated, and underestimated—according to reports, migraine causes more disability than all other neurological conditions combined. But learning to identify the early signs of a migraine attack and intervene quickly and effectively can provide patients with a level of control they never thought was possible,” he says.
0:00 What are migraines?
1:42 Individualizing prevention and treatment
Migraine is far and away the most common debilitating primary headache disorder and it comes with a constellation of things beyond the headache pain that impact them and the impact their activities of daily living and affect their ability to do the things that they love most. We know that it’s from changes in the body and the brain chemistry and we know that genetics accounts for about half of all migraines and sometimes we think about the migraine as just the headache when really it goes well beyond that. Migraine is the type of headache that typically affects one side of the head and oftentimes are associated with nausea, vomiting, light sensitivity, sound sensitivity, smell sensitivity. Also, in terms of what the pain feels like to someone. Is it short, stabbing, dull, aching, throbbing? They don't feel well or they don't feel like they're their usual selves for the days before their migraine attack. Sometimes they're present physically, but they're not fully there. Sometimes people feel washed out, they don't feel themselves after the headache pain has gone away and sometimes also those same people would share that it took a while to speak up and have courage to talk about the migraine or their headache, in part because if they had in the past, it was sort of dismissed. It's just in your head. It's just a migraine. It's just a headache when it's not. It's something that profoundly affects someone, it profoundly effects their family. If people are taking over-the-counter medication to treat their pain multiple times a day or even on a daily basis, that tells me that there's something going on that we need to investigate further and paradoxically, over time, if people are taking daily, multiple times, daily as needed, pain medication, that can actually make the headache worse that they're treating and sometimes they can develop a new type of headache on top of that. But also that typically tells me that someone would benefit from a preventive medication or some other preventive therapy. In the last almost decade, there's been dozens of new treatments that have come out for migraine and other types of headache disease. Some of these are in completely new families of medications. Some of these are new formulations of medications that have been around for quite some time. Some of these are not medications at all. There's some really good evidence for some vitamins and supplements that can work really well to help prevent migraines and to help to reduce the severity of migraine attacks when people get them. There's neuromodulation devices. There's several of them on the market and there's more coming. They can be used for prevention. So use it every day or sometimes more than once a day and there's some of that you could use in the in the throes of a migraine attack as well Talk to someone about it. Bring it up. Headache and headache pain is not just in your head. It is very real. And if you bring it up to a doctor and they're dismissive, find someone else to talk to you about it because there are people out there that want to understand your pain, want to understand it so we can help treat it. You don't have to suffer in silence.
#Migraine #Neurological #Condition
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Ive been at risk of losing my job because of my migraines, had them around 20 years. Wish I could get my company to understand its not just a "headache". 😢
My mum is suffering from Migraines for 2 weeks now her left eyes is closed now. She did a brain scan but it showed everything was okay with her brain, she later went to see an eye specialist which told her that her eyes were okay. If someone uses both hands to open her eyes she will see clearly. I really don’t understand all these that’s happening to her now she’s having difficulties sleeping she can’t sleep.
Regardless of what Drs state. There is a cure for chronic migraines.
I have been having problems with migraines since I was in Seventh grade. The pain is really taunting and unbearable because all u can do at that particular point is to concentrate on the pain and look for ways to relieve the pain. Its like a mother who has to do her day to day activities but then when the baby starts crying, the mother has to stop whatever she was previously doing and attend to the baby, that's how my experience is with the migraines… And that's one of the reasons why I had to venture into med school so I could understand and have an indepth idea to why I'm having such and maybe find a solution to it
Sad to me how many people in the comments are suffering needlessly.
Every year more medications come out to treat migraines and migraine disorders. Don't ever give up or settle with living in pain. There is relief out there!
It’s like all day every single day just makes me wanna give up, it hurts so bad and there’s nothing I can do
I have nightly migraines. They make me feel sick. I was just diagnosed with CHF. I am wondering if there is a connection. My neck hurts real bad too but I have 3 herniated discs in it so I don't know if that is part of it.
Migraines are.much different from a headache
Mine are never just in one spot.and have suffered with them my entire life
So I just wanted to say… Everyone in these comments, I do feel your pain and probably a lot more than most of you. Now before you get all pissed off and you're like, Oh, Mr. Bigshot feels more PAIN. Let me explain.
So I have been having migraines since I was a child so everything and I mean EVERYTHING y'all have said I've felt sometimes for about 3 days however I don't only have migraines I also get clusters so now combine EVERYTHING we've all felt with and now add on top of that a headache with all the symtems of somebody feeling like they are sticking a drill through your skull just over the brow of one of your eyes while a lil demon is sitting on your face and trying to rip your eye out of your eyesocket and as if that didn't cause me enougth fun sometimes I get to deal with a migraine that will turn into a cluster for hours and then back into a migraine later and WAIT it doesn't stop there if the cluster gets BAD enough I will first get dry heaves and then I with curl into a ball (fetal position) because what is going to happen next really sucks and it hurts A LOT my body will go in full convusions they will start off small and then grow and I will flop around where ever Im laying and if Im to anything fragile or a weak wall I will kick through it or flop around like a dying fish until the seizure stops and No this is not a joke and I would ABSOLUTELY Never wish it on Anyone
And if you do not know what a cluster is, it also goes by another name (Suicide Headache).
And I am living proof because I have often contemplated it while going through one or both put together.
Migraine + Cluster
Something I have dealt with all my life
Now get ready for the kicker for someone who used to bust his ass out in the sun and eat live and breathe it.
I can no longer go out in the sun either, which really has mostly destroyed my life.
Now I didn't write my story for sympathy; which like ALL of you I never got anyway maybe a couple times if I was Lucky
I told it to help people if you suffer with migraines or if any of you suffer like me …
Try one of these 3 things, and if you do, please come back to me for either of the last 2 because I do not have the funds to purchase them, but I'm sure one of you does, and for all I've suffered, if I can help a couple of you or even a group of you stop suffering, it would mean EVERYTHING to me because I have helped people ALL my life with all ailments holistically, but I've just never been able to help myself… So whoever sees this, if it helps them, please let me know, so here they are.
1. If you are suffering from a migraine, the blood will really be pumping to your head, and you will want this to stop, so grab something that will fit both of your feet and fill it up with the hottest water you can stand. Put both of your feet in it. This should make all the blood rush to your feet. YES, it does work; however, I don't know for how long once the water becomes cold if the migraines will come back. Everybody is different; for some, you may be free from that migraine; for others, I don't know. We are all different.
2. I can relate to how food pollen is for parts of the brain and some other functions. When I was younger, I didn't know, but now these days I don't know, but try pollen pills. It may just be your saving grace. Effects will be very different. Like I said, everybody's body makeup is not the same.
3. Have heard AMAZING things from migraine sufferers on this one but have NEVER got to try it myself.
(Grass-Fed Beef Liver Pills)
I have heard taking just 2 of these, without magnesium or with it, your choice, will kill a Dead in its tracks, so I've heard. I can'attestst to it.
I hope I have blessed one, two, or more of you at least with some peace and tranquility.
Blessings upon you ALL.
Be you a man or woman.
Oh and if this ends up in your comments cause sometimes my phone screws up and sends it to the wrong places please send it to ALL the migraine and cluster suffers you might know
Or maybe just send them the remedies
I feel like crying as i read the comments. I've gotten used to my migraines being ruled out as just "Headaches". The whole area around my right eye beats like a hot drum.
Someone drugs me with a migraine chemical sometimes. Police said it is civil and not a crime.
Try affirming this….I allow my body to heal. I am relieved,calm and at peace.
This had me in tears. Thank you. Genuinely never felt like it was understood as disabling. But it genuinely is. Currently trying to find a way to get rid of the after affects of this one, 12 hours, and had me throwing up. I wish people understood how much this affects my daily living.. Ive been told since i was a young teen, "theyll go away once you get older." Never felt worse in my life as they never did.
It took me over a decade to realize my GI blowouts were from migraines. I couldn't understand how I would eat the same food over and over, but then get a big GI meltdown. I finally realized it was all part of the migraine thing. The biggest trigger for me is barometric/weather changes. The one that almost guarantees it, is cool to hot with wind.
Help me
Yes no body understand our pain
What can I take for a migraine headache in a eyeball
I used to suffer from severe migraine.
The cure for me was by not eating anything with cacoa and coffee.
If i drink a cup of coffee or eat chocolate, it will take about 2-3 weeks when i suffer the migraine.
Internalized ableism is strong with migraines… At least for me. Every symptom that I feel, pain and discomfort, I tell myself "it can't be that bad. You're still standing!" Even when I struggle to walk from vertigo or need to move with my eyes closed because of the "strong lights". It's… So tiring… Have had daily migraines for a relatively short time (since nov. 29th) but it's seriously starting to tear me down already 😵💫
I know I sick and at the the point of kill myself over these after having plates put in my neck and have up to 3 a week I am Christian, but I’m not with seeing praying hasn’t helped. The doctors haven’t helped especially the damn doctor put these plates in my neck when I went back and told him they’ve gotten worse since he put the plates in my neck which were supposed to help and they tell me now I got a pinched nerve in my neck and that side the headache starts turning and gets worse. I wake up every morning between two and three and until freaking darn with a migraine and I can’t take Atrix every day because it causes rebound headaches can’t take Tylenol every day. I can’t take a migraine because it gave me an ulcer you know I’m at which end about what the freaking do in the doctors don’t seem to freaking care and that’s really poor medicine. I don’t know where to go or what to do at this point they’ve done a brain scan and then they make my appointment to see a brain doctor three months prior from having the brain scan it slightly. They don’t care that you’re in misery and that your life is going downhill rapidly.
My daughter suffering from migranes since she was 12yrs. After a few attacks, I realised its not something that I can take easily. Then I went through the articles what exactly happened during the migrane attack, then learnt about nerves inflammation. I started to give her Omega 3 fatty acids every day, it works magically. She never get the migranes. If she skipped for few months, then they will come back. I told her it's better to have one Omega 3 pill, to avoid the worst pain. I hope using Omega 3 will help someone.
Don't go to the doctor when you are having a migraine or in the post-drome. You will not be able to be a good historian. You will not be able to fend yourself from doctors tendency to demean and dismiss your description of the pain.
Neurology needs to change their nomenclature. Current terms are a disservice to patients.
My sympathies to everyone affected by these terrible headaches . Practically a disability. I get coloured circles that break up and return then another day black ones . Both eyes and worse in the left . The pain is terrible , I also get sinus headaches, very similar pain and light hurting my eyes . Take care all of you
Ive had migraines 64 years and counting! The longest was for 3 1/2 months. Ive had aspirin to morphine pethadine imigran (which I use if no Maxalt) Maxalt works the best for me. Ive experienced most if not all auras / side effects and most migraines include micro seizures resulting in short term memory loss. But I learnt to cope. I feel for all those who have additional medical conditions as well like lupus, nil reaction to medicatons etc. Im lucky becasue Maxalt works for me. Thank you to al the researchers out there – even to minimise the effects of migraine is a win!
original iced coffee helps
I've not stopped having a migraine since October
I get migranes with swirling lights if I eat lunch meat and sausages
I’ve experienced two episodes of TGA (Transient Global Amnesia) with a migraine. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.
I've figured out a routine of lifestyle and supplements that keeps me from getting them. If I slack off of my routine, I will get them again. I eat a keto diet (all whole foods, nothing processed), use hydrogen therapy (drinking water and inhalation) and take some specific supplements: Vit B6 in P5P form, calcium D glucarate, high quality magnesium complex. There are other supplements I take as well but if I slack off of those in particular I will get migraines again. The hydrogen makes a huge difference. I can have about 2 glasses of wine a month but any more than that and I will get migraines. It won't happen the next day, tho, it might be a week later, so I think a lot of people would miss the connection. I am convinced that there are underlying causes and/or triggers that many of us can control if we can identify what they are, but conventional medicine does not help with that. They just medicate us and the medications come with serious risks and harms, including, as this video noted, they can actually make the headaches worse. Blood sugar, insulin and hormones are big contributors to migraine and most of us have no idea how much our food and lifestyle disrupts those things and how much we can control them for the better. Our highly processed foods are a huge cause of all kinds of chronic illness, including migraine. Since I know someone will get mad at my post, I'll say again that "many" of us could control triggers if we knew what they were, not everyone. I'm not saying what works for me will work for everyone, that's not how things work. Unfortunately we are taught in our culture that many things that are inherently unhealthy are healthy so identifying triggers can be impossible without tons of personal study.
i have one right now… i missed school i can not do anything
EMF's disrupt an in numerous amount of biological functions. Put the devices down. Rid your environment of Alexa etc.
The last part made me cry. I've been suffering with chronical migraines for years and the last neurologist told me that was "humanly impossible" to have migraines everyday. And the last ER doctor told me that I have to learn how to live with my migraine and there's nothing to do. Almost 10 years of daily suffering.
In my teens I got one to two migraines a week. At age 63 I get one to two per year. My solution: mindfulness. What am I thinking about? What am I obsessing over? Do I have thoughts looping in my head? What is my emotional state? What thoughts caused that state? As I got older and did the internal work to monitor and (partially!) control my thought processes, my migraine frequency and severity reduced significantly. Sorry guys…I’ve never found a magic bullet cure.
Brahmari Pranayama , a deep offsetter of Migraine
One symptom I have that is rarely mentioned is extreme sleepiness. I know of one other person with this symptom – the husband of a friend. My friend would hold a mirror up to her husband's nose to make sure he was still breathing because he would sleep so deeply. And no, this is not from any medication. Both of us would get this symptom without having taken any medication.
Terrifying pain 🥵
I’ve had these debilitating, beyond painful headaches for 40 years. The only thing that has ever helped me is sleeping in a dark room with complete silence. I can barely speak coherently or process someone else’s speech.
My neurologist is horrible
https://youtu.be/UerbdBzb_6Y?si=Gr0AU2rTEoT62pJY
👆🏽 This more info on understanding and treating migraines.
Thank you for helping all of us who suffer this
What about these high frequencies https://youtu.be/wdgmfQB2msk
I turned 19, with hypertension and migraine. Before that i have undergone gall stone surgery, due to which i face bile reflux sometimes too.
With migraine, i feel so lost and tend to almost give up. Light sensitivities have never been normal. I have tried medicines but they just dont work after a point
Meditation is the key.
I got an ELISA blood test for food sensitivity and found I reacted to almonds and egg whites. I greatly reduced migraines avoiding these foods.