Migraine Headaches

Migraine Headaches are very disabling for many people. Since the symptoms are very severe in many cases, the best thing to do is lay down inside of a dark quiet room until symptoms pass.

Low blood sugars, (hypoglycemia), are often a big cause for migraines.

The symptoms of an oncoming migraine are usually:

Blind spots or tingling in the extremeties

Nausea

Vomiting

Oversensitivity to lights and sounds

These headaches will last from 4 to 72 hours. How often a person gets these types of headaches varies with each person. There are people that have multiple headaches per month, and others maybe just a few times per year.

There are people that have what is known as an aura. This is known as the classic migraine type.

In the classic migraine type of headache there will be a symptomatology such as:

Sparkling flashes of lights

Disturbed vision fields

A pins and needles sensation in the extremeties

Sometimes speech problems or weakness

These auras can occur before the real headache actually sets in. There may be some of these signs that you will have:

High energy and euphoria

Feeling thirsty

Drowsy feeling

Hunger for sweet foods

Feeling depressed or irritable



Why people have these headache types is not exactly understood. Some researchers think that these headache types are brought on by the trigeminal nerve which is the passage for pains in the nervous system. There is also brain chemical imbalances to a certain degree. An imbalance of serotonin may play a big role in the message center for pains going through the trigeminal nerves. Since it is known that serotonin levels fall during the process of a severe headache, this causes the blood vessels to dilate and therefore become inflamed.

What brings on a migraine headache?

Sometimes hormonal changes in the body can trigger a migraine response.

There are foods of some types that will trigger a migraine response. Some of them are alcoholic beverages, foods that are marinated, MSG which is a certain ingredient in stews, soups, and other casseroles, caffeine overuse, and possibly aspartame.

Stress can easily bring on a migraine.

Sensory stimuli such as strong lights and a sunlight that is very bright. Any different and strong smells can trigger an attack such as perfumes, and cigarette smoke.

Sleeping problems.Over-sleeping or not sleeping enough is enough to set off attacks.

Physical activity that is too intense will bring on problems with migraine headaches. This is true especially if you are having some warning signs of a headache.

Medications of some types can aggravate a headache and make the condition worse. Talk with your doctor.

Risks for Migraines

Family history frequently plays a role in the onset of these headache types.

Females have a higher rate for getting these headaches then men. Things like onset of menstruation, menopause, or pregnancy is likely sometimes to be the start of this problem.

Diagnosis

This is a problem that is very easily diagnosed just by your symptoms and history. But if the doctor believes there is more to the problem, various testing may be done. A CT scan and MRI will give the complete picture if there is another cause for your headaches.

Drugs to treat Migraine Headaches

Doctors have a variety of choices when treating migraines. There are pain medications to treat the acute phase of the pain. Preventive medicines can be used to cut back on how often the migraines occur.

Basically, treatment all depends on how often the headaches are coming. There are other drugs also known as Triptans. These drugs are for the more severe migraine headaches and relieve the voming/nausea, and light sensitivity that come along with migraines. One sample of a triptan drug is Imitrex. This is one of the oldest drugs to treat migraines.