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Besides severe migraine headaches, what other migraine comorbidities -pain symptoms and health conditions- often occur with migraine attacks? Here is a list of migraine comorbidities, including chronic pain conditions, gastrointestinal disorders, and psychological complications that strongly correlate with migraine headaches.

Migraines result from a neurological disorder that creates excruciating headache pain when triggered by certain factors in food, environment, or hormonal fluctuations.

Besides frequent head pain, some other symptoms commonly experienced by migraine sufferers include nausea, vomiting, neck stiffness, eye pain, and hypersensitivity to lights, scents, and sounds.

In understanding and treating migraines, it’s important to separate ailments that occur as a result of migraine attacks (such as migraine headache and dizziness) from ailments that frequently occur simultaneously with migraines, as migraine comorbidities.

Common migraine comorbid conditions include the following:

Psychiatric disorders

In clinical studies focused on chronic pain and mental illness, scientists have noted a high incidence of emotional problems such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder and phobias among migraine patients, compared to sufferers of other types of chronic pain, such as arthritis or back pain.

Heart disease

Of all migraine patients, the ones who experience migraines with aura are at highest risk of developing migraine comorbidities that impact cardiovascular health. Heart attack, and hypertension, patent foramen ovale (PFO) are all examples of heart disease that occur most frequently with sufferers of migraines with aura, versus patients of migraines or other chronic headaches.

Stroke

Migraine sufferers who experience migraines with aura are also more likely than other headache patients to suffer from stroke. The odds for stroke as migraine comorbidity is increased for female migraine patients who experience aura.

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Epilepsy

Several studies linking migraines with epilepsy have noted a 0-17% prevalence of epilepsy among patients of migraines, and an 8-23% prevalence of migraines in people suffering from epilepsy. For that reason, many anticonvulsive medications approved for treating epilepsy are also effective at preventing migraine attacks.

Arthritis

When chronic pain conditions occur together, such as arthritis and migraine headaches, they cause a reciprocal increase in chronic pain frequency and severity. Men and women with chronic headaches are more likely to suffer from arthritis than non-headache sufferers.

Similarly, migraine patients who get more than 15 headaches per month also suffer from various musculoskeletal pain symptoms (back pain, neck stiffness) at a much higher rate than chronic headache patients who experience fewer than seven headaches each month.

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Fibromyalgia

It’s not completely understood exactly why fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) are common migraine comorbidities, but scientists suspect it has to do with hypersensitive neuron activity.

Gastrointestinal disorders

GI problems, including cyclical vomiting, nausea, stomach ulcers, diarrhea, constipation, and colitis are other comorbidities of chronic migraines.

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Following recent outbreaks of viral meningitis, many migraine patients have questions about possible signs of meningitis and ways to distinguish them from migraines. If you experience frequent migraine attacks, then it’s important to be able to differentiate between an approaching migraine headache and signs of meningitis.

What is meningitis?

Meningitis is an infection that occurs in the blood-brain barrier (BBB) that separates your brain fluids from your blood supply. When the membranes protecting your central nervous system (brain and spinal cord) become infected, the result is painful inflammation that triggers severe headaches (similar to migraines), fever, and nausea.

Causes of meningitis range from viruses, bacteria, and fungal infections.

Meningitis requires emergency intervention, so if you suspect that your headaches are not typical of migraines, you must contact your physician or ER immediately.

What are the risk factors of meningitis?

If you have not received vaccinations against meningitis, then you may be at risk. Other risk factors for meningitis include:

• Age
• Poor immune system
• Living in a closed community
• Pregnancy
• Working around domestic animals or livestock

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What are the symptoms of meningitis?

Symptoms of meningitis can occur in any order, and may increase slowly over several days. Sometimes, meningitis can be misinterpreted as flu, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, or migraine headaches.

Meningitis symptoms include:

• Excruciating head pain
• Extreme sensitivity to light
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Loss of appetite
• Fever
• Neck stiffness
• Intense fatigue, or sleepiness
• Difficulty concentrating
• Confusion, or “brain fog”
• Itchy skin rash

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How are migraine symptoms different from meningitis?

It’s important to be able to recognize the early signs of meningitis, especially if you suffer from chronic migraines. Unless treated, meningitis can lead to seizures, nerve damage, deafness, brain damage, paralysis, or death.

Here are some clues to help you tell the difference between migraine symptoms and meningitis:

• Migraine headaches characteristically occur on one side of the head only. With meningitis, unlike migraines, head pain in not restricted to one side.
• While meningitis causes hypersensitivity to bright lights, (a symptom also common with migraines), it does not affect your ability to tolerate loud noises, a mutual complaint among migraine sufferers.
• Migraines are often preceded by an aura, while there are no reports indicating visual distortions or blind spots occurring immediately before signs of meningitis.

Treatment

After diagnosing meningitis, your doctor may prescribe strong antibiotics and headaches pain relievers. Steroids are also sometimes offered to alleviate symptoms.

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Of the many possible migraine headache triggers, coughing is one that surprises many people. Cough-induced migraine headaches may indicate a life-threatening condition that requires immediate attention, or it may just be a common side effect of exertion headache. Here are some symptoms associated with migraine headaches from coughing or sneezing.

Exertion headaches

Primary exertion headaches are not uncommon, and alone do not indicate any dangerous health issues. Still, if migraine headaches triggered by coughing happen often, then your doctor may require you to take an MRI, in order to rule out stroke, brain tumor, or brain lesion.

It may seem that it’s only coughing that triggers your migraine exertion headaches, but it’s more likely that a variety of movements can cause this relatively short-living type of head pain.

Migraine headaches triggered by coughing may also occur after:

• Sneezing
• Having a bowel movement
• Having sexual intercourse
• Blowing your nose
• Jerking your head
• Laughing
• Crying
• Bending low

Symptoms of cough headaches include:

• Pain on both sides of the head, as opposed to just one side
• Headache that occurs after coughing, sneezing, or other similar movements
• Headache of very short duration

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Sinus headache trigger

Although sinus headaches are not considered migraines, underlying sinus pain may increase your chances of having migraine headaches, or exacerbate an existing migraine.

Symptoms that indicate sinus headaches include:

• Persistent headache
• Fullness or pressure in the ears, forehead, cheeks, and nose
• Runny nose
• Thick phlegm
• Sneezing
• Sore throat
• Ear infection

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More than 45 million Americans get migraine headaches and other forms of chronic headaches each year, costing the economy billions of dollars in lost work wages and medical costs. Why do so many people get headaches, and how do migraines occur? Here are the answers to some common questions about why we get migraine headaches.

What is a headache?

A headache is a pain sensed in the nerves and muscles of the head and neck, as well as the meninges (the membranous coverings of the brain and spinal cord). Your brain itself cannot sense pain, so a headache has nothing to do with your brain hurting. It is really a pain somewhere around your brain, being picked up by nerve endings located in your head.

Why do I get headaches?

There are several reasons why we get headaches, but most can be divided into two classifications: primary headaches and secondary headaches.

Primary headaches occur when there are no other underlying illnesses that may be causing you to get headaches. Examples of primary headaches are migraines, tension headaches, and cluster headaches.

Secondary headaches, however, result from a separate illness or condition, such as fever, flu, head or neck trauma, tumor, or sinus pressure. Once the primary illness or ailment is treated, then secondary headaches disappear.

Why do I keep getting migraines?

Scientists are not certain exactly why certain people experience chronic migraine headaches, but there are some possible theories which attempt to explain the exact cause of migraines and recommend effective treatments.

Doctors use to believe that people get migraines from a disorder of the blood vessels. Today, people understand that we get migraines from a neurological disorder that begins in the brain stem and triggers a variety of ailments, including severe headaches, muscle pain, fatigue, and nausea.

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What happens when I get migraines?

Migraine attacks are a neurological disorder that can occur in the cortex of the brain or the brain stem.

When migraines begin in the brain’s cortex, overstimulated nerve cells cause cortical spreading depression, which in turn leads to excretion of pain-producing substances which stimulate the trigeminal nerves and produce pain signals which are carried to the sensory cortex, resulting in painful migraine headaches.

When nerve cells in the brain stem malfunction, you get migraines resulting from abnormal brain stem activity creating a depression in the cortex, which in turn stimulates the trigeminal system and pain signals to the brain’s cortex.

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Migraine treatment

There is no cure for migraine disorder, nor is there any universal treatment.

To manage migraines, people need to experiment with a variety of drugs, therapies, and treatments that have been proven effective at reducing migraine frequency, alleviating pain, and preventing further migraine attacks.

These include:

• Migraine headache relievers
• Migraine prophylaxis (abortive)
• Migraine prevention
• Migraine trigger avoidance
• Stress relief
• Migraine-friendly dieting
• Exercise and stretching
• Nutritional supplements that boost neurological functioning, including vitamin B2, magnesium, coenzyme Q10, and butterbur

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Most migraine sufferers are women, so it stands to reason that an overwhelming majority are also “mommy migraineurs,” women who have learned how to juggle play dates, school meetings, and nap schedules while managing chronic migraine headache symptoms. Here are some helpful tips for parenting with migraines.

Whether you’re the parent of a newborn infant, toddler, or grade-school tween, child-raising is one of the most difficult… and rewarding challenges facing chronic pain patients today. With migraines, intense headaches, severe nausea, and crippling fatigue make it difficult to commit to after-school programs or birthday parties.

As mommy migraineurs, we sometimes struggle with feelings of guilt, anger, and sorrow because of the restrictions placed upon us by migraine headaches.

In order to be the best parent you can be, it’s important to develop certain routines that help us stay on track, regardless of migraine attacks.  By making these lifestyle changes, we can improve our relationship with our children, learn how to manage migraine symptoms more efficiently, and avoid negative emotions resulting from depression and anxiety.

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Here are some helpful sanity-saving parenting tips for moms with migraines:

Strive for consistency

Women who suffer from frequent migraines are more likely than others to also experience frequent mood swings. Depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, extreme irritability, and chronic fatigue are all conditions that correlate strongly with migraine disorder. For children, watching a parent’s ever-changing moods can be traumatic.

If you feel particularly stressed, gloomy, or agitated- significantly more than usual- then do whatever you can to remove yourself from your child’s attention. Try to arrange an impromptu play date, put out a thick stack of paper with crayons, or just let your child sit in front of the TV for a while.

As long as your child is constantly being supervised, you have no reason to feel guilty for needing a few moments of “Me Time.”

Be prepared

Are you the only person responsible for picking up your children from school or daycare? If so, then it’s important to make a back-up plan for days when severe migraines keep you indoors.

Ask a friend or relative if she is willing to be on-call in the event of a really excruciating migraine attack that leaves you unable to stand up or drive. Or, see if there are any after-school babysitting centers that are available for last-minute drop-ins. Make sure your children are familiar with alternate pick-up plans, as well, and that they recognize any new caretakers. Alert your school principal when somebody other than yourself will be getting your children from school, as well.

Teach your children independence

It’s a hard fact of parenting with migraines that sometimes, children have to learn how to do certain things for themselves. This doesn’t apply to babies and toddlers, of course. However, even small children can be taught how to make a sandwich, clean their room, fold their own laundry, or even wash a few (plastic) plates and cups.

By teaching them these basic skills, you are helping them learn how to be more independent and productive, while also reducing your chances for suffering stress-related migraines.

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Migraines correlate with many non-headache conditions, including susceptibility for vitamin B12 deficiency. Unfortunately, many of the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency mimic migraines, making it harder to identify and treat. In order to prevent severe vitamin B12 deficiency with migraines, it’s important to understand why it happens and what you can do to reduce your odds.

Migraines, +

As any sufferer of chronic migraines can tell you, there’s more to a migraine attack than the crushing, long-lasting debilitating headache. Other ailments that occur at the same time as the trademark excruciating head pain can be nearly as devastating.  Many migraine patients experience sharp eye pain, shoulder stiffness, vertigo, and fatigue on a daily basis.

Other common symptom of migraine- intense, stomach-turning nausea and vomiting– make it difficult to work or manage household duties. When frequent vomiting and diarrhea from migraines occur over a long period, they can also cause damage to the linings of the stomach and esophagus, leading to severe gastrointestinal problems. Ulcers, thinning of the esophagus and acid reflux are often comorbid conditions of migraine disorder.

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Migraines and vitamin B12 deficiency

Vitamin B12 deficiency is a risk factor whenever there is long-lasting damage to the stomach or small intestines. That’s because your body relies on certain digestive enzymes in order to absorb vitamin B12, and these essential proteins are manufactured in the stomach.  Damage to the intestines or stomach caused by harsh stomach acids interferes with your ability to produce these essential digestive enzymes that are required to access vitamin B12.

If you migraine attacks occur weekly, and they also cause uncontrollable vomiting and chronic diarrhea, then your chances of developing an inability to absorb vitamin B12 naturally from foods increases, along with your chances of developing vitamin B12 deficiency with migraines.

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency

As mentioned earlier, some of the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency and migraines are alike. Migraines are a neurological disorder and likewise, side effects of low vitamin B12 levels result from peripheral nerve cell damage (peripheral neuropathy).

In order to catch an underlying vitamin B12 deficiency with migraines, it’s important to get your vitamin B12 levels checked by submitting to a blood screening.

Symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency that also occur with migraines include:

• Painful tingling and numbness in the extremities, including the hands, fingers, legs, feet, and tongue
• Chronic fatigue
• Brain fog
• Headaches
• Dizziness or vertigo
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Muscular pain
• Muscle spasms or twitches
• Vision impairments

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Treatment and avoidance

When vitamin B12 deficiency results from migraine and gastrointestinal damage, then it’s pointless to try to increase your dietary intake of foods that are high in vitamin B12. The only way to treat and further prevent malnutrition is to supplement with non-edible forms of vitamin B12. These include vitamin B12 injections, sublingual B12 tablets, or other over-the-counter (OTC) forms of vitamin B12 that do not require digestion through the stomach.

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If you get headaches frequently, then you may benefit from one of many tests for migraines, cluster headaches, or other chronic headache condition. In order to identify the cause of headaches that occur every week or more, your doctor may request blood tests, brain scans, or screening for other comorbid illnesses that may mask the symptoms of migraine headaches. Here are some common tests for migraines that doctors use in diagnosing chronic headaches.

Migraines are generally characterized by intense, throbbing headaches that occur on one side of the head. A migraine attack may last for hours or days, and often cause other ailments, such as severe nausea, vomiting, eye pain, fatigue, and dizziness.

If you suffer from migraines with aura, a condition that produces stroke-like symptoms minutes before the headache strikes, then your headache specialist will need to conduct various tests for migraine sufferers in order to rule out life-threatening conditions such as brain tumor, heart disease, stroke, or meningitis.

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Below are some tests used to diagnose chronic headaches, including migraines:

1. Brain scan- Frequent headaches may result from migraines, but can also signify a brain tumor, infection, or aneurysm.  An MRI or CAT scan will indicate the presence of any serious condition such as meningitis or stroke that requires immediate treatment.
2. Blood or urine tests- Sometimes, constant headaches may result from an underlying condition such as diabetes, thyroid disorder, or allergies, which can be detected through blood or urine testing.
3. Electroencephalogram (EEG) – An EEG is necessary to check for epilepsy, a condition that is sometimes comorbid with migraines with aura.
4. Eye testing- Even if you have been diagnosed previously with migraines, it’s important to have your eyes checked; often, vision problems contribute to frequent headaches.
5. Neurological exam- Migraines are a neurological disorder, so a visit to a neurologist is crucial in order to track symptoms such as fatigue, painful tingling in the extremities, muscle pain, headaches, vertigo, and speech impairments.
6. Spinal tap- Lumbar puncture, involving the withdrawal and testing of spinal fluid, is often recommended for migraine sufferers, in order to evaluate brain and spinal cord integrity.

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Getting rid of a migraine is difficult enough, but when neck pain and headache combine, it’s almost impossible to ever find lasting relief. Sometimes, migraines are triggered by aching shoulders or neck stiffness, caused by an underlying injury or potentially life-threatening condition. Here are some possible reasons for headaches caused by neck pain.

Chronic cervicogenic headaches

Cervicogenic headaches occur any time an injury or other inflammation occurs in the top three vertebrae of the neck.  Symptoms include dull headache and neck pain, particularly in the back of the head or upper neck area, and are often exacerbated by head movement.

Arthritis

Osteoarthritis in the neck area is a common cause of cervicogenic headaches and neck pain, but it can also trigger migraines. When arthritis of the neck occurs, the upper neck area is especially susceptible to deterioration of the topmost vertebrae, causing bone spurs and nerve damage. Severe headaches and neck-aches are common symptoms of this, and other forms of arthritis.

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Neck injury

Another cause of cervicogenic headaches are neck injuries, including whiplash, herniated discs, or pinched nerves. Additionally, poor posture or TMJ (temporomandibular joint) disorder can also result in an increase in headaches and neck pain.

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Stress headache

Tension headaches are not migraines, but they can trigger them. If you carry stress in your neck, then constantly tense muscles and stiff shoulders together combine to create chronic headaches and neck pain. For relief, practice meditation, get a message, or join a yoga class

Illness

If you suffer from chronic headaches and neck pain, then it’s important to rule out certain life-threatening illness. Examples of dangerous conditions that cause severe, lasting neck pain and headaches are tuberculosis, meningitis, and osteomyelitis.

Fibromyalgia, though not fatal, is a serious chronic pain condition that often occurs with migraines, and should be considered, as well.

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Migraine pain relievers can be helpful for treating excruciating migraine headaches and neck pain, but they carry a heavy price tag- your safety. Whether you take over-the-counter (OTC) analgesics or prescription migraine drugs, it’s important to constantly monitor your medication usage in order to avoid side effects or accidental overdose. Here is a quick refresher course in migraine pain relievers.

Read, read, read

If you suffer from chronic migraine headaches, then get into the habit of reading. You are your own best migraine advocate, so learn everything you can about various migraine drugs, including the latest in pain relief and migraine prophylaxis.

Don’t ignore natural alternative medicine, either. Much of the latest research regarding migraine pain relievers has focused on the beneficial properties of certain vitamins, herbs, and minerals in reducing migraine attack severity and headache frequency.

Don’t underestimate your meds

Just because a pain reliever is available without a prescription, that doesn’t mean it’s not powerful- or potentially life-threatening. Many over-the-counter (OTC) migraine pain relievers vary in strength and instructed usage.

Always read the outside label of any medication before using it, even if you think you already know what’s printed. Safety regulations and precautions change from time to time, so it’s crucial to stay updated.

Don’t get mixed up

Even the safest migraine pain meds can be potentially hazardous or ineffective when combined with other ingredients. Find out if drinking alcohol is acceptable with your current migraine treatment. Often, alcohol usage can be life-threatening when combined with certain OTC analgesics or narcotic pain relievers. Drinking milk can also reduce the potency of headache pain relievers.

Less is more

If two pain pills can relieve a really bad migraine, then three should completely obliterate even the strongest, most crushing migraine attack, right? Wrong.

More likely than not, taking more migraine pain relievers than you absolutely need won’t help you migraine go away quicker. Instead, it increases your chance of causing esophageal ulcers or damage to your stomach linings, or worse, accidental overdose.

For safety and effective migraine pain relief, always take the smallest dose recommended by the manufacturer. If your migraine still persists, then speak with a doctor or headache specialist before going above the recommended dosage.

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When migraines and menopause occur together, women often experience exacerbated headaches, fatigue, and sleeplessness.  Many of the symptoms of migraines and menopause overlap, making it difficult to choose the best pain relief treatment. Here are some commonly-asked questions regarding the early signs of menopause and ways to manage migraines at the same time.

Symptoms of menopause

Three to one, most migraine sufferers are women. Out of all women, about 70% will experience symptoms of menopause. Thus, it’s easy to see why migraines and menopause treatment is one of the most important health issues facing women today.

The most common symptoms of menopause include:

• Headaches
• Muscle stiffness
• Painful numbness or tingling in the extremities
• Itchy dry skin
• Hot or cold flashes
• Insomnia
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Fatigue
• Confusion, brain fog
• Vertigo, dizziness
• Hair loss
• Bone loss
• Weight gain
• Irregular menstruation
• Poor bladder control
• Gastrointestinal problems (nausea, vomiting)

Symptoms of a Menstrual Migraine

Symptoms of migraines

If you already experience chronic migraine headaches, then you might not notice certain signs of menopause that mimic migraine attack symptoms or comorbid conditions, such as depression and anxiety.

Symptoms of migraines that mimic menopause include:

• Headaches
• Muscle stiffness
• Painful numbness or tingling in the extremities
• Hot or cold flashes
• Insomnia
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Fatigue
• Confusion, brain fog
• Vertigo, dizziness
• Gastrointestinal problems (nausea, vomiting)

At what age does menopause occur?

Perimenopause, the early onset of hormonal fluctuations, usually occurs in the early 40’s. Many women start experiencing early signs of menopause while still getting their periods. Usually, menopause continues well into your 50’s, but it’s not unusual for some women to suffer from both menopause and migraines indefinitely.

How will menopause affect my migraines?

Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules that can help you predict how your migraines will be affected by menopause. Hormonal fluctuations are often migraine headache triggers, but for some, they can cause no adverse effects whatsoever. Some women find that migraines drop significantly during pregnancy, menstruation, or menopause, while just as many females who get migraines complain of a spike in migraine headache attacks during “changes of life.”

What’s the best treatment for migraines and menopause?

Speak to your migraine headache specialist, neurologist, or general practitioner about finding an appropriate migraine management plan for menopause. He may suggest medications that are approved for the alleviation of both migraines and menopause together.

Also, natural treatments and healthy lifestyle choices may improve your chances of reducing migraine headache frequency and severity during menopause; they include:

• Keeping a migraine journal to track mood, eating habits, and headache frequency
• Exercising at least three times per week
• Following a migraine-friendly diet
• Reducing stress through meditation or counseling
• Using natural vitamins, minerals, and herbs that benefit women suffering from migraines and menopause, including vitamin B2 (riboflavin), coenzyme Q10, magnesium, and butterbur extracts

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