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If you suffer from frequent headaches, then you need to see a doctor for migraines right away- You might have migraine headaches, or another form of chronic headaches.  Knowing which kind of doctor to see for migraines depends on your migraine headache symptoms, and specific needs for migraine treatment.

What kind of Doctor should I see for Migraines?

Part I: Primary Care Physicians

Most chronic headache sufferers begin migraine headache treatment by visiting their primary care physician, or family doctor.  This is because they have established a patient history with them, and because they feel comfortable visiting a doctor whose advice they already trust. If your primary care doctor is unable to treat you for migraine headaches, then he will refer you to a specialist.

Even if your family doctor has not received training in migraine illness, he does have a basic set of principles to refer to in diagnosing your condition. These 12 principles for migraine management in primary care are as follows:

• Most headaches are benign, and can be treated by any competent physician.
• By supplying a questionnaire, you can determine to what extent chronic headaches have affected the patient’s quality of life (daily activities, work, etc.).  This information is crucial for diagnosing illness and prescribing treatment.
• A physician-patient bond is necessary for providing migraine management.
• Migraine management should be specific to the patient, and tailored to meet his/her needs. Patient should be able to manage migraine treatments self-sufficiently.
• Physicians should routinely check up on their patient by reviewing a migraine diary in which the patient records migraine triggers, headache symptoms, foods eaten, and other relevant everyday headache information.

• Schedule re-evaluation check-ups, with special attention given to frequency of migraine drug use, and relative success in providing migraine headache relief.
• Migraine treatment should be adapted continuously to meet the changing needs of the migraine headache patient.
• Urge patients to use prescribed acute migraine medications responsibly, as indicated.
• Prescribe a pain reliever or other rescue treatment as a backup for when standard migraine treatments fail.
• For patients who don’t respond well to migraine medications, or who suffer more than four migraine attacks in one month, prescribe preventative migraine medications, in addition to suggesting certain lifestyle changes that are conducive to better migraine management.
• When prescribing preventative migraine treatments, take into account any comorbid conditions the patient might have.
• Develop a healthy professional relationship with your patient based on trust, mutual agreement, and consideration for the patient’s lifestyle.

When is it time to switch headache doctors?

If you feel that your primary care physician is not meeting your needs, then it might be time to shop around for a doctor that specializes in the field of migraine headaches.

Parts II and III discuss headaches specialists and neurologists.

Read more about migraine treatment:

How to make your own Emergency Migraine Attack Survival Pack

Top 20 Simple Lifestyle Modifications to Prevent Migraines

Improve your Memory while taking Topamax for Migraines

20 Best Blog Sites for Migraine Information and Inspiration

Top 20 Websites for Migraine Headache Patients

35 Things you should never tell a Chronic Migraine Sufferer

Sources:

Which Doctors Provide Migraine Treatment?

Establishing principles for migraine management in primary care- PubMed NCBI

Image credits, from top:

Ambro, cohdra, photostock, scottchan

It’s a double-edged sword- taking prescribed painkillers for migraines.  On the one hand, migraine headaches are so excruciating and energy draining, you’ll take almost anything to make the throbbing headaches and nausea go away.  On the other hand, you might be giving yourself a rebound headache– practically penciling in the next migraine attack.

What follows is a transcription of a recent FOX News report on migraines- Neurologists See Overuse of Painkillers To Treat Headaches and Migraines:

Get a headache? Pop a pill.

It can be as simple as that.  But according to some doctors, the pill popping in this country has gotten out of control.  In fact, according to many neurologists who specialize in headaches, primary care physicians in some cases are actually contributing to their patients’ overuse of painkillers.

Meet Barbara

Every single day, multiple times a day, Barbara Campbell is managing her pain, or trying to prevent it.  For more than 20 years, Campbell has suffered from debilitating headaches, or migraines.

“It’s really blinding if you don’t take something that’s strong enough to kill it.  Sometimes, I have to turn my kids over to someone…”

They’re usually triggered by tension, and unbeknownst to her, until just recently, even the very pills she was popping to take the headaches away were actually contributing to the pain, and causing a second possibly more dangerous problem- addiction.

Dr. Maureen weighs in

Dr. Maureen A. Moriarty, at the Headache Center at Georgetown University Hospital, says migraines, which are described as moderate to severe headaches, affect 30 million Americans, mostly women.  Why do Women get more Migraines than Men do? Seventy percent of the patients she sees are overusing painkillers to treat their headaches, everything from Tylenol to barbiturates, even narcotics Fiorinal, Fioricet, Oxycodone, and Oxycontin.

“It’s an epidemic- it really is a serious issue.  They come not only with one problem, with a migraine case, but they also come with an angelic overuse case.”

Too busy for migraines

Barbara Campbell: “I was raising my three sons, and…you’re busy.  You’re driving carpools here, running all over…the kids are breaking arms and legs.”

“These are really people in their peak performance years, and they’re really stymied by this, by the pain, and then with the analgesic overuse.” –Dr. Moriarty, Georgetown University Hospital

Pain medications- how much is too much?

Her primary care physician gave her Fioricet, a barbiturate-based painkiller, along with a beta blocker.  But after two years, the headaches persisted.  Her doctor then gave her Oxycodone or Percocet.

“I took it in a low dose, and then after a while I took it in a higher dose.  The headache would come back, so you end up taking more.  And that’s the problem.”

Dr. Moriarty: “When you take a pain medication more frequently than eight days a month, or if you break that down, more than two days a week, you actually can lower the threshold.”

Are most docs ignorant of migraine illness?

The problem: Dr. Moriarty says primary care physicians don’t know any better.  The painkillers can easily be called into the pharmacy, no extra screening required, and the drugs are relatively inexpensive.  General practitioners have an average eight minutes to spend with a patient, and in many cases, this is a quick and easy fix.

“These are medicines that have been in the market for many, many years, so the primary care provider is really familiar with them.  So they feel comfortable with them.”

Dangerous side effects of migraine meds

The problem is these drugs can eventually take a toll on your liver.  As drying agents, they’re known to cause dental problems.  They can cause fatigue and even changes in your hormonal cycle.

Dr. Moriarty says they can ultimately destroy lives.  “Not only does it medically create havoc, but emotionally and socially.”

If she did it, so can you…

Barbara Campbell: “I had to go somewhere and just stop taking them altogether.”

Just this year, after more than 20 years on painkillers, Barbara Campbell checked herself into the Michigan Headache and Neurological Institute.

“You take all your medicine up to Michigan, and hand it over to them, happily, and then you’re in an inpatient hospital there.”

After a couple of weeks, Barbara came home, no longer dependent on painkillers, and on a new regimen that was actually helping her pain.

Does she blame her doctors for providing the meds she ultimately became dependent upon?  No- she blames herself.

“I just didn’t take the time to slow down and really look at how much medicine I was taking.  I was trying to just meet the needs that I had at the time, and I really dragged this out too long.  I should have stopped it.”

There are only 300 neurologists in the US with a specialty in headaches, so you do have to be your own best advocate, read up about the disorder, and make a list of questions to take in to your primary care physician.

Natural migraine nutrients

Some alternative ingredients that may help improve your body’s response to inflammation include magnesium, butterbur, and riboflavin, taken together in one supplement.  

Also read:

How long will my Migraine Headache Last? A Migraine Symptom Chart

Why do Migraines cause Nausea and Vomiting?

Images:

Free Digital Photos, Harveyben,

Migraine aura can cause strange migraine headache symptoms like visual distortions, speech slurring, nausea…and hot flashes. With or without throbbing headaches, migraine with aura can be disconcerting.  Learn about what causes migraines with aura, and how you can find headache relief.

Migraine headache symptoms

Migraine headaches strike millions of Americans, but overwhelming majorities of migraine sufferers are women, about three to one. Migraine symptoms include throbbing headaches on one side, in addition to other symptoms like sharp eye pain, neck and shoulder pain, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, extreme sensitivity to light, noise, and smells, and vertigo.  Comorbid conditions of migraine illness are depression, chronic fatigue, anxiety, and sleep problems.
Also, read What are the Signs of Migraine Attack? 30 Migraine Symptoms

Migraine aura- with or without headache symptoms

A migraine aura happens about fifteen minutes before a migraine attack.  Migraines with aura may or may not result in severe headache, but they are still migraines. Migraine aura symptoms include sudden distorted speech patterns (talking gibberish), distorted sense of spatial awareness, visual hallucinations, temporary partial blindness, olfactory hallucinations, temporary partial paralysis, muscular feebleness, loss of consciousness, dizziness, and nausea. Migraine aura symptoms are often confused with epileptic seizure or stroke.

Migraine auras separate from the migraine prodrome phase, which occurs a few days before a migraine attack.  For more info on migraine phases, read The Four Phases of Migraine Headache Attacks

Hot flashes and migraine aura- studies confirm a link

Another migraine aura symptom that sometimes shocks many migraine patients is sudden hot flashes, similar to those experienced during menopause.  Migraine “vasomotor” symptoms are hot face, including cheeks, nose, and ears, sweating from the face, and red, flushed cheeks.  The vasomotor reaction to migraines is part of migraine aura.

• In 2009, a German study focusing on vasomotor reactivity in migraine with aura found a higher incidence of vasomotor changes among migraine with aura (MA) patients than those who did not experience aura with their migraines.
• In 2008, a study conducted by an Italian university focused on increased cerebral vasomotor reactivity and cerebral blood flow among migraine with aura patients.  Scientists noted a significant alteration of cerebral autoregulation, including vasomotor reaction, among migraine with aura sufferers

What to do about migraine aura hot flashes:

Women, determine that your hot flashes are not menopausal, or perimenopausal. If your hot headedness is part of migraine aura symptoms, then your best bet is to respond immediately with migraine medication, in addition to natural migraine ingredients , such as magnesium, and butterbur, and riboflavin.

Read more about migraines with aura:

Go Ask Alice: Migraine Auras in Wonderland

Why do Migraines cause Nausea and Vomiting?

Sources:

Changes in functional vasomotor reactivity in migraine with aura- PubMed NCBI

Increased cerebral vasomotor reactivity in migraine with aura: an autoregulation disorder? A transcranial Doppler and near-infrared spectroscopy study- PubMed NCBI

Migraine with aura- Mayo Clinic

Photo credits, from top:

justDONQUE.images, cohdra

Not all chronic headaches are migraine headaches– many types of headaches require special care beyond Excedrin for migraine headaches. With cluster headaches, specific treatment is required in order to avoid suffering rebound headaches.

Even if you suspect your headaches are not symptoms of migraines, it is still crucial to see a doctor before attempting to treat your head pain.  Taking the wrong type of pain medication could make your headache symptoms worse.

Parts 1 and 2 dealt with migraine headaches and other headache types, including sinus headaches, and tension headaches.  Part 3 addresses cluster headaches and rebound headaches, including symptoms and treatment.

Cluster headaches

Cluster headaches are recurring headaches that come in a set, or “cluster.”  Cluster headache periods may be sporadic- you might go weeks, months, or even years without suffering even one episode of cluster headaches.  When they do strike, cluster headaches are excruciatingly painful and disabling.  Cluster headache patients often describe them as “the worst headaches of their life.”  One cluster headache phase can last for approximately one month.

Symptoms of cluster headaches are:

• Sharp, burning pain on one side of the head
• Pain that emanates from the temple or eye region on either side of the head
• Pain that strikes suddenly and intensifies quickly in a few minutes’ time
• Pain that happens at a consistent time of day
• Puffy, reddened watery eyes
• Droopy, sagging eyelid
• Nasal congestion

Treatments for cluster headaches are:

• Oxygen inhalation therapy
• Triptan medications
• Octreotide
• Lidocaine
• Ergotamine preparations
• Preventative medications include anti-seizure drugs, corticosteroids (short-term), verapamil, and lithium.

Rebound headaches

If your first reaction to headache symptoms is to reach for a bottle of OTC analgesic pain relievers, then you increase your chances of becoming addicted and experiencing rebound headaches.  Particularly at risk are headache sufferers who take more pills than recommended on the package label or by their physician.  You might feel temporary pain relief, but the withdrawal symptoms you experience later will include recurring headache pain, creating a cycle of addiction that is difficult to break.  Prolonged usage of analgesic pain relievers causes a neurological malfunction that interrupts pain signals in the brain.

Medications that cause rebound headaches are:

• Aspirin
• Acetaminophen
• Sinus medicine
• Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs)
• Sleeping pills
• Prescription narcotics
• Codeine
• OTC pain relievers that contain caffeine
• Ergotamine medications
• Triptan medications for migraines, if taken more than twice per week

Treatments for rebound headaches include:

• Quitting “cold turkey”
• Weaning off medication through supervised detoxification in a hospital setting
• For prevention of rebound headache, heeding package labels on medications, limiting OTC pain relievers to the smallest possible dose, and no more than twice in one week, unless advised otherwise by your physician

Read more about different types of headaches:

Migraines and other Types of Headaches- How many are there? Part 1

Migraines and other Types of Headaches- How many are there? Part 2

Is it a Cluster Headache or a Migraine?

Are You on the Rebound with Your Headache?

Rebound Headaches, Anyone?

Sources:

Is It a Cluster Headache and What Can Ease the Pain? – Headaches and Migraines – Health.com

Medicines for Cluster Headaches- Health.com

Rebound Headaches- Cleveland Clinic

Image credits, from top:

ToastyKen, aerodesign.pl, Maggie Smith

Not all chronic headaches are migraine headaches– many types of headaches require specialized care for pain relief. Whether you have Sinus headaches or tension headaches, knowing how to identify your headache type is the first step in choosing an appropriate headache relief remedy.

Even if you suspect your headaches are not symptoms of migraines, it is still crucial to see a doctor before attempting to treat your head pain.  Taking the wrong type of pain medication could make your headache symptoms worse.

Part 1 dealt with migraine headaches.  Part 2 addresses non-migraine sinus headaches and tension headaches, including symptoms and treatment.

Sinus headaches

Your head contains cavities, sinuses, which constantly secrete watery mucus in order to clean out your nasal cavities.  Your sinuses are in three locations- behind your forehead, your cheekbones, and your nose. When you are sick, you sometimes feel severe head pain in corresponding “hot spots.”  This happens when your sinuses become swollen or irritated, preventing proper drainage of mucus from your nasal cavities.

Symptoms of sinus headaches are:

• Strong head pain in the forehead, bridge of nose, or cheeks
• Feeling of fullness in head, particularly the ears
• Fever, indicating an infection
• Runny nose
• Swollen glands

Treatments for sinus headaches include:

• Antibiotics (with signs of infection)
• Antihistamines
• Decongestants
• Over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers
• Nose drops
• Corticosteroids
• Hot compresses
• Natural alternative medicine (Read Sinus Headache Remedies from the Kitchen- Eat This, Not That)

Tension headaches

Tension headaches are caused by muscular constriction in the head, and are the most common type of headache.  Still, if you suffer frequent tension headaches- about every other day for several months- then you might be experiencing chronic headaches that require medical attention.

Symptoms of tension headache are:

• Painful pressure in the head and scalp
• Sensation of having a tight band, or vise, wrapped around your head
• Pain that spreads around the entire head, including the temples and scalp
• Shoulder and neck pain

Tension headache triggers are:

• Stress
• Fatigue
• Migraines
• Prolonged sedentary activities
• Sleeping in an awkward position
• Alcohol usage, hangovers
• Smoking
• Caffeine withdrawal
• Eye strain
• Teeth grinding (bruxism) (Read Is it Migraine or TMJ Headache? Temporomandibular Disorder)

Treatments for tension headaches include:

• OTC pain relievers
• Massage, including face, scalp, neck, and shoulders
• Hot or cold compress
• Exercise, both aerobic and muscular strengthening workouts
• Lifestyle changes, such as restrictive diet, increased sleep hours, quitting smoking or drinking
• Stress management, including biofeedback, meditation, and yoga
• Alternative medicine, including herbal supplements, acupuncture, and aromatherapy

Read more about different types of headaches:

Migraines and other Types of Headaches- How many are there? Part 1

Migraine or Sinus Headache? Make Sure your Headache Doctor Knows the Difference

Biofeedback for Treating Migraines- Top 4 FAQ Answered

Managing your Migraines at Work- 4 Healthy Changes in Attitude

Sources:

Sinus Headaches: Symptoms and Treatment

Tension headache: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

Image credits, from top:

Toms Bauģis, Ambro, Getideaka, Stuart Miles,

Not all chronic headaches were created equal- there are many types of headaches besides migraine headaches, such as sinus headaches, tension headaches, and rare cluster headaches. How many types of headaches are there?  Learn more about constant rebound headaches, common migraine triggers, and headache relief remedies.

This is part one, which discusses migraine headaches.

Migraines- Could a headache by any other name be just as severe?

Millions of people suffer from excruciating symptoms of migraines, such as debilitating, severe headaches, extreme nausea and gagging, hypersensitivity to lights, noises, and scents, and unusual visual and olfactory hallucinations.  But migraine sufferers aren’t alone in their frequent headache pain; other chronic headache patients experience everyday headaches that don’t classify as “migraine headaches.”

How long will my Migraine Headache Last? A Migraine Symptom Chart

What causes migraines?

It is unproven exactly what causes migraine attacks, but scientists understand that it has to do with blood vessel contractions, various fluctuations in the brain, and inherited brain defects. With migraine headaches, pain occurs on one side of the head, and is often so agonizing that sufferers are unable to work, drive a car, or do much of anything until the pain subsides, which could take anywhere from a couple of hours…to a couple of days.

What are the Signs of Migraine Attack? 30 Migraine Symptoms

How many types of migraines are there?

There are many kinds of migraine headaches, but most generally fall into two categories- migraines with aura, and migraines without aura.  An aura is a phenomenon that occurs minutes before a migraine attacks.  It serves as a 15-minute warning of an approaching migraine, but doesn’t allow much time to prepare.  Occasionally, an aura may occur 24 hours in advance, but that much rarer.

4 Headaches that Require Emergency Intervention

What is a migraine aura?

Symptoms of migraine aura include visual hallucinations described as bright fairy lights, zigzag rainbow squiggles, sparkly “fireflies,” crescent-shaped glowing figures, tunnel vision, and voids- dark blind spots on the edge of one’s field of vision, sometimes causing temporary partial blindness.  Other signs of a migraine aura are stroke-like in nature- muscular feebleness, sudden garbled speech behavior, loss of consciousness, and numbness or paralysis on one side of the body.  It is important to note that migraines with auras don’t always lead to head pain.

Go Ask Alice: Migraine Auras in Wonderland

Migraine treatments- prescription and natural remedies

Currently, medications for migraine headaches include a variety of treatment types, sometimes prescribed in combinations.  Migraine remedies include triptans, which halt an attack, abortive drugs that prevent migraine attacks, narcotic pain relievers, and anti-nausea medications.  However, many of these prescription migraine drugs come with adverse side effects.

Improve your Memory while taking Topamax for Migraines

Natural ingredients and exercises for migraines include magnesium, butterbur herbs, riboflavin, acupuncture, aromatherapy, biofeedback, and exercises such as yoga and tai chi.  These alternative approaches cause no side effects, and treat the body as a whole. 

Read more about migraines and other types of headaches:

6 Migraine Myth-conceptions

Can Anxiety Attacks cause Migraines?

Relieve Your Headaches With Yoga: Try These Moves!

Sources:

5 Types of Headaches- Health.com

Headaches – different types of headaches – WebMD

Migraine: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

Image credits, from top:

Alex E. Proimos, mislav-m, dream designs, Salvatore Vuono, en:Peter Newell, Ambro

Migraine triggers are everywhere; over 100 migraine headache triggers identified by researchers trigger symptoms of migraines like severe headaches and nausea, in addition to neck pain and sensitivity to things like food, hormones, work environment, stress, and the weather. What’s a person to do when migraine headaches are always around the bend? Find out how to detect common headache causes, and how to keep headache triggers at bay.

Be a migraine headache detective

One helpful tool for identifying your migraine triggers is keeping a migraine diary. Log into your headache journal every day, and keep track of important data for the day, such as what you ate, how you were feeling, what the weather was, what medication you took, how well you slept the previous night, and any other clues that you think might be relevant to your migraine symptoms.  Here are some tips to get you started- 10 Clues your should Include in your Headache Diary Today

Common migraine triggers, and how to avoid them

A common misconception is that one migraine trigger alone can cause severe headaches.  Actually, migraine triggers are not lone culprits; it’s a combination of stimuli such as food, weather, and stress that together create the environment for a migraine attack when you least suspect it.  The more migraine triggers you manage to control in your environment, the better your chances of living the rest of your life without migraines, or at least with significantly fewer and less severe headaches.

Foods that trigger

When discussing dietary migraine triggers with your neurologist, it’s important to note that foods that cause headache symptoms in others, such as chocolate, might be fine for you to enjoy.  Similarly, you might be the only person you know who ever gets chronic migraine symptoms from eating nuts or milk products.  Following a restrictive migraine diet is the only way to track your reaction to certain food triggers.

The most common food triggers for migraines are:

• Chocolate
• Caffeinated beverages
• Dried or smoked meats, such as lox, smoked salmon, anchovies, salami, hot dogs, and sausages
• Alcoholic beverages such as wine and beer
• Ripened fruits, such as figs, raisins, bananas, red plums, and avocados
• Beans
• Foods that have been fermented, marinated, or pickled, including olives, sauerkraut, tofu, and dill pickles
• Yeasted breads and cakes
• Dairy products
• Foods with monosodium glutamate (MSG)
• Sweets

Chocolate for Curing Migraines- 10 Astonishing Cocoa Facts

Change- not such a good thing after all

Have you ever taken a catnap in the middle of the day, and woken up to a monstrous migraine?  If you suffer chronic migraines, then you’ve probably noticed that you fare best with consistency- going to sleep at the same time every night, waking up at the same time each morning, and eating regularly scheduled meals.  You thrive on routine. That is because change of any kind usually provokes a migraine attack.

• Avoid changing your sleep patterns.  Don’t alter your routine, even during long weekends or vacations.  Don’t sleep late, and avoid taking naps.
• Don’t skip meals, and don’t let more than four hours go by without having a bite to eat.
• Women, be aware of hormonal changes, such as menstruation, pregnancy, nursing, starting new birth control, menopause, and perimenopause
• Weather changes cause migraines, too.  Weather fluctuations, such as temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure are typical migraine triggers.  You can’t avoid the weather, but isolating environmental migraine triggers from other headache causes will help you learn how to manage your migraines better.

Moody migraine triggers

Stress is one of the most influential migraine triggers.  Overwhelmingly, stress is the cause of most headaches, in addition to life-threatening ailments such as heart disease, stroke, hypertension, and morbid obesity.

• It’s important to understand that “good stress” and “bad stress” alike may cause migraine symptoms.  So, landing that perfect job or getting a holiday cash bonus might provide financial relief, but it won’t necessarily provide migraine relief.
• Depression is a common symptom of migraines that also creates stress, thus causing a vicious migraine circle.  Antidepressants might provide relief from depression and anxiety, but you should discuss any possible drug interactions with a headache expert, such as a neurologist.
• Practice stress-relieving exercises such as yoga and meditation.
• Take natural headache ingredients, such as magnesium for migraines
• If necessary, seek counseling for stress reduction.

Read more about migraine triggers:

Migraine Weather Triggers- Seasonal Migraines in the Fall

13 Reasons your Migraines Hate the Summer Season

Sinus Headache Remedies from the Kitchen- Eat This, Not That

Perfumes and Migraines: The Good, the Bad, and the Downright Stinky

Sources:

What’s Really Triggering Migraine Pain? – Health News Story – WDIV Detroit

Migraine Triggers- University of California, Berkeley PDF

Cure Together- Avoidance of Triggers is Best for Migraine: Results of Patient Study Comparing 180 Treatments

How to avoid a migraine? Migraine.com

Migraine Causes- Mayo Clinic

Image credits, from top:

photostock, happykanppy, Robert Cochrane, Suat Eman, Carlos Porto, winnond

Migraines cause throbbing headaches, in addition to nausea and vomiting. Some assume that cyclical vomiting and nausea is caused by migraine headaches, but that is not the case. Cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) that occurs with abdominal migraines is a separate condition that shares comorbidity with migraine symptoms.

Cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS)

Cyclic vomiting syndrome is a condition that involves repetitive vomiting and nausea over a long period.  A person suffering from cyclic vomiting will experience spells of extreme queasiness, stomach cramps, heaving, and vomiting that alternate with “breaks” without symptoms.  This can go on for hours, or days.  Physicians used to believe that CVS was strictly a pediatric disease, but current research indicates that CVS can strike people of all age groups.

Migraines with CVS

Researchers are unsure as to why CVS occurs with migraine attacks, but they acknowledge that a high percentage of migraine sufferers experience nausea, stomach upset, and vomiting that is typical of cyclic vomiting syndrome.  Abdominal migraines cause throbbing head pain, in addition to stomach aches, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting.  Migraine triggers such as stress and anxiety are also common triggers of CVS.

Abdominal migraines- who gets them?

Although CVS can strike anybody, abdominal migraines in children is most common.  Adolescent migraine patients usually complain of stomachaches in place of headaches, sometimes causing cyclical vomiting and/or migraine with aura. As they get older, their abdominal migraine symptoms switch to typical classic migraine symptoms- sharp head pain, neck pain, sensitivity to light, smells, and sounds, and migraines with or without aura.  (Read What are Abdominal Migraines?)

Anti- nausea drugs for migraines

Some migraine medications are effective at treating all migraine symptoms at once, including nausea and vomiting.  However, prescribed migraine remedies don’t always work as efficiently as they should. If cyclical vomiting is keeping you from digesting your migraine medications, then your headache doctor might prescribe anti-nausea drugs to soothe your stomach and put an end to vomiting.

Note that many of the following anti-nausea drugs come with side effects such as dizziness and fatigue:

• Phenergan
• Thorazine
• Compazine
• Tigan
• Reglan

Natural migraine ingredients

Many natural migraine ingredients provide nutritional support to migraine sufferers that improve neurological functioning, without causing side effects associated with other over-the-counter (OTC) products. For sour stomach, many people recommend ginger, peppermint, or chamomile teas. Also, supplementing with magnesium and butterbur has resulted in overwhelmingly positive results for many people who have suffered with chronic migraines for years.

Read more about migraine ingredients:

Migraine Nausea and Vomiting- 10 Natural Home Remedies

The Painkilling Power of Ginger: Migraines and Beyond

7 Healing Headache Relief Treatments for Children

Sources:

Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome – National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse

Nausea Drugs for Migraines and Headaches

Migraine- Health- Patient UK

Comorbidity of headache and gastrointestinal complaints. The Head-HUNT Study- PubMed NCBI

Image credits, from top:

QuinnDombrowski, Spencer E Holtaway, suzyq212, Chris Morriss

Migraine headaches are not just about throbbing head pain; sufferers of migraine have strong sensitivity to smells, resulting in olfactory aura– an indicator of an approaching migraine attack. Migraine odors usually include unpleasant imagined smells such as burnt food, cigarette smoke, or rotten garbage.

What causes migraine headaches?

Millions of people suffer from migraine symptoms, such as severe headaches, nausea, and dizziness, but nobody has come up with a universal migraine cure. However, by determining migraine triggers and experimenting with various migraine remedies many- if not all- migraine suffers are able to find a measure of relief from their debilitating migraine symptoms.

What is a migraine aura?

A migraine aura appears during the migraine prodrome stage- generally, just a few minutes before the migraine attack strikes. Alice in Wonderland Syndrome is one example of a migraine aura that includes distorted body image, auditory hallucinations, loss of spatial awareness, and temporary jumbled, confused speech patterns.  Typical migraine auras are bright lights and voids, such as blue-green zigzagging lines, eclipses, and blind spots.

Olfactory hallucinations

Sometimes, migraine patients report smelling weird, unusual odors before a migraine attack- odors that don’t actually exists, save for them.  Thes olfactory auras are called parosmia.  The majority of migraine patients describe imagined smells as putrid, smoky odors.  Common descriptions are:

• burning wood
• toxic-smelling aromas
• sewer-like stenches
• smoke
• decomposed garbage.

Read more about migraine illness:

Night Terrors, Migraines, and Insomnia- 7 Nightmare Headaches

Perfumes and Migraines: The Good, the Bad, and the Downright Stinky

Sources:

Imagined smells can precede migraines

Olfactory hallucinations in primary headache disorders: Case series and literature review

Olfactory aura symptoms- Migraine Aura Foundation

Migraine Symptoms: Olfactory Hallucinations

Image credits, from top:

andertoons, John Kasawa, Grant Cochrane

Migraine headaches and brain aneurysms share common symptoms; for that reason, chronic migraine sufferers fear their migraines may cause a cerebral aneurysm.  Here, we learn to tell the difference between migraines and aneurysms.  Find out if your headache symptoms are cause for alarm, and if you need to call emergency.

How long will my Migraine Headache Last? A Migraine Symptom Chart

What is a migraine headache?

Migraine headaches affect millions of people throughout the world. Overwhelmingly, migraine sufferers are women.  Headache specialists differ on the exact cause of migraines, but everybody agrees that migraine illness is a neurological disorder.

Migraine symptoms vary by patient, but the most common symptoms of a migraine attack are:

• Severe, throbbing head pain, usually on one side of the head
• Sharp pain behind one eye that spreads to the temples
• Nausea
• Stomach cramps
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Extreme sensitivity to light, noise, and scents
• Visual disturbances, “auras,” such as zigzagging light sequences, expanding, crescent-shaped hallucinations, and temporary partial-blindness in one eye
• Speech distortions
• Dizziness
• Distorted perception of spatial awareness and time

To ER or not to ER? 8 Migraine Signals that call for Emergency Care

What is a brain aneurysm?

Medline Plus defines an aneurysm as a “weak area in the wall of a blood vessel that causes the blood vessel to bulge or balloon out.”  Cerebral aneurysms are swollen blood vessels that occur in the brain, usually near the veins at the base of the brain, often producing severe migraine-like headaches.  An unruptured aneurysm is like a ticking time bomb, putting pressure on the brain, but causing no serious injury, save for headache pain and other disturbing symptoms.

What are the symptoms of a cerebral aneurysm headache?

Often, people who have a brain aneurysm don’t realize it until they start to experience headache symptoms.  For a chronic migraine patient, determining brain aneurysm can be difficult, as many of the symptoms of migraine headaches are similar to those of brain aneurysm headaches.

An unruptured aneurysm causes pain symptoms such as:

• Severe headaches
• Blurry vision
• Speech distortions
• Neck pain

What causes brain aneurysms?

There are several risk factors associated with brain aneurisms.  They are:

• Concussion, or other head injury
• Neck injury
• Smoking
• Hypertension, high blood pressure
• Inherited disposition to brain aneurysms
• Kidney disease
• Infection of the arterial wall

When a cerebral aneurysm ruptures- symptoms

When a brain aneurysm leaks or ruptures, people often describe it as “the worse headache of their lives.” Sharp pain, referred to as a thunderclap headache or “crash” migraine, often occurs following physical exertion.  If you have a cerebral aneurysm, then anything from a strong sneeze, an intensive workout, or sexual relations can trigger migraine-like head pain that may signal a rupture or leak. If you suspect you have a ruptured brain aneurysm, then it is imperative that you call 911 immediately.

Symptoms of a ruptured aneurysm include:

• Sudden, excruciating headache that is unlike any previous headaches, migraine-related or not
• Neck pain
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Extreme sensitivity to light (similar to migraine symptoms)
• Loss of consciousness
• Seizure

Is there any connection between chronic migraine headaches and brain aneurysms?

According to the Cleveland Clinic, there is no proven connection between migraines and brain aneurysms. Although ruptured aneurysm headaches can mimic migraine headaches in their severity, for the typical migraine patient there is no cause for alarm.  An MRI can detect if a brain aneurysm exists.  So, unless you have been diagnosed with a cerebral aneurysm, the odds of your migraine headaches being in any way linked with a brain aneurysm are highly unlikely. However, if you notice any sudden, unusual changes in the intensity or frequency of your migraines, then you should call emergency to schedule an MRI- just to be safe.

Read more about migraine prevention:

• 4 Headaches that Require Emergency Intervention
• 7 Headache Symptoms you definitely shouldn’t ignore
• Headaches can Cause Blindness- 4 Facts about Ocular Migraines

Sources:

• What You Should Know About Cerebral Aneurysms
• Cerebral Aneurysm- National Headache Foundation
• Brain Aneurysm: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment – WebMD
• Brain aneurysm: Causes – MayoClinic.com
• How are chronic headaches and brain aneurysms linked? – Sharecare
• Aneurysm in the brain: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia

Image credits, from top:

• Ambro
• Salvatore Vuono