Migraine headaches

I used to get migraines every once in a while - maybe one every few months or so. About four years ago, I stopped getting them altogether. Then, totally unexpectedly, I got one a couple of weeks ago (December 21). And then, even more unexpectedly, I got another one yesterday (January 1). As everyone knows, three times the charm, so I got yet another surprise. This third surprise was not another migraine (thank the goddess!) but rather finding out that apparently migraines have been going around the small town I live in. Both my headaches occured during our holiday break. When I returned to work today, I found out that the secretary and her housemate had both had migraines. The secretary, who works at the grocery store part time, said that every day she worked several people who went through her line commented on getting migraines.

Now, is it just me, or is that odd? As far as I know, migraines are possibly genetic and triggered by diet/stress/etc. This sounds more like they were contagious. And yes, I know holidays are stressful, but I simply don’t believe I was going through more stress this year than the past four years - while in college! I’ve graduated now, no more finals. If four years worth of college finals and holidays didn’t give me migraines, I doubt that the holidays alone would.

Here’s the question, then: does anyone have any idea what’s up with this? Is it just a statistical anomaly? (I would like to stress that, though I have had migraines before, they were never as often as two migraines in two weeks.)

Purely anecdotal but here goes.

My mother and both of my brothers suffer from migraine. My mother has for years kept Pethidine at home for injection when one comes on. One of my brothers becomes ill if he smells Earl Grey tea from a migraine he had 10 years ago.

I had never had a migraine in my life until some years ago when I had 3 in about 10 days. They were the real deal headache, nausea, visual stuffups and relieved by anti-migraine medication. I had seen my doctor after the first one and he gave me the drugs. After the third incident I saw him again to find out whether I would suffer regularly like my family. He informed me that he didn’t think so - he felt it was unlikely that I had never had one before and suddenly had 3. He recommended that we wait and see because he felt that it may be an allergic reponse to something that I was being exposed to temporarily.

Well, as it turned out I guess he was right because in the 20 odd years since I’ve never had another.

this time frame seems to coincide w/airings of kangaroo jack commercials.

give it a couple weeks (until jack has left the theatres), and maybe they’ll clear up.

I have a bump or laceration or something ( I forget now…) in my sinus that creates pressure and causes migraines for me. It is apparantly triggered by diet, stress, and weather. It seems according to my doctor that certain weather conditions can trigger migraines. Whether it be dry air or increased air pressure before a storm I don’t know. But weather could theoretically trigger migraines in many people such as in your situation. Does that help at all?

My wife sells the drug Imitrex for migraine headaches and thank God for it! All through my teen years and some of my 20s, I had bad, bad headaches and never even considered they were migraines. I just assumed this was what a headache felt like.

When she began selling the drug, she knew right away I was having migraines. We went to the doctor, got a prescription (no - I just can’t take what she’s selling) and problem solved.

Now - the reason for telling you all of that is because one of the top causes of a migraine is a sudden change in activity. That sounds like your problem. This is a stronger reason if you are a type A personality. That’s me. I never get migraine headaches while I am at work. The moment I go on vacation - Bingo!

Last year my wife and I went on a rather intense three-week vacation through Eastern Europe. It was go - go - go. I never had a problem. When I arrived home and had three days to just sit and decompress - three in a row. No - it is not from jet lag. I’ve had that many times before and no concerns.

It’s the change in routine. I would bet a small amount of money on it.

Joe

PS - Not to sound like a commercial, but after years of this head pain, I believe Imitrex was brought to earth on a silver platter by an angel. See a doctor and get some. Take it with a single Aleve at the very first sign of your migraine. Mine always start with a “halo.” I see rainbow colors as if I was looking through a prism
that move from right to left across my eyes. For a short time I am literally without clear sight as the halo moves from the right to the left eye. The moment I get that halo - I take the pills. The halo finishes. I can’t stop that but the headache never comes.

If there’s one downfall it’s that you are groggy and have a medicine head for the rest of the day. I’ll take that over a migraine and barfing anytime.

Migraine triggers vary – allergy, food sensitivity, virus, circulation snafu, fatigue, weird sensory trigger (like light or certain smells).

Usually the pain is caused by blood vessels in the brain dilating (which is why for some people the pain “throbs” – with each beat of your heart, you have lots more blood than usual slamming through the blood vessels in your head.)

Often the migraine affects only one side of the brain.

Common triggers are red wine, chocolate, cheese, and artificial fragrance.

Sometimes there is a precursory “aura” – lights seem way too bright (or the migraine sufferer “sees” flashing lights) and tingling or numbness on one side of one’s body – for those who’ve never had one before it can be scary because they think they’re having a stroke.

Some migraines are “aural” and you maintain the tingles or numbness without experiencing the pain (but aural migraines are no fun either – my friend’s father would simply go compltely blind and stay that way for hours.)

Basandre if a lot of people in your community were experiencing migraines around the same time, it sounds like there may have been some kind of viral trigger. I worked at a daycare a few years ago and some nasty virus went around – gave everyone blinding headaches and made you dizzy so you puked your guts out. Even those who didn’t regularly suffer from migraines were succumbing to it.

Some possibilities to consider:

Did you change your caffeine consumption routine? If you regularly drink coffee at work, then take vacation and drop the coffee, that could trigger migraines. Drinking coffee when you don’t normally can also be a trigger.

If you have a sensitivity to indoor allergens like mold and suddenly were spending a lot more time indoors at home (instead of going to work) that could be a problem, too.

I believe carbon monoxide poisoning has headache as one symptom, but I don’t know how similar that is to a migraine. If you are frequently waking up with a headache, and others in your house are having similar symptoms, you might want to get your heating system checked out.

#1) Imitrex has proved to be a miracle drug for my wife, and to a lesser extent me. Taken at the first sense of those throbbings, this drug has changed our lives. (And we both do get a sort of strange set of physical sensations as side effects, but it’s well worth it.

#2) Basandre - stress can be a trigger. That you felt no more stress than when you were in college (just how DO you measure that, by the way?) doesn’t change the fact that holidays are, to many people, stressful. So, in the absence of any other common trigger, I’d suggest that you not ignore the possiblity that there could very well have been more headaches this time of year because of the related emotional duress that such holidays cause.

hanks for the responses, everybody. I haven’t changed my caffeine consumption, really. I don’t drink coffee, and caffeinated sodas only a few times a week. As to stress, I’m sure holidays are stressfull for many people, but honestly, this holiday I wasn’t stressed. My husband and I visited our parents that live an hour away over Christmas and spent the rest of the time relaxing and cleaning the house. (CC, how do I tell I’ve been through much less stress? Well, during a normal semster of college, I’d normally wake up most days and parcel it out to the various things I had to get done - “I need to finish my calculus homework in an hour, go to class, get 3 pages of the philosphy paper done by noon, go to class, work on the compiler as long as I can, …” Now, well, my job isn’t exactly a pushover, but when I get off work, I can actually stop working!) Another reason I’m reluctant to accept the “stressful holidays” cause is that if the holidays really cause enough stress for a lot of people to get migraines, then why is this the first time I’ve ever heard of this happening?

Oh, and I’m the only one in my house to get the migraines, and they were definitely migraines (I get the “auras” that Eats_Crayons was talking about).

I suppose that it’s statistically possible for my migraines to have been triggered by stress/diet/weather (no, we haven’t had any unusual weather lately, it’s cold and dry like normal) at the same time as many other people, it just seems… unlikely? I notice Eats_Crayons mentioned a possible viral trigger - that sounds promising, I didn’t know there was such a thing.

Anyway, thanks for all the responses :slight_smile:

A change in atmospheric pressure is a common migraine trigger, as is stress let-down. Sorry, no cite, just 37 years of migraines and 10 years of neurologist visits to back it up.

I forgot: Not all migraines are from dilated blood vessels, lotsa times it’s also from constricting blood vessels or funky spasm.

And while a virus might trigger a migraine, I don’t think they usually cause them directly, though I may be wrong. But when that virus ripped thorugh our daycare center, it seemed that everyone ended up with a migraine at some point during the course of the illness.

If you visit this site you’ll find more detailed info about how different body chemistry triggers migraines in some people.

I have found that liquid vitamin B complex helps immensely. The kind I buy is sold under the brand name of “Sublingual B” but GNC has their own version. Fair warning, the taste is incredibly foul.

Whenever I feel a headache coming on, I’ll take four or five eye-dropper doses of it. The worse the headache, the more I’ll take. Sometimes it has the side effect of flushing the skin, but I’ll take that over a headache any day.

When it comes to migraines, it’s best to head them off at the pass before they get too bad. Once it’s full-blown, the liquid B will not completely eliminate it, but will take the edge off and make it a bit more bearable.

I know what you’re thinking. During the last migraine I had, I was throwing up and crying from the pain. My grandmother brought me over a bottle of it, and I was utterly amazed at the results. When she suggested it, I thought, “Yeah, right,” but I was willing to try anything because I was in so much pain, and lo, and behold, it actually helped!

Give it a try. It’s about $12 a bottle, but I feel it’s very much worth it.

I read once that they think migraines are an allergic response.
I’ve always wondered why the predominant migraine population is women 20-50, who also have some history depression.
That data is just from personal experience.

I certainly believe in migraines, but the most difficult patients are those who seem to be ‘milking’ migraine pain for all the meds they can get–these patients are not the majority, but they will sure take up enough of a care-giver’s time to make it seem so.