Migraine headaches: Know its causes, symptoms and treatment

Migraine is the third most common disease in the world with 1 in 7 people suffering from it. A person may spend around 5% of his/her life experiencing migraine. Anxiety and depression are significantly more common in people with migraine than in healthy individuals.

A migraine is an intense pounding headache on one, or sometimes, both sides of the head. Migraine headaches can last for hours or even days. Migraine usually begins in the forehead, the side of the head, or around the eyes and gradually gets more severe.

Symptoms

There are lots of different types of migraine and so the symptoms are very different from person to person. There is no specific test for diagnosing migraine.

Bright lights and a loud noise makes the pain worse. Nausea and vomiting are common symptoms during a migraine.

The symptoms of migraine can occur in stages, although not all people experience all the stages.

Stage 1- In the first stage, subtle chances might be experienced and day or two before the headache such as mood changes, cravings or yawning.

Stage 2- In this stage, some people experience auras. These are temporary changes to vision, or odd sensations, that occur just before or during the headache.

Stage 3- In this stage, people experience severe headaches.

Stage 4- This is a recovery stage, where people often still feel tired.

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Causes

The cause of migraine is not yet well understood, though the doctors say it has something to do with the blood vessels, nerves, and chemicals in the brain. Genetics might have a role since migraines can run in families.  

For people who suffer from migraines, certain triggers can lead to episodes occurring. These include stress and exertion, lack of sleep, particular foods and drinks, skipping meals, weather changes, hormonal changes, excessive brightness, travelling, smoking, consuming alcohol, and noise. These triggers will vary from person to person.

Treatment

• Avoiding stress can help from triggering migraine.
• When a migraine occurs, sleeping or laying down in a dark and quiet room help, along with prescripted migraine medications for pain relief medication (only after consulting with your doctor).
• Your doctor might suggest a group of drugs called triptans, which act on the chemicals and the blood vessels in the brain.
• Anti-sickness medication can also be used in nausea and vomiting are a problem.
• Regular exercising and meditating and following a proper diet on time can also help.