What's your most common migraine trigger?
I started a little poll on the front page asking this question. I know it varies for everyone but I was curious if there was one trigger that stood out from the rest. For me it's stress. It's what started the whole thing and it's what keeps it going.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Ellen Schnakenberg on -
Hi Janeen,
Any endocrine fluctuation will get me going, but I don't always know when those are happening until it's too late. The worst one for me that hits me and I know I'm in trouble, is blue light.
I love blue-- it's one of my favorite colors, and I particularly like LED blue that is currently "the thing" to use on phones and computers, and we just found in cars as well. Unfortunately, it's that shade of bright blue that hits me excruciatingly hard. About 1/2 second and I'm down for the count with a terrible aura that results in a very bad day.
The reduction of stress will get me too, but I rarely stress about anything, so it doesn't affect me more than once every few months. The light is an issue for me almost daily.
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Permalink Reply by Janeen on -
Ellen,
I would not have thought about light as a trigger! That must be aweful. It's not like you can avoid blue light(like you said it's in cars, phones, it's on my T.V., etc.). It's everywhere (and I love the color blue too). That trigger blows me away.
Thanks so much for sharing!
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Permalink Reply by Megan Oltman on -
Hi Janeen - I'm interested in taking the poll but I can't find it! Could you link to which is the front page?
BTW, the International Headache Society says stress is not a trigger, it's an exacerbating factor. I'm torn between 1) thinking it's a useful distinction because many triggers can be eliminated but stress can only be managed; and 2) thinking it's silly - if it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck...
I just did a somewhat silly blog post on this topic this week! It's Here.
If stress is a trigger I'd say it's my biggest, if not I'd say sleep changes, fatigue and too much caffeine are my biggest.
I also just started the Migraine Coaching thread on WEGO Here with some exercises to take about triggers. So I'd love to have you come participate there too!
- Megan
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Permalink Reply by Janeen on
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Megan, a new poll was started and I think it negated my original poll. I went to check results and it was gone. So, C'est la vie on that poll. But maybe we can gage some insight from the comments on this post. I don't want to repost the poll and cancel out the existing poll.
If stress isn't a trigger than every time I'm stressed I must follow a particular pattern that triggers my migraines. Because seriously, that's when my migraines are the worst. But not during the stress. After the stress has ended is when my migraines hit, when my stress levels start to come down. I don't get migraines during the Christmas season, I get migraines after the New Year. I don't migraines while planning my sons allergy free birthday, I get migraines 1-2 weeks after. It's odd but it is my pattern.
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Permalink Reply by Megan Oltman on
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Absolutely - the let-down migraine. Same for me. We had a little kitchen fire the other day (NB - don't let your 13 y/o son make nachos in the broiler unsupervised) - I dealt with it, ran in, put the fire out, complete adrenalin situation, cleaned up, sat down and then the migraine hit like someone hitting me in the head.
I'm sure we tense up when we're stressed, and that may have something to do with it since tension in muscles in our heads can lead to headache (that's why Botox helps). But I suspect there's also something either chemical (post adrenalin) or having to do with blood pressure, or both. I'm sure there's research on it.
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Permalink Reply by Janeen on
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OH NO!!! Hope you kitchen wasn't too damaged. I'm also glad that no one was injured. That type of situation would have definitely given me a migraine (and I made a note about 13 year old boys, nachos, and the broiler).
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