Migraine symptoms
Migraine headaches come in many forms and the same is true with migraine
symptoms. It has been suggested that there are many common symptoms that
people may experience, but it is also true that the symptoms of migraines
will vary from person to person. It is also true that the symptoms may change
with time or between attacks. In other words, what a person felt the last
time he or she had a migraine may not be the same as what they will feel
the next time they have a migraine.
Some of the more common symptoms that a person may experience include:
Sensitivity to Light: Migraine sufferers often find it painful to be in the presence of light. This is especially true of bright light such as sunshine.
Pain: Pain levels will vary from person to person and from episode to episode. Usually the pain level is between moderate to severe. It is often classified as being a throbbing pain that may take place over the entire area of the head and face. In some cases the pain can be localized.
Increased Sensitivity to Odors or Noise: As with sensitivity to light, migraine sufferers may also experience an increased sensitivity to noise and less often an increased sensitivity to certain odors.
Blurred Vision: Of the many visual problems that migraine sufferers may encounter during an attack, blurred vision is a rather common one. This is not a permanent ailment. When the headache goes away the blurred vision goes away as well.
Nausea or Vomiting: These symptoms are present most often in persons who are suffering from what is known as the common type of migraine.
Lack of appetite: This is often associated with the pain of the attack. When a person is in pain, they are often simply not hungry.
Cold or Warm Sensations: Migraine sufferers will often feel as if they are overly cold or overly warm. These sensations may actually trade off with one another with the person feeling one sensation for a while followed by the other.
Fatigue: Feeling tired is another symptom of migraines that may actually be rooted in the pain experience itself. Often people will come out of a migraine episode feeling very tired and will need to rest.
Vertigo or Dizziness: A somewhat common symptom is that of feeling dizzy.
Auras: Auras are a common visual symptom for those who suffer from what are known as classic migraines. Auras can be bright flashing light or may seem like bright dots. They are usually one of the first symptoms that a person will experience, and it should be noted that the person actually sees the flashing lights or the objects that make up his or her aura pattern.
There is a special kind of migraine that is known as a cluster headache. These types of headaches may include some of the above symptoms but they also include a few symptoms that are unique to them.
Pain Location: The pain during a cluster headache is usually located only on one side of the head. It may be near the temple area or it may feel as if it located behind one eye. The pain can be excruciating.
Pain Duration: This type of headache will last 30 to 120 minutes, but it can last for hours. This type of headache often dissipates but will return later on that same day or night, and this will repeat which is why they are called cluster headaches.
For the more common migraine headaches, episodes can last from three or four hours to as long as a week. Frequency of attacks is an individual issue in that it varies greatly from one person to the next. Many people will go months without an attack while others will have one every two weeks or so. There are a few people who will have an episode as often as once or twice a week.
It is the set of the symptoms that a person presents to his or her doctor that will determine if they are having a classic type migraine or a common type migraine.
Migraines that are accompanied by an aura are known as classic type migraines. Those that do not present an aura are known as the common type of migraine.
Again, an aura is an alert signal to the person that a migraine is on the way. The aura can begin an hour before the actual headache arrives or it can be present only minutes before the attack. The visual aura itself will usually last from 10 minutes to about an hour and no longer.
There can be unique auras as well. These include such things as ringing in the ears, or detecting odd smells or tastes.
Migraines that do not have auras are more common and represent over 75% of persons who have migraines.
As you can see, the number of symptoms that can be present with migraines is large, but do remember that most people will only have some of the symptoms and not all of them. There is no way to know which symptoms will hit which people, and the symptoms that are routine today may change in the future for each person who suffers from migraines.
More resources:
medicinenet.com - An in depth discussion of Migraine headache triggers,medications and other Neurological Disorders that lead to Migraine Headaches.mayoclinic.com - Comprehensive overview covers symptoms, causes, treatment of this debilitating variety of headache.
webmd.com - Migraine headache symptoms vary and may occur with or without a warning sign called an aura. People who get an aura, which usually begins within 30 minutes before the headache starts, may see spots, wavy lines, or flashing lights.