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Migraine : What Are The Symptoms of Migraine Attacks

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Written by Ray Lam

Wednesday, 14 May 2008

by RayLam

A migraine is a complaint that is quite often suffered by other family members, all of which have probably been experiencing them from a young age. Most suffers will go to bed as the headache (usually on one side) takes hold and which could last a matter of a few hours but if left without attention, could last for days. To make matters worse, even after the pains have decreased the sufferer is still left weak from the episode and unable to carry on normal tasks for quite a while.

Some people are more fortunate than others and may only have a couple of attacks per year whilst others have one or more every month. Often other symptoms similar to those of flu may afflict the patient; for instance, light sensitivity and chills, along with a feeling of lightheadedness as well. Migraine attacks only seem to affect people within a certain age range, just before puberty and stop by the time the person has reached about 40; however, by the time someone reaches fifty, attacks almost never occur.

Hereditary links are often associated with migraine and occurrences may happen among members of a family; even though there may be a link, so far it has eluded medical science. It is pressure from inflamed blood vessels that places pressure on the nerves near the brain that actually causes the awful pain. With this condition, women do not fare as well as men with a ratio of 3 to 1 suffering from the condition regularly; only one in twelve men will experience an attack in their lives.

Before the migraine attack, some people have a distinct warning called an aura which usually precedes the headache from anywhere between ten to thirty minutes. A number of different warning signs have been exhibited as shown below:

*Feeling of sickness *Enlarged blind spots *Sense of smell and taste is affected *Lack of sensation in sufferers extremities

these are the most commonly experienced symptoms. However, the condition that's most common is a migraine without aura where the pain increases in one area of the head; these victims have no warning, but the symptoms can also be intensified if they move to much.

The exact reason for having migraine is not clear and yet to be discovered but one assumption is that the blood vessels in areas of the brain become narrower which may be the explanation for the aura. This narrowing of vessels then leads to an expansion and this pressure change may be the reason for the headache; whatever the cause, sufferers all agree that an attack stops them from doing anything in their daily lives until it has receded. A sufferer could have one or more triggers to each attack; the most common complaints are highlighted below:

*Weather *Certain types of food *Being at great height *Drinks *Very bright internal lighting *Not enough food *Anxiety

Only by carefully documenting everything that was going on prior to the attack can the victim hope to find out what starts the attacks off.

About the Author:

Overcome Migraine Attacks! Learn about migraine cures by visiting http://health-foryou.info, a popular health website that provides free health tips, advice and information to help you stay healthy.

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