People living with migraines know that specific external and internal stimuli can trigger attacks; these stimuli are known as migraine triggers; many find identifying and avoiding their personal migraine triggers to be key in controlling symptoms.
Common triggers may include food and drinks such as red wine, caffeine or forgoing meals; hormone changes due to menstruation or pregnancy; weather fluctuations such as sudden changes in air pressure; or abrupt changes in weather patterns.
Stress
Recognizing and taking steps to avoid potential triggers of migraine attacks can significantly lower their frequency. Improvements to diet and exercise routine can also have a major impact; however, overreliance on OTC pain relievers could actually increase migraine attacks over time.
Emotional stress is one of the primary triggers for migraine, according to Cleveland Clinic. This could include stress from work, school or family related sources.
Lights, loud noises and strong smells may all trigger migraine attacks as part of their premonitory phase – an early warning signal. Caffeine is often an initial trigger as a vasoconstrictor which narrows blood vessels. Others find sleeping late or changing sleep patterns or drinking alcohol can trigger their migraine.
Hormones
Migraine attacks are frequently brought on by changes in hormone levels, particularly estrogen levels, so women are especially prone to migraine attacks during puberty, menstruation, pregnancy and menopause.
Estrogens play an essential role in menstrual migraine (MM), including inhibiting serotonin transport across the blood-brain barrier and modulation of neurotransmitters involved with pain processing as well as dilation of cerebral vessels. Estrogens may also sensitize cells around the trigeminal nerve to stimuli that cause headache.
Women who suffer from hormonal headaches can use triptans with longer half-lives such as Frovatriptan (Frova) and Naratriptan (Amerge), taken on an ongoing schedule prior to and during periods. A diary can also help them track patterns.
Diet
Diet may be linked to headaches for some headache sufferers. While this relationship remains unknown and unproven scientifically, eating habits have been reported as potential triggers. A personalized plan tailored specifically for an individual should include eating habits. Maintaining a food and symptom journal may help identify potential migraine-inducing foods such as those rich in chemicals like tyramine, MSG or caffeine as potential headache-causing agents; cheese, chocolate milk or soy isoflavones may also act as migraine triggers in some individuals.
Avoiding foods and closely monitoring their effect can help you decide if a particular diet is worth trying, but eliminating all potential triggers may not be practical or possible in every instance. Furthermore, it’s important to remain realistic regarding how much of an effect identifying and avoiding triggers will have on your headaches.
Dehydration
Around one third of migraine sufferers report dehydration as one of their triggers, although scientists remain unsure as to the precise mechanism behind this connection. They speculate that dehydration irritates the brain and leads to overexcited pain receptors triggering migraine attacks.
Hunger can also be a powerful trigger of migraine attacks, especially if it strikes around the same time each day. To minimize hunger-triggered migraines, aim to have all meals and snacks at regular times each day.
Changes to sleep patterns, stress levels and weather changes are common migraine triggers; however, each person has individual triggers. For instance, young women might experience migraines when skipping meals, being overwhelmed or just before starting her period begins – knowing these personal migraine triggers enables proactive management of the condition.
Changes in the weather
Changes in temperature and humidity may trigger migraine attacks for some individuals, though studies to identify specific weather patterns as actual triggers have had mixed results due to individual responses varying, as well as how one factor might contribute to another factor that leads to an attack such as heat plus stress or dehydration.
Spring and summer often bring sudden shifts in atmospheric pressure that can trigger migraine attacks. Rainstorms and thunderstorms can dehydrate people due to increased perspiration. Keep a headache diary to track your triggers, taking preventive medications at any sign of an attack. While you cannot control the weather, making sure you remain hydrated with fluids as well as maintaining an organized sleep schedule are two effective measures you can use in mitigating this condition.
