tell me what triggers your migraines?

[saycheeeeeese]

Long term migraine sufferer here, been getting them since I was 16.

I suffer from Aura migraines so tend to know when im getting one now so unless its during the night I'm usually able to take medication to stop it developing.

When I got pregnant 2years ago they stopped completely but they are now back with a vengeance.

Going to see my GP as I was previously on beta blockers which helped, but just wondering what other people find are triggers for Aura migraines.

TIA

[EzrasMummy]

Chocolate and caffeine, alcohol (even if it was poured on my clothes) - perfume, mouthwash (with alcohol) ,too much cheese, and any amount of mozarella. Also stress, hormones, too much sunlight if i dont have sunglasses.

Its the chocolate that upsets me the most. havent had any for over 20 years!

[rugbychick]

Lack of sleep and stress. I don't get auras, but it affects my eyesight. I know when one can start by pain behind my right eye

[Nicolaeus]

Very interesting about tyramine - will look that up

[fubbsy]

Mine are

hunger
too little/irregular sleep
stress

Caffeine seems to be the opposite of a trigger for me. If I have had coffee before the aura starts, the headache tends not to be as bad.

[MegBusset]

I got LOADS as a teenager/early 20s, caused by stress/tiredness/dehydration. Then they pretty much stopped until I was pregnant with DS2, when I got them every bloody day from about 3mo onwards. Then they went away again but came back about 18m ago, this time triggered by caffeine. So I have had to go completely decaf but thankfully have only had one since giving up caffeine.

[Foggles]

Probably worth investing in SCOTCH. I don't drive but have had to resort to wearing sunglasses out in winter. I feel a bit foolish but I don't care!

[SCOTCHandWRY]

Yes Foggles, low winter sun also triggers me - especially if I'm driving , I'm short so the sun visor is useless at shielding me - am thinking of getting prescription Polaroid glasses for driving - I tried a relatives pair a few weeks ago and was amazed at how the glare just vanishes, not like normal sunglasses at all.

[Foggles]

All of my triggers have already been mentioned but I also hate the low winter sun shining in my eyes as it sometimes triggers an attack.

[SCOTCHandWRY]

Tyramine is a big trigger for me - its occurs naturally in aged foods like mature cheese, dried meats, mould rind or blue cheese, processed meats , and in a lot of normal food when they start to get a bit "past it" in terms of freshness - pre made orange juice is not all that fresh for example!

Lots of people never work out that its the tyramine that is the cause, because your sensitivity to tryamine can be very variable, so a lump of blue cheese might only trigger a migraine if you are stressed or at a certain point in your cycle, or if you have eaten some other high tyramine foods in the day or two proceeding.

I only worked it was a trigger for me after I started eating paleo - no grain, no cheese, no processed foods, I had a big reduction in migraine frequency and it became a lot more obvious that if I cheated on my diet by eating blue cheese or marmite or other high tyramine foods, I'd get an aura starting anything between 15 mins (the marmite!) to about 18 hrs later.

Prior to going on the paleo diet I had so many migraines it was difficult to actually see any pattern of cause because I had so many of them - often several a week.

It might be worth all you frequent sufferers reading up on tyramine foods and cutting them out for a couple of months - with a bit of experimentation people usually find they are fine with a certain amount (I'm ok with coffee and tomatoes, cured meats as long as I don't overdo it), but there may be some things you need to avoid long term - likely to be blue, mouldy and aged cheeses, an sadly, marmite (I love the stuff, but it doesn't love me !)

[StainlessSteelCat]

Tiredness/stress - although I usually get the migraine just after the stress lifts, it's like a delayed reaction.

They have improved loads since my first pregnancy, I get them less often and less badly (no longer need a day or two in a dark room, I can talk and I don't see pretty patterns).

Another major improvement was getting anti-nausea tablets from GP. If I missed the warning signs then any pain killer was useless, but the anti nausea tablets meant I could then take migraleive (or generic equivalent) which would actually work. I think they were called buccastem, but am going on rather vague memories!

Have never linked them to any trigger foods/particular cycle time.

[slug]

1. Hormones. The week before my period is a danger time
   
2. Red wine
   
3. Coffee
   
4. Sugar
   
5. Stress. But not current stress, post stress so I can guarantee a cluster migraines after exams for example
   

I'm now, after many years, on a drug regime that works (mostly). At the first hint I take anti-inflammatories followed by a paracetamol/coedine mix. The drug side effect is sometimes almost as bad as the migraine so I do my best to avoid the coedine if possible. I'm left even more sluggish and incoherent than normal. I also have extremely sensitive skin on my face both before they come on and the day after a migraine. It's one of the reasons I wear contact lenses rather than glasses now.

The really bad ones are the ones that take hold while I'm asleep and can't catch them starting.

[Sleepwhenidie]

Not me but MIL's triggers are wine (esp white), chocolate, caffeine and cheese - all things she loves

[BusyTiredAndLoveIt]

Low blood pressure
Exhaustion
Stress
Raging hormones

Touch wood I don't get them as often now but I used to get them 4-6 times a year and it would knock me off my feet for about three days

[PeppermintPasty]

MildlyMiserable, can I ask-how did you find out about the blood pressure thing, your GP I presume? I have very low bp (not dangerously so) and find that v interesting. How exactly did you up your salt intake? Under advice I guess?

[Flisspaps]

Yes, OhMyNoReally - I think they're aura migraines. I don't tend to get pain with mine, but I do get the aura and almost blindness in one eye, nausea, staggering and speech problems.

Afterwards I tend to feel exhausted and ravenous - some pain might come then too.

If I take ibuprofen at the merest hint of one, I can usually ward off the worst of it.

[aliasjoey]

I don't know if what I get are migraines. They don't seem severe enough (as people always say that you can't carry on, would have to lie down in a dark room if it really was a migraine) and generally I can carry on as normal. I am not extra brave, they're just not usually that bad.

They are different from normal headaches though, because they are always round one eye (the same eye every time!)

They are usually brought on by bright sunlight & sometimes tiredness.

[OhMyNoReally]

Yes dehydration! Can anyone tell me if they've ever had migraines when you see things like your looking through a heat sensor camera? I've had those very rarely and I can't stand up properly or walk and I feel like my head is in a vice just curious really as to if anyone else has had this? Thanks.

[fieldfare]

Mine are normally hormone linked - the day before I ovulate and the day before I come on. Weather can trigger one though, especially oppressive stormy weather.

[MildlyMiserable]

Aura migraines for me were caused by low blood pressure, upping my water and salt intake has worked wonders.

[PeppermintPasty]

I thought that would be the answer Nicolaeus thank you.

What do all of you take to combat them?

[OhMyNoReally]

I get bad migraines that last days even with a perscription and my triggers are, under or over sleeping, stress, skipping meals, ignoring the start of a headache (if I don't catch them when they start they blow up and make me really ill), caffeine, bright sunshine, certain wines and a change in atmospheric pressure.

[saythatagain]

Jambi - hemiplegic migraines; thank you for giving that information! I've never heard of that before. I wasn't aware there was a specific name.

[amillionyears]

Some fatty foods
Bad posture
Drafts
Not being warm enough at night

[Jambi]

I used to get them more frequently when I was younger (from about age 8, once a week-ish) but they were over within an hour or two. Now I suffer from hemiplegic migraines - left arm and leg goes numb, slurred speech, and what I can say makes no sense usually! Horrible, people think I'm having a stroke :/

Usually triggered by stress, lack of sleep, oranges, and dehydration, though occasionally one will turn up just to be annoying. Thankfully only one every couple of months now.