Increase in migraine with aura

[ElkieMacjibe]

Has anyone else had this? I used to get migraines about once a year, since a teenager. In first trimester of pregnancies I had a few but had bad sickness in first and hyperemesis in second so assumed it was lack of food related.
In the past few months I've had 3 full blown migraines and a few near misses. They seem to be increasing. Not sure if it's hormones settling down postpartum (8 months) - they are sometimes around ovulation but not always, but I didn't have this after my first child.
Anyway just wondered if anyone had similar and what helped? I need to call gp I think but want to have some knowledge of what to ask for. Scared myself reading that this could be the start of chronic migraine.

Keep a diary - look particularly at what you've eaten and drunk before you have a migraine and how you are feeling. Lack of sleep and stress can be factors. The good news is there are some very effective medicines available and you can try preventatives too. Take your diary to a doctor's appointment.

Nothing to stop you going to the GP now, just that if you find you have triggers, you can try avoiding them and see whether that makes a difference without medication.

I also meant to say I'm still breastfeeding which is frustrating medication wise. I used to be able to significantly reduce symptoms by taking aspirin at the first sign.

I get aura but without the headaches. Doesn’t seem to have a trigger.
One thing to note is that people who get migraine or visual migraine are at an increased risk of stroke in long term and for that reason women are advised not to take the pill (oestrogen) but the mini pill (progesterone only pill) is ok.

I use something called aculief which goes on a pressure point. I do find it really helps and I don't need to take medication. You can get cheaper versions on amazon or even try a peg but that probably won't pinch hard enough.

Mine are alway more likely if I'm tired (sleep deprived) and eat trigger foods and there is a hormonal link too.

Wonder if it's the tiredness?

I suffer with severe migraines with aura. I don't get aura all the time but I always get aura if I'm sleep deprived or stressed. Allot of foods set me off and hormones every month. Eating regularly helps also. I find it I don't stick to a sleep routine or regular eating pattern I suffer allot more. I take naratriptan and ibuprofen for mine.

Keeping a diary is definitely a good idea, and speaking to your GP. Change in routine can be a trigger (look up "weekend migraine") - has your increase coincided with a change in routine due to lockdown?

Does paracetamol/ibuprofen work instead of aspirin at the first signs? Does caffeine help? I find a can of (full fat) coke and 2 paracetamol sometimes works. Other people swear by soluble paracetamol at the first sign.
Alternatively, can you express milk and keep a supply in the freezer and then pump&dump your medication milk?
I found sumatriptan good (as an acute treatment), and have been told it's ok for breastfeeding.

Have a look at the migraine trust website section on pregnancy & breastfeeding.

Hope it improves soon

The pattern of mine really changed when I was pregnant and BF. In fact, the worst they've ever been is when I gave up BF (I'm assuming my hormones took a while to settle). I went from having one every few months to multiple times per week. Now, they seem to be back to their old pattern, but it was pretty horrible for a while.

I never had much luck with prescription medicine. A quiet, dark room seems to work best for me.

Could it be the current situation? Stress? I've never really suffered migraines in the past, but since lockdown I've been experiencing recurring migraines. I'm hoping they go away when the stress goes away!!!

My migraines were pretty much under control before lunch lockdown and the three day hormonal migraine before my period was down to one day. The incidence shot up when we got sent home from the office to work from home.

I completely agree that eating at regular intervals and getting enough sleep can have a big impact. Everyone is different though. My idea of hell is lying in a darkened room as I find the pain more bearable with distractions until the sumatriptan kicks in.

Lunch? Random autocorrect of lockdown!

Has your baby had a period of sleep disturbance?

I also suffer migraines with aura. Yes of course follow all the sensible suggestions up-thread to identify if you have any triggers. However I have found my patterns simply changed with age and stage, and there's no rhyme or reason (or trigger). As a teenager they were debilitating and I missed a lot of school. In my 20's they stopped, only to return (after some bouts of menieres in the intervening decade) after I had children. I now get them every month or two. Also they have changed a bit. Some are my traditional aura-sickness-painpainpain-vomit-recover pattern. But some sneak up on me without the clear aura to signal, and can last for days with full body aches.
So my message is that they do just change over time, it sucks and can be scary, but you need to just find a way to manage on those days.
For me, no matter what, MIGRALEVE is the saviour. If i take it when aura starts, lie down or sit for 30 min somewhere with eyes closed, and it clears. The ones without aura, once I realise it's migraine and take the tablets, the migraine goes.
Good luck

Thanks everyone. The first one was before lockdown and I assumed related to my period returning after baby. The past 5 weeks or so I have been eating less to shift some weight so that could be contributing too. Also yes baby hasn't slept great this week. And has dropped a feed. So lots of factors I suppose. They seem to start after minor activity too, say when I sit down after going for a walk and coming upstairs to get home. None of this in similar circumstances after my first baby though but as PP says maybe just change over time.

I found that my PMT and associated migraine lessened when I'd been on a weight loss plan with the gym. It's things like skipping meals or leaving too long between them that can bring on migraine.