Those who suffer from migraine headache symptoms know that the pain can be absolutely debilitating. While some migraine sufferers are lucky and do not experience the intense pain like the others, most people have an excruciating headache that won’t quit until it wants to.
That’s the funny thing about migraine headaches. For most people the migraine headache symptoms can be masked with a pain reliever, but there is an overall feeling within the body that lasts until the headache is completely gone. It is an indescribable sort of feeling that just kind of takes over the body. While the headache medication can often reduce pain, nausea and dizziness, it usually cannot get rid of this “migraine feeling”.
It is important to know the different migraine headache symptoms and not to confuse them with tension headaches. The symptoms of a migraine are typically as follows.
Pounding Headache
The main symptom of a migraine is the horrible pounding headache. It seems as if every blood vessel on one side of the head is going to explode with every beat of the heart. Some people actually hold their head in their hands for fear that it will explode or to get some relief with pressure. This pounding headache is one of the classic migraine headache symptoms that is common to all migraine sufferers.
Nausea and/or Vomiting
About 80% of the people that get migraines complain of some sort of nausea with it. Some unfortunate migraine sufferers get nausea that leads to vomiting with every major headache. This is like adding fuel to the fire that is already out of control. Some people can control this nausea by remaining still, since this feeling can be linked in many cases to motion sickness.
Migraine Aura
There is a migraine aura that occurs with approximately 20% of migraine sufferers. Aura related headache symptoms will usually present themselves right before the headache begins and may include blind spots, seeing zigzag patterns across the eyes, lights flashing or blind spots. This aura also may include hallucinations, weakness or prickly skin. The aura is not especially painful and many people that have migraines actually appreciate the fact that they can have some kind of warning before the headache turns on. It gives students and workers a chance to leave their school or work in time to get home and get to bed.
Aversion to Light
This is another one of the migraine headache symptoms that may be experienced by one sufferer and not another. Some people have to remain in the dark until the migraine has completely passed. It is not unheard of for a person to cover their bedroom windows with cardboard during one of these migraine sessions to completely block out the light.
Low Blood Pressure
In some cases, the blood pressure can become lower during a migraine and this can make the person experiencing these migraine headache symptoms even weaker. The pain itself can weaken the body to the point where it can no longer function without being horizontal and this low blood pressure just adds to it.
Irritability
With all of this torture happening within the body, this migraine headache symptom would be quite expected. Usually people that have a migraine do not want to talk because it makes the pounding worse and can stir up the nausea. It is best to not expect too many answers from a person with a migraine. If you need to ask them a question in order to give them some help, it is better to ask them to raise their hand if the answer is yes and leave it down if the answer is no. This way you won’t be upsetting them too much by making them talk, but you’ll still be in a position to offer assistance when needed.
Fortunately, there are continuous studies being conducted on this mysterious phenomenon called the migraine. Researchers have been able to get closer to an answer by realizing that there may not be one single cause for these headaches. It is recommended that anyone experiencing migraines keep a running diary of their exercise routine, their daily routine and food intake. Every attack as well as the migraine headache symptoms should be noted as well. After a few migraines, the person may be able to see some type of pattern and be able to see what is triggering the headache. For example, one person may notice that he gets a migraine every time he eats chocolate while another might notice that these constant headaches only appear during a full moon. Yes – that can happen!
Migraines come in numerous forms and many people experience a variety of other migraine headache symptoms on top of the classic ones listed above. Some people, for instance, can’t be near heat while others can’t stand the feeling of being cold. It all depends on the person, since there are really no set rules when it comes to the individual symptoms a person may have.
