Is It A Migraine Or A Headache?

Everyone gets headaches from time to time, but if you’re someone who is prone to bad headaches, you might find yourself wondering whether yours could actually be migraines.

The World Health Organization has classified severe migraine attacks as among the most disabling illnesses there are, affecting about one in seven people worldwide. Although they are more common in women, they can affect any gender as well as people of all ages.

Here’s how to tell the difference between a headache and a migraine:

A main symptom of migraines is a throbbing pain on one or both sides of your head that is severe enough to interfere with everyday activities. Additional symptoms usually include nausea and vomiting, as well as sensitivity to the lights and sounds around you. You may find yourself lying down in a dark and quiet room for relief.

In addition, some people who have migraines experience an “aura”—visual disturbances that can include dark spots, bright spots, squiggly lines, or colors in your visual field.

Lifestyle factors can play a role in migraine types. Dehydration, lack of sleep, skipping meals, or eating certain foods (such as processed meats, cheeses, or red wine) can trigger migraine pain in many people.

Migraines vary in length. Some can be over in as few as four hours, while others may take up to 72 hours to resolve. Someone who has more than 15 headache days every month meets the definition of chronic migraines.

If you recognize the symptoms above, see your primary care doctor or go directly to a neurologist. Treating different types of migraines effectively requires expertise.

The good news is there are now lots of treatments that can help manage your migraines. To break an occasional mild to moderate migraine headache, we often recommend nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen and naproxen, or triptans—prescription drugs that target the serotonin system.

These agents are most effective when taken within two hours of headache onset. However, be careful not to overuse them (maximum three days per week), as frequent use can result in “medication overuse headaches.”

You’ll also want to keep a log of when you get migraines and what preceded it, so that you and your doctor can figure out what your migraine triggers are.

If your migraines happen frequently or if each one lasts for a long time, your doctor may want to put you on “prophylactic” medications, which are daily medications to prevent the migraines from starting in the first place. There are multiple categories of medications used for prevention, including ones that treat seizures, depression, anxiety, and high blood pressure.

Although these drugs were developed for other disorders, they are effective in preventing migraines as well. In addition, an exciting new category of medications, known as calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) inhibitors, was approved. These drugs target proteins that play an important role in the pathophysiology of migraine pain.

If you have chronic migraines and you’re not responding to prophylactic drugs, you could be a candidate for botulinum toxin (Botox) injections, which have also been found to significantly reduce migraine frequency.

The key take-home message about treating migraines? Although there are many options, there’s no magic formula that works for everyone. If you are diagnosed with migraines, you and your doctor should work together to find the regimen that’s right for you.

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