What’s Wrong with my Head?

I woke up in the middle of the night with my head pounding and throbbing. It was like someone was taking their hands and squeezing my head. The pain wouldn’t go away. I sat up all night waiting for the pain to go away, all the while I was getting hotter and hotter but I didn’t have a temperature. Something was defiantly wrong. Sitting there and trying to deal with the pain brought me to tears. I’ve never felt this way before. What was wrong with my head? My family rushed me to the emergency room. I later found out that what I was experiencing was a migraine.

            Over 30 million people suffer from migraines, according to WebMD. Neurologychannel.com, a medical reference website, states that 75% of migraine sufferers are women.

             “Migraines most commonly affect teenage girls; 25% of the populations of migraine sufferers are teenage girls,” says Anne Albers, a nurse practitioner in the Division of Pediatric Neurology at Children’s Hospital at Washington University,             

According to the National Institutes of Health and Mayo Clinic, a migraine may be caused by imbalances in brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. This leads to the blood vessel dilating, according to Albers. Doctors have no idea what exactly causes the blood vessels to dilate.

            “There’s lots of research going on as to why this happens,” says Albers. “Researchers believe that the calcium channel receptors [which regulate the flow of calcium ions across the membrane in all cells] have something to do with [migranes] and that some blood vessels are more susceptible to these spasms, which would explain why migraines can run in the family.”  

            “Even though migraines appear to be such a mystery, there are treatment options, which depend on the individual and what that individual’s migraines are like,” adds Albers.

            Medications called triptans can stop that spasm right away. Anti-Inflammatory medications, like Ibuprofen and Naproxen, also help. So that the blood vessel isn’t irritated, anti-depressants are usually prescribed.

            Which medication is effective also depends on what triggers the migraines. Everyone is different. The easiest way to identify the triggers is to keep a journal, say experts. Doing this you can identify what happens when a headache starts.

             “Lots of things can trigger a migraine. For some people its food or chemicals in certain foods, even food coloring can be a trigger. One little girl gets them from blue kool-aid, another little boy from hot dogs. My son gets them from popcorn at the movies if he puts butter on it. Lots of people get them from not eating well, not sleeping well, and not drinking a lot of fluids.” Albers tells SciJourner.

            How do you know if your headache is a migraine? “If you start having headaches with other symptoms besides mild sensitivity to light,” says Albers. “Or if you have a family history, for sure go see your doctor. Or if you wake up in the morning with them, and if you’re starting to get them everyday and they wake you up in the middle of the night. That’s when you should be concerned. Go see the doctor and find out whether or not you have migraines.”  

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