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What is a Migraine?
Migraine is a chronic condition with episodic attacks of mild to severe headache pain usually felt on one side of your head.
Unlike other types of severe headache, a migraine can have other symptoms associated with it, such as upset stomach and
sensitivity to light or sound. You may even experience an aura.
What's more, a migraine attack can often last anywhere from 4 hours to 3 days.
10-second Migraine Test
Got a killer headache? Three questions could reveal the hidden cause--and help
you prevent the next one.
Developed by neurologists at New York's Albert Einstein College of Medicine, the ID Migraine quiz may help the 14
million Americans who have undiagnosed migraines. Most are women, and 90% don't have migraine's telltale warning:
an eerie visual disturbance called an aura.
To see if your headache is really a migraine, answer these questions:
1. Does light bother you when you have a headache?
2. Do you get nauseated or sick to your stomach when you have a headache?
3. Has a headache limited your activities for a day or more in the past 3 months?
If you answered yes to two of these questions, you've just "ID'ed" your migraine.
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Looking for More Symptoms?
1. You have severe headaches, which are pounding and pulsating as if you are getting heavy blows on the head from a hammer.
2. One side of your head hurts more than the other side.
3. The pain bothers you for hours and sometimes days.
4. The pain increases when you move or bend down.
5. You feel sick at your stomach and sometimes you throw up.
6. You are unable to tolerate the bright light and prefer darkness.
7. Your pain gets worse by loud noises.
8. You see stars or zigzag lines before headache.
9. Vision may be blurred, like a curtain coming down over your eyes.
10. You don't feel like eating anything.
11. You are tired and find it difficult to carry out your daily activities.
12. Your hands and feet are numb; and hurt as if you are pricked by pins and needles.
13. Your mind slows down after the headache episode; you can't concentrate fully for few hours.
The Bottom Line: If you have to stay home, lock yourself in the bedroom with the lights out and a pillow over your head to cut out any noise, then you probably have a migraine.
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