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A journalist has discussed the various difficulties of suffering from migraines, ranging from constantly having medication on her person in case an attack strikes to having to abandon her weekly shopping to sit in complete darkness.

“When I was 20 years old, while studying at Sheffield University, I experienced my first migraine,” Lydia Bacon wrote for the Liverpool Echo. “Since then it has been extremely difficult to accept them as part of my day to day.”

“In fact, I was doing my weekly student shopping at Aldi when I started feeling what I can describe as ‘extremely strange’. Initially I thought it was just a really, really bad headache, but I was wrong.”

A migraine is described as “a moderate to severe headache that feels like a throbbing pain on one side of the head.” In addition to headaches, they can cause nausea, vomiting, and increased sensitivity to light or sound.

While the precise cause of migraines is unknown, they are believed to be the result of abnormal brain activity that temporarily affects nerve signals, chemicals, and blood vessels in the brain. The cause of the brain activity is not clear, but it could perhaps be because your genes make you susceptible to experiencing migraines.

“Migraines actually affect one in five women, which surprised me, and one in 15 men,” says Lydia. “Some people have frequent migraines up to several times a week, while others only have occasional migraines. Years may also pass between migraine attacks.

Lydia’s first migraine attack:

Lydia’s first migraine attack didn’t come exactly at the right time, with a headache and nausea beginning while she was at her weekly student store at Aldi. “Then I started experiencing what’s known as an ‘aura’ when I started seeing flashing lights and I remember seeing strange purple patterns.

“At that point, I knew it wasn’t just a headache and I needed to go home right away. I got home, closed all the blinds, and made sure my bedroom was pitch black before I went to bed. The migraine only seemed It was getting worse when I started shaking and eventually got sick several times.It was about eight hours later that I finally fell asleep and tried to sleep through the night.

“The next morning, I just wasn’t feeling in my usual mood, feeling exhausted and exhausted. After that day, I continued to experience migraines very frequently for a short period of time, and at that point, I knew it was time. to go”. to the doctor.”

Life from and now:

After her doctor’s visit, Lydia understood that there is no cure for migraines, and only prescription medications are available to help combat attacks.

“My life has changed since I had to deal with frequent weekly migraines,” says Lydia. “I can’t physically leave the house without my prescribed medication, as I never know when a migraine attack is going to strike me.

“Sometimes even the prescribed medication won’t kill the migraine and I’ll need additional painkillers on top of this. Sometimes when I’m in bed with a migraine I physically can’t even check the time on my phone because of the pain caused by the brightness of my phone.

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“You never know when a migraine is going to hit, so sometimes it makes everyday life very difficult. I’ve since learned that there are particular triggers for me, but most of the time, they come out of nowhere.” . .”

Migraine triggers:

The NHS says there are many possible migraine triggers, including hormonal, emotional, physical, dietary, environmental and medicinal factors. Triggers often vary with each person, but they suggest that journaling can help patients identify a consistent trigger.

A GP must identify a pattern of recurring headaches along with associated symptoms in order to make an accurate diagnosis. It can be difficult to identify if something is actually a trigger or an early symptom of a migraine attack.

For more information on migraines, click here. For more information on headaches, read the NHS advice here.

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