GETTING THROUGH A MIGRAINE

Only someone who has suffered from an attack themselves can really know what it is like when a migraine strikes.

It is not your average headache - it is a completely all-consuming pain that can wipe you out for hours, a day, or even several days, with symptoms including sensitivity to light, sounds, smells, blurred vision, and nausea. Not fun at all!

I've suffered with migraines for years, and after monitoring their pattern over the course of many months, my doctor back in the UK finally concluded that I suffer from a type of hormonal migraine that, to my surprise, is thought to only affect less than 10% of women. Around the same time every month, the dreaded migraine strikes. The regularity of it means that, by and large, I am prepared for it, however there is only so much you can really do to help yourself, and what works for some may not work for others.

I am writing this post in light of the fact that today I woke up with a monstrous migraine that left me unable to go to work. The pain was right behind my left eye socket, and felt as though someone was drilling into my skull..not very pleasant. Normally I try to work through a migraine, but the accompanying sickness today left me unable to do so. This particular migraine had reared it's head on Friday afternoon, and I soon tamed it when I got home with a tablet. I woke up on Saturday again with it, and tamed it with another tablet, however after a very upsetting afternoon yesterday, it re-appeared and it seemed to be here to stay this time.

I thought I would share my 'Migraine Survival Kit' - a collection of things that, whilst they don't necessarily banish the migraine altogether (sometimes it just has to run it's course, like this one), they can certainly help to make it a little more tolerable.

THE MEDICATION: SUMATRIPTAN
For me, there is no other tablet that can tame my migraine than Sumatriptan, which I have been prescribed by my doctor in the UK. I have tried every pain killer under the sun, from Paracetamol, to Ibuprofen, to Codeine, to Aspirin, among many more, and whilst some are marginally more effective than others, most do absolutely nothing to relieve the pain. Sometimes even my trusty Sumatriptan tablets can't help, or they help temporarily (which is better than nothing!) but the pain can creep back the next day. I have even been known to be woken up in middle of the night by the pain of a migraine attack!

STAY HYDRATED
For some, dehydration can be the cause of headaches and migraines, so it is always best to drink plenty of water anyway. I find that when I do have a migraine, I try to drink a lot more water in an attempt to help to banish it. In Doha, Arwa is my bottled water of choice due to the low sodium content.

CLOSE YOUR EYES
The natural reaction to having a migraine is the want to close your eyes, even if not to actually sleep, but just to have them closed to block out the light. My eyes become particularly sensitive to light during a migraine attack, so if I'm at home I will draw my blackout curtains and close my eyes, and wear this very attractive cooling mask straight out of the fridge...

Or if I am out and about, I will wear my sunglasses to help to block out the light...

HOT WATER BOTTLE
I don't know if it is advised to apply heat, but sometimes I find sitting with a microwave beanbag or a hot water bottle on the affected area of my head to be more of a relief than applying something cold, such as the above eye mask.

I am certainly no expert, but the above are all things that I use to help when migraine strikes. If you suffer regularly from migraines, I would definitely advise keeping a diary of when the attacks occur, and what you have eaten/had to drink that day, as there are many known potential triggers.

Luckily for me, I have found no link between chocolate consumption and my migraine attacks!

Have you experienced a migraine before? I would love to know what you do to help with yours.