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Excruciating migraines are common and sometimes treatable Date published: 4/27/2008
BY MARCIA ARMSTRONG FOR THE FREE LANCE-STAR Tracey Cox knows when she's about to have a migraine. First comes the aura. Then an odd feeling of disconnectedness. Very soon after that, a blinding, wish-you-were-dead headache takes up residence somewhere between Cox's ear and her eye. "I keep thinking, if I could take a stick and jab it into my eye socket, I could knock out the place where the migraines live," said Cox, who lives in Stafford County. Although extremely painful, migraines are not uncommon. According to the National Headache Foundation, 30 million Americans experience migraines. Women are hit with the severe headaches three times as often as men. Most migraine sufferers are between the ages of 15 and 55. In some cases, the cranium-crushers disable their victims for hours or even days, spawning such side effects as nausea, vomiting and extreme sensitivity to light and sound. While the hit-with-a-baseball-bat kind of pain can make a migraine sufferer wonder if the condition is life-threatening, that is hardly ever the case, said Fredericksburg neurologist Paul Colopy of Neurology Associates. "Statistics show that only a very small fraction of persons have a structural-lining abnormality, tumor or aneurysm," Colopy said. What migraine victims do have is debilitating head pain that keeps them from working, taking care of their loved ones and enjoying life. THE ORIGINS OF PAIN Migraines result when the balance of adrenalin and seratonin--which regulates body temperature, mood, sleep and appetite--are out of balance, says Carol Foster, a Phoenix-based neurologist and author of "Gotta Headache? Lifestyle Changes to Help You Conquer Migraines." Some things that can trigger an episode are: hunger, exhaustion or dehydration the weather a change in routine bright light smells such as cigarette smoke or perfume. Twenty-two-year-old Amanda Sale's headaches started when she was in middle school. Back then, she had no idea they were migraines. "I thought it was a normal headache and that everyone had them," said the Spotsylvania County resident. Exercise and Virginia's heat and humidity set off the pounding in Sale's head. "In the summer, I get migraines every single day of the week," she said.
Date published: 4/27/2008
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