Clipmarks | dmegivern's 'migraine' clips

Migraine Auras

Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:44:55 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

I have had migraines for most of my life; the first attack I remember occurred when I was 3 or 4 years old. I was playing in the garden when a brilliant, shimmering light appeared to my left — dazzlingly bright, almost as bright as the sun. It expanded, becoming an enormous shimmering semicircle stretching from the ground to the sky, with sharp zigzagging borders and brilliant blue and orange colors. Then, behind the brightness, came a blindness, an emptiness in my field of vision, and soon I could see almost nothing on my left side. I was terrified — what was happening? My sight returned to normal in a few minutes, but these were the longest minutes I had ever experienced.

I told my mother what had happened, and she explained to me that what I had had was a migraine — she was a doctor, and she, too, was a migraineur. It was a “visual migraine,” she said, or a migraine “aura.”

Information on Dr. Sacks’s book, “Migraine,” can be found here.

Childhood Abuse Linked to Migraines and Depression

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:54:21 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

Clip Source: psychcentral.com

Childhood Abuse Linked to Migraines and Depression

Clip Source: psychcentral.com

Adult health problems among women may be traced to childhood abuse. According to a new study, a history of childhood abuse is more common in women with migraines who suffer depression than in women with migraines alone. The study is published in the journal Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

The association between migraines and depression is well established, but the mechanism is uncertain. The study found women with migraines who had major depression were twice as likely as those with migraines alone to report being sexually abused as a child. If the abuse continued past age 12, the women with migraines were five times more likely to report depression.

“By questioning women about their abuse history we’ll be able to better identify those women with migraine at increased risk for depression.”

Migraine Headaches and Sex Part 2

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:59:13 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

Clip Source: www.webmd.com

How Can Sex Help Migraine Sufferers?

Occasionally orgasm can relieve migraine headaches, says Randolph W. Evans, MD, clinical professor of neurology at Baylor College of Medicine.

Although the mechanism is not known, Evans tells WebMD that orgasm is a complex neurophysiological-endocrinological event that could relieve migraine headache in two ways:

Stimulation of the posterior vagina and sexualactivity may activate inhibitory pain-modulating circuits. Theories are that this is a physiologic reflex related to the birth process to produce pain relief when the cervix and pelvis are stretched.

Endorphin release that occurs after sexual arousal andorgasm may relieve or reduce migraine headaches. Endorphins are morphine-like pain relief hormones made by the brain; they are associated with a happy, positive feeling and can keep pain messages from reaching the brain.

Tags: migraine

Migraine Headaches and Sexual Desire Linked

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 02:55:42 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

Clip Source: www.webmd.com

Are Migraine Sufferers Sexier?

Researchers find a link between migraines and sex.

If you're a migraine sufferer, sex may be the last thing on your mind -- especially when painful migraine symptoms force you to seek solitude in a dark, quiet room. Yet new findings suggest that sex may be linked to migraines and headache relief.

According to a study published in the journal Headache, young adult migraine sufferers (men and women) reported having 20% more sexual desire than other adults who had headaches (but not migraine headaches).

This study found that migraine headaches and sexual desire are at least partially affected by serotonin, a neurotransmitter in the body that has a "feel good," calming effect. With migraine headaches, there are lower levels of serotonin, yet serotonin is released in abundance during sexual activity that leads to orgasm.

serotonin deficiency is related to premenstrual syndrome (PMS), menstrual cramps, increased pain, and eating disorders

Tags: migraine

Exercise for Brain Waves Prevents Migraines

Sun, 06 Jan 2008 14:43:03 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern
clipper's remarks: Too bad about the cost. Gotta love the American health care system

Clip Source: www.nbc5.com

Brain Video Games Replaces Woman's Migraine Meds

Patient Exercises Mind To Stave Off Migraines

Sensors are attached to the scalp and read the brain waves in order to convert those into a video game on the screen. Then, people are able to play the video game using the brain waves.

Patients try to use a brain wave to move objects on the monitor, like a space ship. If a brain wave has an irregular pattern, so will the space ship. Patients then try to even out the brain wave while using their mind to move the ship back in place.

"It seems to give them some sort of stability so they don't have migraines or meltdowns or whatever it is they're having problems with," said Stokes.

Scientists don't know why it works, but Stokes said of the 30 patients she's treated, 70 percent have reduced or eliminated their medications.

Tags: migraine

Migraine Sufferers Have Thick Brain Fibers

Mon, 03 Dec 2007 18:43:41 GMT

clipped by: dmegivern

Clip Source: www.itwire.com

Migraine-headache sufferers have thick brain fibers

Harvard researchers scanned the brains of migraine headache patients and volunteers without such headaches. They found that fibers in the brain, which relay pain signals, were thicker in migraine patients.

The conclusion from the experiment was that the somatosensory cortex, the part of the brain that processes sensations from the face and head, was about 21% thicker in migraine headache sufferers than people who do not get migraines.

Hadjikhani was paraphrased, in the New Scientist magazine article "Mighty migraines" (November 24, 2007, page 19): "it's becoming increasing clear that migraines are symptomatic of progressive neurological disease."

Tags: migraine, research, health, science, headache