Almost everyone gets a headache from time to time, but not everyone gets a migraine. Migraines are severe headaches which can be extremely painful.

Sometimes it’s very hard for other people to understand how much pain you are feeling when they have not experienced it themselves.  

What causes migraines and who can get them?

Migraines are very severe forms of headaches. When a migraine starts, the blood vessels in your head start to shrink and then swell, causing pain.

Some things might trigger a migraine. For example:

• Bright lights
• Loud noises
• Weather changes
• Stress
• Certain food and drink
• Missed meals
• Tiredness

Migraines normally start happening between the teen years and the age of 40. They can last for a few hours to a few days.

In some cases sufferers get a migraine once a week. But others get them just once a year or less.

How is a migraine normally diagnosed and treated?

You often know when a migraine is coming because certain ‘warning signals’ happen before the pain.
With some migraines you may see flashing lights, your vision may get blurry, you may feel uncomfortable in bright light or you may even be sick. 

With other types of migraines you may feel tired, depressed or restless before the migraine starts.
For treatment, go and see your doctor to make sure that you get advice based on your personal symptoms.

Your doctor may give you some migraine medication, or advise you on other headache medication that you can buy at your local pharmacy.

Make sure you follow the instructions at all times and take your mediation as soon as you feel the headache pain coming on.

When to ask for medical help

See your doctor immediately if your headaches do not get better after a few hours with medication and rest, or if you start to develop a high temperate.

If your headache feels different to your ‘normal’ migraine headache, you must seek medical advice.

What’s going to help?

You cannot prevent a migraine. But to make things better for yourself during a migraine:

• Lie down in a quiet, dark room as soon as you feel the ‘warning signals’ start
• Try and sleep or rest if you can
• You might want to listen to some soothing music to help you relax
• Don’t read or watch TV
• A cool flannel on your forehead may help ease the symptoms

Looking forward 

When a migraine does happen, try and write down what you ate in the two days before.

Over time, you may start to see that some foods or drinks are linked to your migraines. You may be able to avoid these in the future to help reduce your migraine attacks.

For more help and information

• Speak to your doctor
• Migraine Action Adventure is a website for children run by The Migraine Action Association.
• Ouch UK provides support and advice to people with cluster headaches.

Last reviewed by Great Ormond Street Hospital: 1 December 2009

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