Questions
Migraine FAQ
Short answers to frequent migraine questions about attacks, aura, triggers, medication, prevention, and care.
Is migraine just a bad headache?
No. Migraine is a neurologic disease. Head pain is common, but attacks can also include nausea, vomiting, light and sound sensitivity, aura, dizziness, fatigue, brain fog, neck stiffness, and post-attack symptoms.
Can migraine happen without aura?
Yes. Many people with migraine never have aura. Others have aura before or during some attacks but not others.
Can migraine happen without head pain?
Some people have migraine symptoms such as aura, nausea, light sensitivity, or dizziness with little or no head pain. New neurologic symptoms should still be discussed with a clinician, especially if they are sudden, prolonged, or different from prior attacks.
How long does a migraine attack last?
Adult attacks commonly last 4 to 72 hours if untreated. Early symptoms can start hours or up to two days before the head pain, and post-attack symptoms can continue after the headache eases.
What should I do at the start of an attack?
Follow your clinician's plan. Common first steps include treating early with the medication you have been advised to use, resting in a quiet dark room, drinking water if you can, using a cold pack wrapped in cloth, and reducing sensory input. See remedies during an attack.
How often is too often to use acute medication?
Medication-overuse headache is a real risk. Limits depend on the medicine, but many clinical resources warn against using acute pain medicines or migraine-specific acute medicines too many days per month. Ask your clinician for a personal limit, especially if you need acute medicine more than two days a week or more than about 10 days a month.
When should preventive treatment be discussed?
Preventive treatment is worth discussing if attacks are frequent, very disabling, long-lasting, hard to treat, or causing repeated missed work, school, caregiving, or life activities. Some resources use more than four migraine attacks per month or highly disabling attacks as a common threshold for considering prevention.
Are supplements safe because they are natural?
No. Supplements can interact with medicines, may not be appropriate in pregnancy or for children, and vary in quality. Butterbur has raised liver-toxicity concerns. Discuss magnesium, riboflavin, coenzyme Q10, feverfew, butterbur, and other complementary approaches with a clinician.
Sources
- Mayo Clinic: Migraine symptoms and causes
- Mayo Clinic: Migraine diagnosis and treatment
- NHS: Migraine
- American Migraine Foundation: Understanding migraine medications
- NIH NCCIH: Complementary health approaches for headache and migraine
Migraine Manager is a personal health journal, not a medical device. It does not diagnose or treat any condition. Always follow your clinician's advice for diagnosis, medication, and treatment decisions.
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Related migraine questions
Is migraine just a bad headache?
No. Migraine is a neurologic disease. Head pain is common, but attacks can also include nausea, vomiting, light and sound sensitivity, aura, dizziness, fatigue, brain fog, neck stiffness, and post-attack symptoms.
Can migraine happen without aura?
Yes. Many people with migraine never have aura. Others have aura before or during some attacks but not others.
Can migraine happen without head pain?
Some people have migraine symptoms such as aura, nausea, light sensitivity, or dizziness with little or no head pain. New neurologic symptoms should still be discussed with a clinician, especially if they are sudden, prolonged, or different from prior attacks.
How long does a migraine attack last?
Adult attacks commonly last 4 to 72 hours if untreated. Early symptoms can start hours or up to two days before the head pain, and post-attack symptoms can continue after the headache eases.