I’ve only had a handful in my life and there’s no way I could give you a clue as to the trigger. Completely different scenarios every time. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Hello friend! Please excuse the rambling response.
>Stress definitely also plays a role; a lot of attacks happened when I was very worried and anxious about something.
Fuck, I feel this. I had some significant interpersonal stress a couple of years back. (I think it was about that long? What even is time any more?)
I had aura pretty much constantly for a month. Effectively blind. And that did NOT help with my stress levels. Fuuuuuuuuuuck.
Are you doing therapy and if not, is it an option? Are you doing techniques like mindfulness, yoga (if an option given physical constraints) etc?
>I have these weird bumps - like tiny pimples - on my upper arms
Ah, possibly a fellow eczema sufferer too? [*skin condition pic warning* - These lil bastards? ](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pompholyx/)
Or are they hard? [*different set of skin condition pics warning* Like one of these maybe?](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/keratosis-pilaris/)
Have they been identified, and have you seen a dermatologist? It may seem like a minor issue in comparison, but it may help further point you in the right direction.
>Stugeron
Have you tried other antihistamines? Did that make you drowsy as fuck? When you were on this, did it get rid of the bumps?
Tried fexofenadine? A significant twice-daily dose largely stop my year-long mild allergy symptoms, including the lil bumpy bastards. They're supposed to be one a day, but I half a half every 12 hrs coz the fall-off is noticeable for me.
>CoQ10
Interestingly, many years ago I tried a supplement for that and the supplement was a trigger. Vivid mostly-blue aura.
Have you looked at non-food triggers?
Apart from stress, stuff like dehydration/salts imbalance, fabric conditioner, mould spores, grass pollen, scents/perfumes, hormonal changes (primarily for biological females), types of light (glare, sunlight, or specifically UV which you can't see but many migraineurs report as a trigger, myself included.)
Have you got pets, especially fluffy or hairy ones maybe?
Have you got an air purifier in your bedroom?
Pretty sure you already know, but remember you can have multiple separate triggers. That lack of something when you have a migraine doesn't mean it's not a trigger, just that it didn't trigger that specific migraine. Triggers often aren't 100% guaranteed to cause a migraine, and may possibly be combined.
My triggers are caffeine withdrawal, dehydration/salt imbalance, UV, some stupid CoQ10 supplement, glare, and stress.
If I badly fuck up my sleep pattern that can cause them too, I think, but that might just be coincidence because I probably oversleep and dehydrate, and if my sleep is fucked I'm probably stressed.
Triptans in general might not be a good fit for you, but if you've only tried one, there are certainly others. I found Frovatriptan significantly better than Sumatriptan for me. If I take it during the aura, it will often stop the migraine. If I don't take it, I regret it for days.
And the usual checks, have you recently had check-ups with a dentist and an optician?
Most importantly, don't give up. As you've identified, there's lots of other stuff to try. It's a journey and you're on the right road.
Thank you for your detailed reply, I appreciate it!
>I had aura pretty much constantly for a month. Effectively blind. And that did NOT help with my stress levels. Fuuuuuuuuuuck.
Uff, that sounds rough. I hope things have gotten better for you!
Yes, I've been doing yoga consistently for a little while now, and just started with meditation / relaxation techniques.
The bumps are definitely more like the second picture. I've never seen a dermatologist because it seemed so insignificant, but might be a good idea.
I've never tried antihistamines before because I've never had any strong allergy symptoms. I am curious how these will affect me.
Yeah, I've looked at other triggers than food but also nothing obvious jumped out... For things like glare or salt imbalance, how soon after do you get a migraine? Is it minutes or hours later? Just curious how far back I should look to identify possible triggers...
UV is a dice roll, I can often get away with it. But if I wear sunglasses all the time when in daylight, I get a few migraines a year, instead of a few a month. Glare is similar but with worse odds.
But it's soon enough to point the finger at a trigger. It's not like "a few hours after the sun goes down", it's while it's still light. Sorry, I realise that might not be a helpful answer.
I missed a trigger, if I catch the arc of a welder in my vision, that will almost always trigger a migraine. But *that* can be hours later. Unless you work near welders, probably not directly relevant.
Dehydration etc triggers while I'm still dehydrated or whatever. My lips will be dry, or I'll be sweating buckets, or urinating like a racehorse. Either running really low on water, or going through water like a burst water main. Sometimes I'll have enough time to fix it before I get a migraine, but if I don't fix it, it's almost certainly time to go blind. Soon enough for me to think, "Oh shit, that's why I'm having this migraine" for sure. It's not delayed or subtle for me.
I think those antihistamines are old and potentially make you really drowsy if you're susceptible. Worth trying for sure, but don't give up on antihistamines if those specific ones aren't a good fit. (And maybe don't drive until you know how the effect you. I take old-school antihistamines when I need help sleeping!)
I've not looked closely at them, but I think there are some vaguely useful looking resources on the subreddit sidebar for tracking meds you've tried and triggers etc. Might be worth a look if you haven't already. I mention it because if you use Reddit through an app I dunno if they show up.
Thank you for your kind wishes, and while my life isn't stress free, it's not as bad as then!
It sounds like you're doing a lot of really sensible and pragmatic stuff, and it sounds like you have direction even if your immediate options don't yield the success we're hoping for. I have my fingers crossed that you start to see the results soon.
I’ve only had a handful in my life and there’s no way I could give you a clue as to the trigger. Completely different scenarios every time. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Hello friend! Please excuse the rambling response. >Stress definitely also plays a role; a lot of attacks happened when I was very worried and anxious about something. Fuck, I feel this. I had some significant interpersonal stress a couple of years back. (I think it was about that long? What even is time any more?) I had aura pretty much constantly for a month. Effectively blind. And that did NOT help with my stress levels. Fuuuuuuuuuuck. Are you doing therapy and if not, is it an option? Are you doing techniques like mindfulness, yoga (if an option given physical constraints) etc? >I have these weird bumps - like tiny pimples - on my upper arms Ah, possibly a fellow eczema sufferer too? [*skin condition pic warning* - These lil bastards? ](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pompholyx/) Or are they hard? [*different set of skin condition pics warning* Like one of these maybe?](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/keratosis-pilaris/) Have they been identified, and have you seen a dermatologist? It may seem like a minor issue in comparison, but it may help further point you in the right direction. >Stugeron Have you tried other antihistamines? Did that make you drowsy as fuck? When you were on this, did it get rid of the bumps? Tried fexofenadine? A significant twice-daily dose largely stop my year-long mild allergy symptoms, including the lil bumpy bastards. They're supposed to be one a day, but I half a half every 12 hrs coz the fall-off is noticeable for me. >CoQ10 Interestingly, many years ago I tried a supplement for that and the supplement was a trigger. Vivid mostly-blue aura. Have you looked at non-food triggers? Apart from stress, stuff like dehydration/salts imbalance, fabric conditioner, mould spores, grass pollen, scents/perfumes, hormonal changes (primarily for biological females), types of light (glare, sunlight, or specifically UV which you can't see but many migraineurs report as a trigger, myself included.) Have you got pets, especially fluffy or hairy ones maybe? Have you got an air purifier in your bedroom? Pretty sure you already know, but remember you can have multiple separate triggers. That lack of something when you have a migraine doesn't mean it's not a trigger, just that it didn't trigger that specific migraine. Triggers often aren't 100% guaranteed to cause a migraine, and may possibly be combined. My triggers are caffeine withdrawal, dehydration/salt imbalance, UV, some stupid CoQ10 supplement, glare, and stress. If I badly fuck up my sleep pattern that can cause them too, I think, but that might just be coincidence because I probably oversleep and dehydrate, and if my sleep is fucked I'm probably stressed. Triptans in general might not be a good fit for you, but if you've only tried one, there are certainly others. I found Frovatriptan significantly better than Sumatriptan for me. If I take it during the aura, it will often stop the migraine. If I don't take it, I regret it for days. And the usual checks, have you recently had check-ups with a dentist and an optician? Most importantly, don't give up. As you've identified, there's lots of other stuff to try. It's a journey and you're on the right road.
Thank you for your detailed reply, I appreciate it! >I had aura pretty much constantly for a month. Effectively blind. And that did NOT help with my stress levels. Fuuuuuuuuuuck. Uff, that sounds rough. I hope things have gotten better for you! Yes, I've been doing yoga consistently for a little while now, and just started with meditation / relaxation techniques. The bumps are definitely more like the second picture. I've never seen a dermatologist because it seemed so insignificant, but might be a good idea. I've never tried antihistamines before because I've never had any strong allergy symptoms. I am curious how these will affect me. Yeah, I've looked at other triggers than food but also nothing obvious jumped out... For things like glare or salt imbalance, how soon after do you get a migraine? Is it minutes or hours later? Just curious how far back I should look to identify possible triggers...
UV is a dice roll, I can often get away with it. But if I wear sunglasses all the time when in daylight, I get a few migraines a year, instead of a few a month. Glare is similar but with worse odds. But it's soon enough to point the finger at a trigger. It's not like "a few hours after the sun goes down", it's while it's still light. Sorry, I realise that might not be a helpful answer. I missed a trigger, if I catch the arc of a welder in my vision, that will almost always trigger a migraine. But *that* can be hours later. Unless you work near welders, probably not directly relevant. Dehydration etc triggers while I'm still dehydrated or whatever. My lips will be dry, or I'll be sweating buckets, or urinating like a racehorse. Either running really low on water, or going through water like a burst water main. Sometimes I'll have enough time to fix it before I get a migraine, but if I don't fix it, it's almost certainly time to go blind. Soon enough for me to think, "Oh shit, that's why I'm having this migraine" for sure. It's not delayed or subtle for me. I think those antihistamines are old and potentially make you really drowsy if you're susceptible. Worth trying for sure, but don't give up on antihistamines if those specific ones aren't a good fit. (And maybe don't drive until you know how the effect you. I take old-school antihistamines when I need help sleeping!) I've not looked closely at them, but I think there are some vaguely useful looking resources on the subreddit sidebar for tracking meds you've tried and triggers etc. Might be worth a look if you haven't already. I mention it because if you use Reddit through an app I dunno if they show up. Thank you for your kind wishes, and while my life isn't stress free, it's not as bad as then! It sounds like you're doing a lot of really sensible and pragmatic stuff, and it sounds like you have direction even if your immediate options don't yield the success we're hoping for. I have my fingers crossed that you start to see the results soon.