Migraine headaches affect approximately twenty-eight million people in the United States alone; they’re the kind of headache that can bring your daily activities to a screeching halt. Since four out of five sufferers report a family history of this type of headache, there is a theory that the predisposition toward migraines may be genetic. Women tend to experience migraines three times more frequently than men, which is most likely due to hormonal factors. Some experts even posit that there is a type of “migraine personality” – a person who, according to certain traits, is more likely to get migraines. People with so-called “migraine personality” are perfectionists, critical, orderly, analytical, and high-strung. The generally high anxiety and tension level that these types experience may contribute to the headache.
For seventy percent of sufferers, migraines occur on only one side of the head (unilateral pain). Migraines happen when there are biochemical changes in the brain. Such changes prompt the trigeminal nerve to trigger other changes: the rate of blood flow shifts, distending the blood vessels. This distention causes the nerves around the blood vessels to release chemicals that cause a slight inflammation, prompting the brain to produce pain signals.