These disorders can be visual, sensory (tingling, tingling, etc.), language and/or motor. Familial hemiplegic migraine, abdominal migraine or even vestibular migraine are rarer.
In most cases, seizure episodes occur in several stages, which can last from a few hours to several days. Crisis “often begins 24 hours before with the prodrome”, describes the Association the voice of migraine sufferers. A phase where the patient feels fatigue, a feeling of exhaustion, an uncontrollable desire to eat fatty, salty, sweet food and a need to urinate more frequently, as well as heightened emotionality.
“For 1 out of 5 migraine sufferers follows the aura”, continues the association. “Then comes the headache (in itself, editor’s note) then the postdrome or recovery phase”, with aches, great fatigue and sometimes a short depressive state.
What happens in the brain?
Despite their differences, all forms of this neurological disease are due to “abnormal neuronal excitability, linked to complex genetic factors associated with environmental factors”, continues Inserm.
Concretely, « the brain reacts excessively to an innocuous stimuli”, details the Association the voice of migraineurs. And more precisely, he reacts to it because he can’t get used to it. “He reacts as if it were the first time », she continues. “ CThis abnormal reaction triggers a cascade of events that lead to the migraine attack. »
What are the triggers?
« But this is not enough for migraine attacks to occur, ”notes the association. “The migraine disease develops within the framework of an interaction between its particularities and the environment. »
So what triggers a migraine attack? Well the triggers are different from person to person. Among them, the Health Insurance site highlights:
- the consumption of certain foods or stimulants: chocolate, cold meats, tobacco, coffee or alcohol (white wine in particular);
- sensory factors: noise, certain smells or flashing lights such as spot lights in nightclubs;
- change in the pace of life: stress, annoyance, sudden relaxation (e.g. start of the weekend), excess or lack of sleep, a skipped meal or, on the contrary, an overly large meal;
- hormonal factors;
- weather conditions: a sudden drop in atmospheric pressure, often a harbinger of rainy weather.