Let me know if this sounds like this to you…
You wake up with a fuzzy head, feeling meh but can’t put your finger on it. You get up and go about your business day and slowly but surely this god-almighty pain takes over your head, and that is you gone and on the sofa or in bed for the day.
I never suffered from headaches and I thought that I maybe had a migraine once before but it was nothing like this. This wiped me out for the entire day and I convinced myself that I must have a tumour.
You go to the doctors and they tell you it must be stress or have I had my eyes checked recently and being 39 you don’t think for a second it could be menopause.
This is how it went for me for a long time and I wish I had known more about migraines and menopause when I was researching if I was about to meet my maker (yes I am dramatic)
Can Menopause Cause Migraines?
The simple answer here is yes.
All of us women get headaches from time to time and often during our menstrual cycle, but when we enter the menopause stage of our lives these can become a lot more severe and can happen more often.
Our hormones are flying around all over the place and we know that this is what makes things a lot worse.
Let’s be honest, it also doesn’t help that other menopause symptoms cause us stress, anxiety and lack of sleep. None of these make things better for our poor heads.
I would like to point out that when my migraines started I was, and still am, perimenopausal. The oestrogen in our body fluctuates a lot during this phase and migraines are a common symptom.
What Are Menopause Migraines?
The difference between what you know of migraines and menopause migraines is that the only reason you are now having migraines when you never have before is because your hormones are causing them.
If it is not related to any other trigger, it may well be down to your hormone fluctuations.
Migraines are episodes of headaches that are debilitating, you can not go about your normal day whilst having this headache pain.
They can come without warning and they also come with an aura warning which can include fuzzy lines in your site, blind spots, dizziness, flashing lights, and feeling unwell.
Regular migraine sufferers like my Mum can predict their migraine an hour before it hits by recognising these aura warnings and getting themselves home before the migraine attacks.
I did not get any warning with my migraines, I woke up, felt a bit off and then it came in like a steam train.
Who Do Menopause Migraines Affect?
Not all women will be affected with migraines or severe headaches when they enter perimenopause and menopause, but it is noted that many women in their 40s are most likely to suffer from perimenopausal migraines.
As I mentioned earlier, some women will have additional stress from other symptoms which may trigger attacks, some women find their hormone changes do not affect them at all.
It is important to ALWAYS go and healthcare professional if you are having migraine attacks, you need to know what is causing these headaches, no matter if you are menopausal or not.
What Does A Menopause Migraine Feel Like?
Everyone will report something slightly different when they have a migraine attack, but all will agree they are the absolute worst.
There are a number of migraine symptoms, I have tried to list what I believe is the top 10 in the image below:
If you are getting these symptoms and these headaches keep getting worse please go and speak to a doctor about getting migraine treatment.
How Do You Treat Menopause Migraines?
There a few things you can do to help with migraines and they are all worth trying out to see if they work for you:
- Drink lots of water – this may sound pretty obvious but keeping hydrated will make a big difference in how your body copes with a migraine.
- Get moving – regular exercise is a great way to keep migraines at bay and there are studies out there that look into this in more detail. I know it’s hard, I am the worst for exercising but I know that my body needs it at this stage in my life and I owe it that at the very least.
- Lots of beauty sleep – nothing beats a wonderful dreamy full night of sleep but I know most of us do not have that luxury. Symptoms keep us up and night, insomnia can kick in and this can be a trigger for migraines. Try if you can to nap during the day if needed, to catch up.
- Try therapy – for some women this stage in life can be really tough and anxiety can be a trigger for migraines, so if talking to someone can help you manage this, then it has to be worth a try.
- HRT – (hormone replacement therapy) this has been my saviour from my perimenopause migraines, within a week of taking oestrogen gel and progesterone tablets the migraines were gone. It’s not for everyone, but it is for me.
- Cut the coffee – it has to be worth a go. Figuring out if coffee is a non hormonal triggers can make a difference really fast.
Know When To Get Emergency Help
It is important that you never just put a sever headache down to a menopausal migraine!
Please call 999 immediately if you feel any of these:
Your speech starts to slur and not make sense
A piercing pain that comes on really quickly
You start to lose strength in your arms or legs and they feel numb
Any kind of mental confusion or seizures
For full details on all things migraine, please check out https://migrainetrust.org/
Closing Thoughts
As someone who has had hormone related migraines my biggest advice is to talk to your doctor and try to figure this out together.
There are ways to treat and prevent migraines, but we need help to figure it out.
Women’s health is thankfully becoming more and more important to the medical world, which means as more studies are produced and we get to learn more about this subject, we will get more answers to how to treat it.
Personally my life improved ten fold when I started my HRT, I could finally put down the nonprescription pain relievers and focus on my plan to avoid stress and make some smart lifestyle choices to help me ride out this new stage in my life.
I know how hard and depressing it can be when migraines change your world so please always speak to your doctor if you are suffering from any menopause symptom (of which there are many)
Find yourself a migraine or menopause specialist and get the relief you need.
Kathryn x
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Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, herbal or physical therapist, and I am not educated in the menopause space. All opinions expressed on this blog are my own and should not be taken as medical advice. This blog is intended to share my personal experiences and insights, and should not be used as a substitute for professional advice. Please consult a qualified medical professional, herbal or physical therapist for any health-related concerns. Additionally, I strive to keep things light and entertaining, but please keep in mind that the topics discussed on this blog may be sensitive or triggering for some readers.
