“What could be causing my migraines?”

There are great number of causes of migraines. Family history is a huge cause, triggers include stress, too little or too much sleep, menstrual periods, musculoskeletal pain, alcohol (especially red wine and fermented beverages such as beer), aged cheeses, processed meats, and other foods rich in tyramine, bright or flashing lights (especially fluorescent or sun exposure), and a long list of other causes. For a several-day headache (status migrainosus), often a steroid taper prescribed by your PCP may be helpful, occasionally trigger point injections, triptans, magnesium infusions, toradol with an anti-nausea medication, all of these can be helpful. Sometimes the pain itself ends up making people tense up, which can then put pressure on nerves and perpetuate the headache. Sometimes we have to do something to break the cycle.

Jennifer Lynch MD, FABSM, Sleep and Epilepsy