Migraine can only be experienced. Is it merely a headache? No. What is a migraine? The word migraine seems to be ever evolving. So how do we differentiate migraine from any old headache? I spoke with medical professionals about what a migraine is. The answers almost always include one word:debilitating. The word itself, debilitating, is truly what qualifies a headache as a migraine to me. All of life's joys and toils must be put to the side so that I could lay in a dark room and overcome the agonizing migraine pain. Thankfully, I have been migraine free over 20 years now.
In "What is Migraine?", a 1/4/2022 JAMA publication, migraine is defined as "a headache that can cause severe pain and is associated with symptoms such as sensitivity to light or sound, nausea, and vomiting." However, ocular migraine, which at times includes such extreme aura and/or light, that the patient is required to lay down in a dark room, does not truly fit in this explanation as the sensitivity to light and head pain are uniquely different experiences. One doctor, unnamed as I didn't mention he would be in a blog, defined migraine as a "debilitating" headache that demanded the patient lay down in a dark room without stimulus. I do think the debilitating nature of migraine must be acknowledged in its definition.
What are some distinguishing features of your migraine? Any thoughts and comments are appreciated
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