Dealing With Headaches

Women have it rough. Not only do they get more migraines than men, they can be at more risk of getting a stroke. A new study, which reconfirms a 2002 study, finds that women who have auras with their migraines are more susceptable to have a stroke — even more than women who have migraines without auras.

They also note that women who are especially vunerable to stroke don’t only have migraines with auras, but smoke and used oral contraceptives.

Here are some of the numbers, which studied about a thousand women in the United States with and without migraines:

Women with PMVA (that’s shorthand for Probable Migraine With Visible Aura) had a 50 per cent greater risk of ischemic stroke compared to the no migraine group.
The risk was highest among those with no history of high blood pressure (hypertension), diabetes or heart attack (myocardial infarction).
Women with PMVA who smoked and used oral contraceptives had a 7-fold increase in ischemic stroke risk compared to women with PMVA who did not smoke or use oral contraceptives.
Also, women who had their first PMVA attack in the preceding year had a 6.9 fold increase in ischemic stroke risk compared to women with no history of migraine.

Reading Auras

Auras are often seen before a migraine, but do not have to be present for a migraine to be diagnosed as a migraine. Often, you see flashes of various shapes or even small bright hallucinations a few minutes before the migraine pain kicks in.

For example, my first killer migraine happened when I was 24 and at my job. In my left eye, the weirdest thing began to happen. If looked as if the lower half of my left eye was under water, although the top half was completely fine. I polished my glasses to no end and even had other employees look to see if something was on or in my eyeball. They couldn’t see anything wrong.

And then about a half hour later the migraine hit. That funny underwater effect was an aura. My Mom, for example, used to see flashing C’s travel across her eyes before a migraine hit.

Usually, am aura happens before the pain. They can be a mixed blessing. Although you know a migraine is coming, if you have any medication around, take it immediately. You might cut the migraine off at the pass ort reduce the severity of an attack.

Back To The Stroke Warning

It does not seem to be clear why women with auras and migraines are more at risk of stroke than others. Perhaps smoking and oral contraceptives in combination make your body more vunerable.

This information is not meant to depress you. It is meant as a warning signal so you can take suitable precaustions that will not only make your heart healthier, but perhaps your overall body. First off, quit smoking. And use low-dose contraceptives…or have him get a vasectomy. And switch to more heart-friendly low-cholesterol diet.

If you have migraines with auras and haven’t had a check up in years, do try and get a check up — or at least keep your blood pressure monitored. Since you are more to a stroke, it is best to prevent one rather than recover from one.

Hope this helps.