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My wife suffers from migraines every month like clockwork. After 15 years I've come to understand that these recurring nuisances have kept her and other members of her family in pain. Many people with migraines have a family history of migraine. If both your parents have migraines, there's a good chance you will too. Even if only one of your parents has migraines, you're still at increased risk of developing migraines.

Recurring headaches and migraines are painful reminders of how fragile our nervous systems are. Even the strongest body builder can be brought to their knees by a migraine or even a severe tension headache.

Headaches and migraines are still an unsolved mystery to researchers. Many researchers conclude that migraines are caused by functional changes in a major pathway in your nervous system called the trigeminal nerve system, and by imbalances in serotonin levels.

Although headache pain sometimes can be severe, in most cases it's not the result of an underlying disease. The vast majority of headaches are called primary headaches. Besides tension headaches, these include migraines and cluster headaches.

Migraines are different from tension headaches which are caused by specific triggers. Unlike some forms of migraine, tension headache usually isn't associated with visual disturbances (blind spots or flashing lights), nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, weakness or numbness on one side of the body, or slurred speech.

Migraine headaches plague millions of Americans daily. In addition to the obvious, there are other common symptoms that accompany the classic migraine headache. During a migraine episode, the most common region of the brain to lose blood flow is known as the Calcarine Cortex. This is the area at the back of your brain that, when stimulated by your eyes, allows you to see. When these nerves are depleted of oxygen, they begin to fire spontaneously.

For example, if the reduction of blood flow is on the side of the brain, know as the temporal lobe, ringing in the ears may result. Most of these symptoms precede the onset of the headache. The sympathetic nerves that control the diameter of the blood vessels rely on specific chemicals to do their job.

These chemicals are called neurotransmitters. Not long after the visual disturbance, the amount of neurotransmitter available to aid in the constriction of the blood vessels is depleted.

This will allow the sympathetic nerves to fire at a higher rate than normal leading to vasoconstriction and potentially, a migraine headache. Because the function of the cerebral cortex is under the direct influence of the spine, it is imperative to address spinal abnormalities as the ultimate source of the migraine.

The nature of headaches may still be a mystery to researchers but we are aware of their triggers. Common migraine triggers may include:

Hormonal changes
Medications
Intense physical exertion
Foods
Stress
Sensory stimuli
Changes in wake-sleep pattern
Changes in the environment

If you find that your headaches are interfering with your daily life, consult your medical practitioner for relief. Have a thorough examination to ensure that there are no hidden conditions causing your pain.

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