| Is there such a thing as migraine personality? | | | | of trying to distract you from the situation. |
| For many years, headache patients were thought | | | | Additional factors include the actual receptor sites |
| to have a certain personality type, indeed it was | | | | in the brain responsible for both migraine and |
| (and still is in some circles) called the Migraine | | | | anxiety..they are basically the same. When one |
| Personality. | | | | fires off, the other one fires off. So with more |
| So what is that? Well this type of person was | | | | and more migraines, you end up with more and |
| described as a thin, white upper class female who | | | | more anxiety. |
| was neurotic, anxious and controlling. Lovely. Kind | | | | So one of the keys here is to learn better coping |
| of sounds insulting doesn't it? If you examine this | | | | skills in response to life's stressors. We all have |
| a little more closely, what was happening was that | | | | stress but the idea is to learn to handle it better. |
| many doctors noticed the high association of | | | | Get away from the situation that is causing the |
| anxiety and depression with migraine. | | | | stress. For example, if your job is killing you, |
| Well today we know it is true that 85% of all | | | | seriously think about what you are doing and why. |
| migraines have anxiety and depression, that | | | | Secondly, if a provider recommends medication |
| doesn't mean that they are all control freaks. | | | | for anxiety and you have migraine, recognize that |
| What is really happening is that many headache | | | | it is part of the pathology of migraine and NOT |
| sufferers have poor coping skills. When | | | | your fault. Once the headaches are under control |
| confronted with stress they do not know how to | | | | you probably can reduce or come off the anxiety |
| relax, get away or rationalize the stress. | | | | medication. |
| Instead they try to control it or become | | | | So it is really true, lifestyle changes and |
| enmeshed in the situation. | | | | medications can truly change your pain syndrome, |
| The result is a headache which is the brain's way | | | | but nothing changes until you do! |