Headaches or migraines with sensory issues?

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LtlPinkCoupe
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22 Oct 2012, 5:41 pm

I woke up with a small headache this morning, and when I went outside (it was a really sunny day today) it got worse...it was one of those headaches that started just above my eye and "wrapped around" my head all the way to the back. It started getting worse when my classes were over and I was walking back to my dorm....the sun was as bright as ever, and someone was cutting the grass with a weedwhacker, making a ton of noise. When I got up to my room, I turned off all the lights and took some Advil Migraine, and I started to feel better in about 20 minutes.

I noticed throughout the afternoon that looking outside thru a window or someone turning the lights in a room on and off aggravated my headache more. Bright lights and sunshine and loud noises (like the weedwhacker) have always been sensory issues for me (actually, I'm usually okay with weedwhackers and the like, but the noise on top of the sunlight made me feel worse, today) are sort of sensory issues for me.

Do sensory issues tend to cause headaches and migraines with people?


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bnky
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22 Oct 2012, 7:50 pm

For me, triggers include:
-Flashing, Flicktering, Strobbing lights
-Stress
-Chlorine
symptoms include:
- visual sickling
- arm numbness
- eyeball Headache
- visual field area blindness
Mine come on pretty quick when they're coming (30 -60 mins)

...caused by sensory issues? Not really (in my experience)


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Domisoldo
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22 Oct 2012, 8:37 pm

I've had migraines all my life. When I have one I'm very light and noise sensitive. But I realized recently that sometimes, noises and light are what's triggering the migraine, and theses migraines are different, they can develop in a matter of minutes instead of hours, and light and noise sensitive doesn't begin to cover how I feel then... I think now that they are really some kind of sensory overload...



emimeni
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22 Oct 2012, 9:50 pm

I guess it's totally possible that migraines and sensory processing issues (with or without autism) would interact with each other if they co-existed, possibly making the migraines start at a younger age, more frequently, and longer than they would be otherwise. I wouldn't say migraines and autism are linked, though.


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Christopherwillson
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23 Oct 2012, 2:41 pm

I get terrible migraines on weekly bases, it is really by sensory overstimulation, I'm so sensitive that a barking dog can get me sick for days.


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23 Oct 2012, 4:14 pm

It's very common for headaches and migranes to be aggravated by noise, lights, and other stimulation - I think that's pretty normal for anyone who experiences them (including NTs, though it's probable that it's worse for autistic people given the increased sensitivity). That is a different thing to the overstimulation causing the headache.

Not that I dispute that it's possible - extremely strong smells give me a headache and/or make me feel ill (though the only ones strong enough that I have come across are incense, cigarette smoke and unusually overpowering perfume or cleaning products). But that very rarely happens since if I find myself in such an environment I will hightail it out of there before it gets to a headache stage! As soon as you know what causes such a reaction you know to stay away, so it's not really such a big problem.



Domisoldo
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23 Oct 2012, 5:10 pm

You're right, the obvious solution is to avoid what's triggering the migraine, but it's not always that simple when it's in your working environment... And it's not alway predictable either. I was in long meeting I had to attend last week, and there was direct sun coming horizontally (it was early in the morning) through the windows. The curtains were no good and didn't help, and I'm pretty sure it's what caused the horrible state I was in after some time... I had to stay anyway.