Have Your Triggers Changed over Time?

Our recent poll asked the question – Do you feel that your migraine/cluster/headache attack triggers changed over time?

Obviously, the overwhelming response was Yes!  A full 90% felt that their triggers had changed, with 62% saying that they had changed significantly.

So yes, triggers do change over time.

Migraine triggers have actually been in the news a lot lately.  One headline told us Study Confirms Patient Difficulty in Identifying Migraine Triggers.  The study was extremely small – 9 people – confirming what most of us know… that it’s sometimes hard to nail down migraine triggers.

What triggers an attack tends to be multifactoral – many things combined.  If wine is a trigger, for example, it may still only trigger an attack if combined with another trigger, such as second hand smoke, or a change in sleep schedule.

Life is complex, we know it.

So, the lead author of the study, Dr. Timothy T. Houle, suggests that patients should be involved in formal experiments, rather than trying to find triggers on their own.  After all, many patients do believe that one thing is a trigger, when another thing is really to blame.  This can mean bad treatment, and lack of success in fighting migraine.

Who wouldn’t want well-designed experiments that could accurately pinpoint a trigger?

But where are these to be found?  Co-author of the study, Dana P. Turner, M.S.P.H., admitted that even physicians have trouble identifying triggers.  Remember, life is complex.

Although I’m happy for any help, I’m not holding my breath to see an amazingly accurate trigger-identifier.  In spite of the lack of objectivity and scientific know-how of us patients, we know something better than anyone else – and that is, our own bodies.

I’ve heard from many, many, many migraineurs who have successfully fought migraine by identifying and eliminating triggers.  No, it’s not the only thing we need to do – it’s not a cure-all.  But it is part of the current treatment of migraine that is helping some.

So keep an open mind, and keep a migraine diary.

And don’t forget to take our new poll (right sidebar)!

Read more:  Migraine Triggers Tricky to Pinpoint
Migraine Triggers: Track them Down