Language Disturbances During a Migraine Attack: Poll
Do you have trouble speaking during a migraine attack? Well, most of the respondants to our recent poll do – at least some of the time.
The question was: Do you have trouble with speech during a migraine attack (trouble remembering words, slurring, etc)?
And here are the results:
In the end, 42% said “Always”. In fact, over 90% had experienced some language difficulty during attack.
Although those who had problems are the most likely to take part in the poll, this still shows that there are huge numbers of people who have issues like:
- Trouble thinking of a word
- Trouble saying certain sounds
- Stuttering
- Slurring
Problems like this are actually quite common in migraine. They also tend to be worse with certain medications, such as Topamax (topiramate).
If you’ve experienced language trouble in migraine, leave a comment and tell us what it was like. You’re probably not alone!
11 June 2015 @ 5:28 pm
I’ve only had trouble speaking myself twice, the first time as I was speaking the words I was thinking weren’t coming out and instead it was just gobbledegook and the second time I was slurring like I was extremely drunk. More frequently I have trouble understanding what other people are saying to me, it’s like I forgot the English language.
11 June 2015 @ 10:27 pm
As long as I can remember I have experienced speaking problems during migraine attacks such as connecting words to make a sentence and difficulty identifying words.
12 June 2015 @ 6:54 am
I have chronic daily headache/migraine – just depends on how bad my pain is on what I have that day. 🙂
On my really bad (ie migraine) days I have trouble thinking and saying words primarily, and slurring happens mostly when I’m on meds. I react quite strongly to meds and it’s hard to find the right combo. because of that. I’m currently not taking meds as I’m a nursing mom and didn’t want to chance it.
12 June 2015 @ 7:10 am
I’ve had both slurring of words and trouble remembering or thinking of certain things to say during a migraine. I’ve been getting migraines since I was 13 years old. I’ve had the language issues with migraines since getting migraines, so 22 years. But they’re usually based on the severity of the migraine. I’ve been on multiple medications including topamax (currently) and there’s no difference with the language disturbances. There is hhowever, less migraines than when I was on other meds.
12 June 2015 @ 11:02 am
Havent had a problem speaking, but I can get really muzzy headed, and have a hard time thinking clearly, or remembering what was said. Had to call a friend back once, because I couldnt remember when it was that we had agreed to get together again.
I really try to avoid driving when I have a migraine, especially if I have taken my meds for it (Sumatriptan) because I dont feel safe on the road.
12 June 2015 @ 5:20 pm
I have 3 forms of migraine chronic daily migraine that effects my space sometimes when the pain is so bad that you can’t concentrate and you miss words out or can’t remember words .
The Hemaplegic migraine I get its like a stroke I lose the use of left side of body but confused so slur speech wrong words coming out . The other one SUNCT migraine you don’t talk at all the are really fast attacks but the build up to them it’s so painful you don’t talk .X X X
13 June 2015 @ 2:36 am
Not very often do I have problems speaking, but on one occasion, when passing a bank covered with daffodils, I said, ‘ooh, aren’t the crocodiles nice’!
14 June 2015 @ 7:00 am
When I have a migraine it is the structure of my sentences which are affected. My words come out in the wrong order. I am aware things are jumbled but am unable to correct them. The harder I try the more jumbled things get.
16 June 2015 @ 8:15 am
Have found that I get very fuzzy headed and cannot seem to process what others are saying or find the words to respond. It can be rather embarrassing at work. Woke up with migraine this morning, am feeling floaty, like I do not have any weight to my body.
29 July 2015 @ 1:13 pm
I’ve been having migraines since I was 6 years old, and I am 28 now. I’ve always had a hard time thinking during my migraines. Thinking, talking, and understanding what is being said to me is very hard when a sever migraine attack is underway, and sometimes the day after feels slow and disoriented.
I’d never thought much about it before, but now that I’m getting older and they’re getting so much worse and more frequently hitting me, I’d started being scared that perhaps the migraine were destroying my ability to think and function.
13 June 2017 @ 8:24 pm
I always do. I forget words, stutter and slur my words. The worst has been starting a new job and trying to handle customers with it, as well as that I always say the wrong names to people when I have a migraine. (My boss is named Gary, I keep calling him Greg whenever I have a migraine and I don’t know why.)
I also mix up greeting or responses.
Customer: Thank you
Me: Good morning!
14 June 2017 @ 9:07 am
Speech impairment will often occur before an attack. Usually slurring. On some occasions I cannot recall a word or phrase. The worst occurrence was an occasion when I was asked for my address during a phone call and literally could not recall. I had to look it up. It was frightening. Within 5 – 10 minutes, I had an extreme aura and had to get a ride home from my office. Ugh!