Do you ever walk into a store with flickering lights, notice it immediately and start to seriously worry it is going to give you a migraine?
When you notice the first inkling of a migraine coming on, do you worry about how it is going to ruin the rest of your day (maybe 3 days!) and how you are going to have to cancel on your friend’s birthday dinner and be late on the month-end reporting (again)? As these thoughts race through your head, you can practically feel your shoulders tense up, accelerating the migraine process taking over your body.
In literature about migraine and migraine sufferers, anxiety is frequently mentioned as a disorder that is correlated or “comorbid” (lovely word, isn’t it?).
As someone with a history of migraines, it is easy to want to fight the perception that tension, mental stress or anxiety could be linked to migraines. After all, aren’t these a sign of weakness? Knowing what I now understand about the biological stage we set up for mood and mental state with our diet and lifestyle, it is now much simpler to see the physiological connection.
I wanted to find out if there was more than public perception that stressed out, anxious people are more prone to migraines… do studies show that there is a real correlation?
I don’t usually call it anxiety, but I have noticed a pattern of worrying, perfectionism, control, and being stuck in flight or fight in clients and women that I talk to in my workshops.
I can relate, even though I never identified as having anxiety disorder per say, never sought out a diagnosis. Perhaps this was because it didn’t impact my ability to function in the world, perhaps because of the stigma attached to it or possibly because I didn’t feel like pharmaceutical options were a route I even wanted to go down. Nevertheless, would my friends and family have described me as tense or high-strung during this phase in my life? At times… certainly.
I especially remember anxious feelings around being punctual and meeting deadlines. Heading someplace and potentially being less than 5 minutes early would have me fully in fight or flight mode – heart racing, shallow breathing, irritable and tense.
I can only imagine what it must have been like to sit in the car with me, when the GPS said we would be arriving 3 minutes late and I was having an internal meltdown (haha, thank you friends for your patience).
The other big thing that would put me on edge was avoiding migraine triggers. Once my brain made the association that a food or environmental condition was a migraine trigger, I would stress about it, whether I had any control over the situation or not. I’d be freaking out (at least in my head) if I was out in bright, glaring sunshine without sunglasses or skipped lunch because I knew the agony that would very likely descend on me later in the form of a migraine.
Looking back, worrying about triggers and skirting around triggers was such a burden!
How much simpler would life be if you didn’t have to worry about triggers?? Do you think your overall anxiety level would drop ?
Do you think if you were less anxious about other things in your life (like my habit of worrying about being late) – your migraines would be less impactful?
Let’s take a look at how migraines and anxiety are intertwined:
3788 American residents were surveyed about their migraines. Depression and anxiety were the most common simultaneously presenting conditions (59% and 56% respectively). (see the full list here)
Yes, anxiety and depression are both incredibly common – just like migraines – so is this a coincidence?
What else do we know about migraines and anxiety?
Interestingly, in this rather small study it stands out that the anxiety link is stronger in migraine sufferers who experience light-sensitivity.
Why should we care about the link between migraines and anxiety?
Next steps:
While these studies show there is a startling correlation between migraines and anxiety, it doesn’t imply that by having migraines you are an anxious person or have an anxiety disorder. Like many things, there is a whole spectrum or range of experiences with how we are affected by anxiety. If this discussion does stir something up for you or highlights something you need help with, seek counsel from a professional.
So you might be wondering, as a migraine sufferer who seeks natural solutions, where should you turn for answers about anxiety?
In this book, you will discover the link between common nutrient deficiencies and mood disorders. If you have never considered food as a serious therapy, this practical book will open your eyes.
Erin, you are always a wealth of information! You do your homework, you discover research the rest of us would never find. You share it in an easy to understand way, and apply to our situation. I share every bit of info from you with my husband who suffers from migraines. It appears my daughter gets them occasionally now too, so she is now in the mix. Thanks so much for keeping us all informed on this debilitating health issue!
The link between migraines and anxiety seems very logical. I can’t wait to check out information from you Erin pertaining to ‘stress eating.’ Since you mentioned hormones in the gut being affected by anxiety, is this what changes eating patterns in preparation for fight or flight or is it merely due to food types being consumed because of anxiety? I suppose another chicken and egg question for you… Thanks for sharing your informative personal wanderings!
Hey Erin,
Fantastic post, so informative, and makes so much sense to me, anxiety and a link to migraines. I don’t suffer from them, but my older sister does. Awful! Debilitating and I will share your post with her. It makes sense that whether or not anxiety causes migraines, for a migraine sufferer, I imagine anxiety would worsen or could trigger a migraine. I wonder if consistent meditation, deep breathing therapies and energy healing along with food changes might help. Love the graphics and I enjoy your writing, such flow, humor and depth all with being easy to consume. Thanks!
i think your conclusions make perfect sense, erin. worrying about triggering a migraine would definitely lead to a heightened sense of anxiety. which could, in turn, lead to suffering more migraines as a result. thank you for this well-thought out article.
The body needs regular detoxing ,sinuses, ears ,eyes,and headaches and migraines are all connected by poison build up, tense, stressed and allergens and sensitivity to computer screens or sensitivity to pain can cause to overpanic, hyperventilating making the situation far worse than it needs to be proper testing should be done to find out what the triggers are to help the patient to put in place a treatment plan to lessen the problem
Very interesting. I suffer from migraines, and I still haven’t found out what the triggers are. I don’t know if it is stress, anxiety, or the food I eat. I don’t think it is lack of water, because I drink a ton of it. But they are annoying for sure!
Migraines are so awful. I used to have them, but I’m convinced they were linked to my taking birth control pills. Once I stopped taking them, the migraines stopped. I can see how migraines and anxiety could be linked, though. I also have anxiety disorder. I recently took some medication that did not agree with me, and my anxiety took me to the edge of a migraine. It would be nice if they could find a good solution for migraines. Thanks for the information.
I use to have heavy migaines before I was pregnant, but afterwards all the hormones kind of took the migrain away. Superstrange, but I am really greatful!
I suffer from both anxiety and migraines and I absolutely think there is a connection. I usually get migraines the day after I have a severe panic attack.
In my case there’s def a connection between anxiety and migraines! You got me interested with the book, def need to dive into some useful tips and explore this link between nutrient deficiencies and mood disorders!
You did a lot of research, this is logically written and you addressed and suggested beneficial tips and the connections between anxiety and migraines!
I can see the connection. Knowing someone who gets a lot of migraines, this might just be the cause, and this info would be helpful to them.
I believe that migraines and anxiety are somehow connected because I get those nasty headaches when I am too stressed out with life. I try my best to calm myself, relax and re-focus but once the headaches start, I am hopeless.