Migraine Headaches Support Group
Migraine is a neurological disease, of which the most common symptom is an intense and disabling episodic headache. Migraine headaches are usually characterized by severe pain on one or both sides of the head and are often accompanied by photophobia (hypersensitivity to light), phonophobia (hypersensitivity to sound) and nausea.
So I've discovered another trigger for me-shock. Good or bad, anything I truly was not expecting that carries any weight seems to bring on an attack. I was reluctant at first to acknowledge this at first but in the past couple of years it's proved true. This really upsets me because I and a well adjusted person, I have my stressors in life but I am not a nervous person. Realizing this makes me feel like a swooning Victorian lady...but I doubt smelling salts would help!
A few weeks ago my General Practitioner, not my neurologist, had the presence of mind to suggest that my blood oxygen levels be monitored for several nights in a row. I already use a CPAP for sleep apnea so I wouldn't expect this to be a problem. Wrong. A normal blood oxygen level for a sleeping person is 95 to 100. My reading is 75. This is dangerously low. It causes the brain to swell (triggering a migraine), and starves vital organs of oxygen.
Supplemental oxygen was ordered immediately, to be connected to my CPAP while I sleep. The migraines continue, although in slightly lesser numbers than before. CPAP pressure will have to be increased, but I'll have to wait for a sleep study to be done so that the proper numbers can be determined.
It's quite disturbing, as I'm sure you can imagine, to learn that you're dying as you sleep at night. Hopefully this problem is on its way to being taken care of. I wish you success in your battle against migraines.
Moreover, the vagus nerve terminates in the amygdala, the emotional center of the brain, so it stands to reason that emotional stress also stresses that nerve and stimulates a migraine. I believe it stimulates a feedback loop - nerves first, then vascular system increases blood flow to brain to compensate and help us cope, muscles in the head retract starting the headache and visual disturbances, causing some level of emotional stress which feeds the process. Lather, rinse, repeat until head is pounding like a jackhammer and even candlelight hurts to look at.
Personally I am triggered by emotional stress as much as (or more than) any other trigger. I really like the swooning Victorian as a model! Does that work for guys too? I'm going to start carrying smelling salts in my cravat, if I can figure out what a cravat is.
EMDGP7 I also have apnea and totally agree with the brain-swelling theory. I think most migraines can be traced back to swelling of some kind, tissues or muscles. 75 is indeed dangerously low, and I'm glad you are getting some care.