Summer means long days, warm nights, relaxing vacations — and, for many people, more migraine attacks.
Three out of four people with chronic headache or migraine say weather is a trigger for headache pain, according to a survey by the National Headache Foundation. Specific triggers include changes in humidity or temperature, storms, and dry or dusty conditions.
If your migraine attacks become more severe or more frequent in the summer, the first step is to identify exactly which triggers are affecting you. Use the CeCe Migraine Management app to track weather conditions, your activities, symptoms and details of migraine attacks. Once you detect a pattern, you can develop an action plan for migraine relief. Some tips include:
- Keep sleep patterns steady. In summer, you might rise earlier, go to sleep later, or even take a midday siesta. It feels so relaxing — but erratic sleep patterns can trigger a migraine attack. Try to stick to a regular bedtime and get up at the same hour each morning. If you’re not sleeping well, avoid too much artificial light in the evening, and keep your bedroom cool and dark.
- Stay hydrated. There’s a clearly defined connection between dehydration and migraine attacks — and drinking extra water may reduce the frequency of attacks. In one study, a group of people with migraine were told to drink six extra cups of water per day. While they averaged only four extra cups, those participants reported 21 fewer hours of pain in a two-week period, compared to the control group.
- Beat the heat. A study published in Neurology found a definite connection between summer heat and migraines: a 9-degree (Fahrenheit) increase in temperature correlated with a 7.5 percent increase in the likelihood of a serious migraine attack. To prevent migraines, it’s best to avoid the hottest part of the day, seek out cooler spaces and (again) drink lots of water.
- Monitor your stress levels. Have you ever experienced a “let-down migraine”? These attacks follow a period of stress or anxiety in life. Shortly after the stress eases, a migraine attack ensues. The only good thing about let-down migraines is that they can be predicted, which means you can plan around them. Your contingency plan for stress-induced migraines might include taking paid time off, lining up additional childcare, or simply practicing stress-reducing techniques. If you’re planning a big summer vacation, try not to schedule it immediately after a big project wraps up — or, if you must, then build in a buffer of a few days to let your body and brain decompress.
- Maintain your migraine prevention practice. Schedules have a way of fraying in the summer. Just remember that the migraine brain thrives on routine! Practice headache hygiene every week: moderate exercise, regular mealtimes, and predictable sleep.
Try CEFALY to Prevent & Relieve Migraine Pain
Understand your specific weather triggers.
Common weather-related migraine triggers are temperature, humidity, bright or flickering light, winds and specific weather conditions, such as an unusual warm front, said Jan Hoffman, MD, PhD, a migraine researcher who spoke about this topic at the 2021 Migraine World Summit. Barometric pressure can also be a trigger — not low or high pressure, necessarily, but a sudden shift from one to the other.[i]
However, Dr. Hoffman said, many people who think weather is a migraine trigger may actually be triggered by something else. He theorizes that people who already are in the premonitory phase of a migraine attack may be more sensitive to changes in temperature, light or barometric pressure, so they notice them more acutely.
How can you determine your specific migraine triggers? The best way is to keep a headache diary, whether on paper or in an app. When you track your migraine attacks and symptoms, as well as factors like diet, sleep and weather, you can spot recurring patterns that may trigger your summer migraine.
Go low-impact.
When exercising with migraine, experts generally recommend choosing activities that go easy on your body, without jarring or pounding. Good choices include:
- Swimming
- Walking
- Cycling
- Yoga
- Tai chi
But you should follow your passion! If you love running, then run. Just stay hydrated and pay attention to your body. If you love rock-climbing, then climb. To avoid neck strain that can lead to migraine, some climbers recommend light-refracting belay glasses to wear when belaying.
Like a scout, be prepared for a migraine in the Summer.
If you’re venturing out for the day or the weekend, bring key elements from your migraine tool kit:
- Water: You already know that dehydration can trigger migraine attacks, and it’s easy to underestimate the amount of water you’ll need in the summer. Strenuous hiking in hot weather may require you to drink 1 liter of water — or more — per hour, according to the outdoor pros at REI. They also recommend pre-hydrating before you exercise and bringing sports drinks or powders to restore your electrolyte balance.[ii]
- Snacks: Skipping meals can also be a migraine trigger. Migraine-friendly snacks can include fresh fruit (apples, pears and grapes travel well), carrots, celery, sunflower seeds, pretzels, potato chips.
- Sunglasses and a hat: If you’re sensitive to bright light, these are a must-have. The best sunglasses for migraine are polarized, which reduce glare from reflected sunlight, or have an FL-41 tint.
- Cooling gear: To avoid overheating, wear breathable, lightweight clothing. A cooling neck wrap or evaporative hat can deliver sweet relief on blazing days.
- Acute migraine treatment: Bring your CEFALY, your migraine medication, and any other treatments you rely on.
Pay attention to your other triggers.
On its own, hot and humid weather might not spark a migraine attack. But if you’re already stressed or sleep-deprived, you could be at risk.
“There is more and more evidence showing that over a given month, the threshold to trigger a migraine attack varies substantially,” Dr. Hoffman said. “So there are days where you’re very susceptible to have a migraine attack, and other days where you’re not. Probably, for example, a change in weather may be the last thing you need to trigger an attack, whereas on another day, you just wouldn’t care.”[iii]
CEFALY can help raise your migraine threshold by gradually desensitizing the trigeminal nerve. CEFALY sends tiny electrical impulses through a self-adhesive electrode placed on the forehead to stimulate the trigeminal nerve, reducing the frequency and intensity of migraine attacks.
Use the 20-minute PREVENT program each day! Daily use is clinically proven to help prevent migraine attacks: In one study, CEFALY users saw an average 30% drop in migraine days after three months of treatment.
