The more I have learned about Migraines, in a layman's sense, the more I feel I don't know about them and need to learn additional information. It seems triggers are one of the big keys to Migraines and what you do with your triggers is one of the most important factors for you as triggers can be very individual.
Right now, stackable triggers (podcast on triggers; transcript of podcast) are what is confusing me. Stackable triggers are triggers that don't necessarily trigger a migraine by itself, but can trigger a Migraine when we come across other stackable triggers or stress. What confuses me is that I'm not sure if I should just avoid stackable triggers all of the time too, that is if it is an avoidable stackable trigger. I would imagine this would be the prudent thing to do.
You see, I have a lot of triggers. Some are avoidable; some are not. I have gotten so much better about avoiding the triggers I can, but it does take time to break some old habits or to just not do something on impulse - without even thinking about it. Or worse yet, to do or eat something because you don't want to hurt someone else's feeling. This only ends up hurting you in the end. I am really trying to not play around with my triggers in general and stackable trigger limitations anymore.
I think these stackable triggers are still triggers even if they do not cause a full blown Migraine by themselves. I also do not know when an uncontrollable trigger may be lurking around and going to show it's evilness which will cause that dreaded Migraine. I can't afford the time or money that a Migraine costs any longer. I know how hard this is since I am faced with my triggers everyday.
One stackable trigger I find hard to give up right now is chocolate. It has always been my stress reliever. This is a time when I need my chocolate the most, but I also know I have to stay away from it if I want to get through this period of time. Talk about stress on top of stress!
I have a lot more to say about food triggers - just not right now. Food triggers have become a very sore subject for me; some justifiable, some not. I will not whine about my food triggers or whine because I ate something that caused me to get a Migraine especially if it was my fault. What I may do is complain about the number of food and other triggers I do have. But even then, I don't really like to complain unless I've just had too much to handle for too long or am just having a plain old rotten day. Right now, I should find out within the next month if I still have a job.
Now where's that chocolate when you really need it? Just kidding. That's not going to help me if I need to find a new job.
This is posted under a new name since I recently opened up a new email address to start my own blog.
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Let me see if I can clear things up a bit for you. "Triggers can be cumulative or, in the words of Dr. Jan Lewis Brandes, stackable. In other words, we can have triggers of differing strengths. Some may be strong enough to trigger a Migraine by themselves. Others may be weaker and only trigger a Migraine when we're stressed or when we encounter them in combination with one or more other triggers," writes Teri Robert in her podcast on Migraine triggers.
Some people are triggered by things this way - I know my son is - if he eats chocolate three days in a row, and then gets dehydrated he will get a Migraine. Chocolate and dehydration alone are triggers too, but together are "stackable" or cumulative for him.
Now, let's say he watches his chocolate, stays hydrated, gets a good night sleep but the weather pressure starts to change(another trigger for him) he may not get a Migraine each time. But if he is working hard in school, feeling a bit anxious about things and the weather changes the Migraine may hit.
Does that help any? Have you kept a Migraine diary to see what may or may not be triggering your Migraines? We have a free diary you can see HERE. Migraines Often Triggered By Change In the Weather has good information in it too.
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Welcome again,
Nancy BonkMyMigraineConnection.com Expert
Hello Nancy,
Actually the part about the triggers that you bolded is the part I kept reading over and over again. And where Dr Brandes says these are triggers of differing strengths is where I thought I should stay away from them because as you mention, you never know when an unavoidable trigger will come along like the weather or a stressful situation.
I also posted a question in Ask a Question about another avoidable trigger, but it is a little different. It had to do with taking the stairs instead of the elevator. It's different because taking the stairs should be better for you than taking an elevator, but is it really if it could eventually contribute to a Migraine? This disease is just so frustrating sometimes.
Oh, I know how confusing it is, really I do. So if taking the stairs is an issue for you, you may have to avoid them. Walking up stairs is an issue for me at times for many reasons, but taking them down is usually ok. But that doesn't mean exercise is to be avoided all together. I use the elevator, but park the car a bit farther away from the entrance of the building. We have a great article about how to "sneak" in some exercise: 10 Ways for Migraineurs To Sneak In Some Exercise,(modify the stairs as you see fit.)
Another thing one can do is use the exercise bike. A recent study showed that using this kind of bike didn't increase a Migrainuers risk of getting a Migraine: Finally, certain exercise won't make our Migraines worse!
Hope this helps some