Adolescent Migraines
Many adolescents endure sharp head pain and other migraine symptoms daily. Migraine symptoms can disrupt daily activities and leave teens bedridden for hours. Recognizing migraine symptoms and identifying trigger patterns can help prevent them.
Migraines occur because of abnormal activity in the brain's nerve signals, chemical signals, and blood vessels (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2025). When waves of activity are induced by groups of neurons, a chemical that helps nerve cells communicate, called serotonin, is triggered. The trigger causes blood vessels to constrict, disrupting the blood flow throughout the brain. A change in estrogen levels, which solely affects women, can cause migraines to occur, which is why women are more likely to experience them than men.
Additionally, many individuals who experience migraines are predisposed to them as they have a family history of migraine-related disorders. This is due to hereditary variants in the genes associated with the muscles surrounding blood vessels that regulate blood flow in the brain, which can lead to migraines (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2019).
Once a migraine begins, it is difficult to distinguish it from a common tension-type headache because they result in similar symptoms. However, several differences can help you identify which one you are experiencing. Migraines can last from four to 72 hours for people 15 years or older. In contrast, headaches typically last from 30 minutes to seven days. In addition, the quality of pain is different in migraines and headaches. Migraines have more severe pain than headaches, and the pain may occur in different places. Migraines can be unilateral, which means they affect one side of the face, in addition to being bifrontal, meaning they affect both sides of the face. On the other hand, headaches are bilateral. Additionally, for some people, migraines have an aura, which is when dots, zigzags, or sparks occur in one’s vision, which is not a symptom of headaches (Brenner & Lewis, 2008). This is known as a “classic” migraine, in which someone experiences changes in their ability to speak, or the feeling of pins and needles in different parts of the body (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, 2025).
Once the symptoms are recognized, there are many different types of treatments to deal with migraines. If taken soon after a migraine begins, certain medications can reduce the length of the migraines, lessen the pain, and prevent the symptoms from progressing. These medications can include ibuprofen and acetaminophen, which help stop and reduce the pain of a migraine once it has begun. Acetaminophen works as a pain reliever, whereas ibuprofen, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent (NSAID), reduces inflammation and swelling. Both can be purchased as over-the-counter medications, making them easily accessible for those who experience frequent migraines. Choosing a medication is based on personal preference, but both can be effective when dealing with migraines (UnityPoint Health, n.d.).
For people who experience migraines frequently, occurring over four times a month, prophylaxis, or preventive medications, may be more appropriate as they reduce the frequency and severity of migraines. Some of the preventative medications include Cyproheptadine, which is mostly used on children and works by preventing serotonin from being produced, but has sedative side effects and increases appetite. In addition, antiepileptic medications make migraines less severe by altering how the migraine works, and NSAIDs can help in short time frames (Brenner & Lewis, 2008).
Lifestyle changes can help manage migraines as well. These changes include improving sleeping habits by getting better, deeper, and longer-lasting sleep. Additionally, drinking 30 milliliters of water for every kilogram of your body weight every day and maintaining regular meals throughout the day can help prevent migraines. Also, aiming for over 30 minutes of exercise a day and limiting time on screens to less than two hours a day can help prevent or reduce the frequency of migraines. Keeping a log of when migraines occur is also a good practice in order to identify patterns of triggers, helping to prevent migraines from occurring. Triggers for migraines can be related to diet, hormones, environment, and behaviors (American Headache Society, 2021).
Migraines affect many adolescents' lives, but identifying what is causing them and patterns of when they occur can help prevent them from occurring in the first place. New research and treatments, especially those for adolescents, are continually being developed to improve the quality of life for those affected daily by these intense symptoms.
References
Acetaminophen vs. Ibuprofen: What to take when. UnityPoint Health. (n.d.). https://www.unitypoint.org/news-and-articles/acetaminophen-vs-ibuprofen-what-to-take-when
Brenner, M., & Lewis, D. (2008, January). The treatment of migraine headaches in children and adolescents. The journal of pediatric pharmacology and therapeutics : JPPT : the official journal of PPAG. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3462052/
How a migraine happens. Johns Hopkins Medicine. (2019, November 26). https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/headache/how-a-migraine-happens
Migraine in the adolescent patient overview. American Headache Society. (n.d.). https://americanheadachesociety.org/news/migraine-in-the-adolescent-patient-overview
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). Migraine. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/migraine#:~:text=Current%20research%20shows%20that%20this,weekends%20following%20a%20stressful%20week.
U.S. National Library of Medicine. (n.d.). Migraine: Medlineplus genetics. MedlinePlus. https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/condition/migraine/#:~:text=Variants%20in%20genes%20that%20regulate,role%20in%20developing%20a%20migraine
Migraine | image | radiopaedia.org. Accessed September 1, 2025. https://radiopaedia.org/images/5362921.
The above picture depicts a hemiplegic migraine, which is a type of migraine with an aura that causes motor control loss.
Kumar, Anil. “Hemiplegic Migraine.” StatPearls [Internet]., July 4, 2023. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513302/#:~:text=Hemiplegic%20migraine%20is%20a%20rare%20subtype%20of%20migraine%20with%20aura,vision%2C%20speech%2C%20or%20sensation.
