What Is in Your Migraine Playlist? Here’s My Top 10

By Tom Picerno

2 min read

My life has always revolved around music. I went from listening to all types of music as a young child to playing an instrument and making my own. Music is an evolving playlist that I actively curate each day. I can escape the stresses of life with music and use it as a motivational booster to help propel me forward when I'm dragging. My musical appetite changes based on what I am experiencing. Migraine days evoke a specific type of music, while non-migraine days require other types. The symptoms of my migraine attacks also play into my musical playlist.

How do migraine and music connect for me?

One of the most challenging symptoms of my migraine attacks is tinnitus. The more severe the attack, the louder the ringing. That's where my migraine playlists come in. Their primary purpose is to divert my attention from the constant ringing. Most of the music is soothing, but sometimes I need something with a strong, driving beat.

What songs distract me from my tinnitus?

Here are my top ten go-to artists, along with the songs that feature in my migraine playlist.

Suite #1 in G Major by Bach
Little Talks by Of Monsters and Men
Benedictus by 2Cellos
Wish That You Were Here by Florence and the Machine
SOS by Abba
Someone Saved My Life Tonight by Elton John
Young and Naive by Heather Rigdon
Knights of Cydonia by Muse
Mr. Blue Sky by ELO
Novocaine for the Soul by Eels

Since the songs change based on my attacks, these artists and songs will vary.

Do I have any sensitivity to sound?

I am very fortunate that sound, as it relates to most music, does not affect my attacks. Specific sounds bother me, such as the sound of the Army transport helicopters, Coast Guard Surveillance planes, and rumbling freight trains adjacent to my home. There are also 'sharp' sounds that cut like knives into my brain, like alarm sirens or sounds in high-frequency ranges. My migraine playlist does not contain any of those offending sound profiles!

How do I choose songs for my playlists?

Creating playlists for different aspects of my life is not just a hobby; it's a passion. It gives me the freedom to curate music from across many generations and genres. I listen to songs for the lyrics, some for the beat, and others for the instruments. Each category has its place in the playlists. Some songs are a perfect blend of all these elements, creating what I call my musical trifecta!

What songs do you listen to?

I understand that many people suffering from migraine attacks need silence. I have times like that as well. For those who can tolerate music during an attack or use it as I do to distract themselves from the symptoms, I think it would be fun to share your favorite songs and artists. What songs help tame your beast?

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Cody Leach Community Admin
Migraine by Twenty One Pilots is my go-to song when I feel angry and fed up with my migraines! Thanks for sharing your list. - Cody (Team Member)
1. Tom Picerno Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="Cody Leach" user-id="4536970"/> thanks Cody! Music is so helpful for me in living a full life. Tom, migraine community team
CommunityMemberab4312 Member
I’m going to do this & list it as Migraine #1 Relaxtion #1 Can have some as Migraine but not necessarily. I’ll work on it after this migraine has passed. 
1. Tom Picerno Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="CommunityMemberab4312" user-id="8577727"/> thank you for joining the conversation. I found it very helpful to have different music playlists ready to go so that I don’t have to jump around from song to song since they’re already all in one place. Anything I can do to make things easier on myself during a migraine attack is a benefit. I would love to see what’s on your playlist.I hope your migraine resolves quickly so that you can get back to living your life. Wishing you migraine free days, Tom migraine community team
pigen51 Member
Tom, I can relate to you as far as being a musician and using music as a way to cope with migraine. And I also seem to be more sensitive to sounds during an attack than even to light, unless the light is flashing, such as a strobe light. With sounds that bother me, it is not necessarily the loudness but rather the abrupt type of sounds, like someone dropping a heavy weight on the floor, with the resounding bang, or clapping hands once close to me, or even slamming a car door. I have a number of songs that I like to listen to, both for migraine attacks but also for relaxing when stressed. A few that come to mind is Bobby Darin's Beyond the Sea, Mr. Blue by the Fleetwoods, and since I am a sax player, I have to include my favorite instrumental. It is called Spanish Steps by Van Morrison. Yes, that Van Morrison. If you have never heard this last one, it is worth a search to listen to it. If you put earphones or earbuds on, you can even hear the slap of the pads at the very ending, it is just so well produced. Thanks for sharing this with us, it reinforces my assertion that music and art in school is just as important as science, math, and reading, etc. I know that once I learned to read, I would have been able to educate myself on much of the rest of the things that I learned. But without learning to play multiple instruments, due to band classes in school, my life would have not been nearly as fulfilling or colorful. 
1. Tom Picerno Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="pigen51" user-id="3906478"/> I enjoyed playing music from Junior high and into college. I also played the saxophone (tenor), but I haven’t played in years. Many of the schools in this area no longer have banned as part of an available curriculum. Most schools still have chorus. two of my four daughters play multiple instruments and my wife is a piano player and teacher. Music continues to be a big part of our lives and it certainly makes it more pleasant! Thank you for adding to the conversation. Wishing you migraine free days, Tom migraine community team
pigen51 Member
I was lucky in that I seemed to have an ability to pick up instruments just by watching the kids in class, while the teacher had them play scales, etc. Since I had siblings who played several other instruments, I was able to practice on them at home. I joined a rock and roll band in about 1990, and by watching the guitar players backwards, to follow their chords, I learned how to play guitar. My twin brother played drums in many local bar bands for years after high school, which we graduated in 1978. I had never smoked a cigarette in my life until I started playing music with 5 people in my band who smoked. After a couple of months, I had picked up the habit. I worked in a steel melt shop, and there were many 12 hour shifts, sometimes for months on end, including weekends. So the smoking sort of helped with the tedium. After I left the factory job after 35 plus years, and did some trailer park maintenance, I quit smoking within a couple of months. That was back in 2014. We all know it is bad for you. And I know it must not help migraines, either. I did find a neighborhood music group and played with them for about a year after I moved when I got married for the second time, in 1992. Now I am retired but spend more time on other things, like Ham Radio and my family, so I no longer play music much. But I wouldn't have missed it for anything. Like so many say, it is a universal language. Be well, and have a good holiday season.
1. Tonya Henry Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="pigen51" user-id="3906478"/> hi there. I am so glad that you have hobbies to enjoy in retirement. My uncle used to have a CB radio. He would love just sitting and listening to what was going on. I do not play any instruments, but I do love music. That is something that I listen to daily. I also love singing while doing most things around the house. I kind of feel like Mary Poppins. Lol. Thanks again for all the comments and being a part of the community!! (Tonya, team member).
2. Tom Picerno Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="pigen51" user-id="3906478"/> , thank you for sharing your story and how music has affected your life. I also played saxophone (tenor) for several years. I was part of a jazz band and we would perform at parties and different events. Two of our four daughters play multiple instruments and my wife teaches and plays piano. My kids and grandkids also share my love of music. They all have a wide range of music tastes. I have not played in years, though. There was never really time because I was focused on raising our family and my career. I retired in 2019 after chronic migraine and a back injury made it impossible to continue working. I spend my time now writing and advocating for others with migraine. Music is a huge part of my daily life and it continues to soothe my soul. I hope you have a great holiday season as well that’s free from migraine attacks! Wishing you migraine-free days, Tom migraine community team
pigen51 Member
Tanya and Tom, Thank you for your responses to my brief bio. This site is so very useful, just knowing that there are others out there with my condition, with many who suffer much more then myself. Tom, in a strange coincidence, I am retired with disability due to both the migraine problem and also with a bad back, which I broke in a car accident in early 1992. I am actually working through a flare up right now. I married very young and sort of condemned myself to a life spent in a steel melt shop making metal to sell to customers who would then pour it into their own molds. We did that for air melted steels as well as for nickel based alloys for the hot section of jet airplane engines, to keep the part as strong as it could be until it came actually close to melt point. While the job still entailed physical labor, knowledge of metallurgy and math, along with a bit of chemistry were needed to bring melted steels into spec. I spent much of my time there as what they called a floater, or someone who knew all the jobs in the entire place plus many in the lab. On some days, I would run a furnace, then transfer it over to the processing container, where we brought it into spec, and after doing the job processing the heat I would follow the heat to the casting machine, which made the metal into a solid bar of 75 mm, or around 3" across and 15 feet long, which were then cut up with a very powerful shear, run through water to cool them from red hot, and then packed them into the shipping containers that the customer required. I also ran vacuum furnaces that we made what is called Superalloy, mostly for jet engines and ground based turbines. In order to make the metal strong as close to the melt point as possible, tight controls as far as chemistry were very important, making it possible to not damage the fins and blades of jet aircraft engines. Much of our work, especially during the last 10 years or so leaned very heavily on both math and computer ability. So called foundry work has gotten much more mentally intense rather than just melting the stuff an pour it into ingots. Sorry for the long rant, sometimes it seems like the only thing that I have to speak about with any deal of knowledge is to talk about how I had a rather large hand in making our processes work, when we installed new equipment or were writing procedures for different jobs, since I had done them all for so long. Wishing you a pain free fall season and sending prayers that you and your loved ones enjoy the time of Thanksgiving, bearing in mind just how lucky we are to live in a country that has given so much to us. Now we need to give her back a little as well.
1. Tonya Henry Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="pigen51" user-id="3906478"/> thank you so much!! I agree that the site is very helpful. I love it because it is a community of souls with not just migraine in common, but, interests and sometimes, other illnesses. Thank you for sharing all of that about your career. It sounds interesting. I think being a floater was a great job. In my opinion, it is better to know many jobs, than one. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving as well!! I like your comment about giving back. I have a heart for service. Whether that be this community, or locally, I love it all. Take care. (Tonya, team member).
pigen51 Member
Tonya, I am a Christian but don't try to wear my religion like a badge on my sleeve. Rather I try to follow the thing that Jesus said. He spoke about not making a huge deal of giving but rather try and do so in secret, that God would reward us in public. I have had the experience of giving money to others, and it has turned around within one day. I learned that you cannot out give the Lord. Perhaps not being rewarded financially but there is so much more to life than money. I have had times of being very solid financially and other times when my wife and myself were living paycheck to paycheck. And I have learned that it is often the poorest of people who will give back financially to others in need. It is like we all know about being poor and so we want to help others no matter how little or how large. Be well, and may you feel blessed this coming Thanksgiving season. Tim
1. Alene L. Brennan, RYT Moderator & Contributor
 <inline-mention username="pigen51" user-id="3906478"/> this is such a beautiful message, thank you for sharing this with us. It's clearly something that is so meaningful to you and has really made a profound difference in your life. It's a great message any time of year, but certainly during the Thanksgiving season. Alene (team member)