"I Describe My Migraine...."

By Editorial Team

June 21, 2019

Just as no two people living with migraine are the same, no two people describe their migraine the same! We asked our Migraine.com community and on Facebook to complete this sentence, "I describe my migraine..."

Here are your summarized responses:

"A glass grenade in suspended animation of explosion inside my head hijacking my body and life."
"A pain that will almost destroy you."
"Like a railroad spike driven into my left temple, that travels to behind my left eye, then left ear. And if haven't taken my triptan, goes to entire head."
"A vice grip on the outside of my head & a cannon ready to explode on the inside."
"Like my brain is doing its best Chernobyl impression."
"Half my life; all the time."
"Heavy, hot, twisting, mind numbing, shattering, major painful monsters."
"Atomic bomb"
"Pure hell"
"Pain that robs me from living a happy life."
"Black hole of pain that starts out as an inconspicuous worm burying itself deep into my brain destroying time, sanity and joy."
"50 years of spikes in my eye and face."
"Like putting my head in the biggest bunch of stinging nettles. Taken out and then put on a cheese grater leaving me with days and days of exhaustion."
"Life sucking monster."
"Like torture that doesn't quite kill you but sometimes you wish it would."
"Burning lava."
"Demon pixie fairies with icepicks."

Can you relate to any of these descriptions? How would you describe yours? Let's keep the conversation going & share in the comments below!

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This article represents the opinions, thoughts, and experiences of the author; none of this content has been paid for by any advertiser. The Migraine.com team does not recommend or endorse any products or treatments discussed herein. Learn more about how we maintain editorial integrity here.

Join the conversation

By missnat
June 25, 2019
My migraines feel like a tidal wave filled with knives beating against every thought I try to have.
1. By Joanna Bodner
 June 25, 2019
 Such a great description @MissNat. I am truly so sorry that you are forced to navigate this horrible disease.
By grammyb
June 25, 2019
It's like a jack hammer going off in your head....just sooo painful really no words can describe it
1. By DonnaFA
 June 25, 2019
 That's an apt comparison, <inline-mention user-id="3679789" username="grammyb" class="bp-suggestions-mention"/> . I always equated it to a sledge hammer, but a jack hammer reflects the unrelenting nature. Thanks for sharing! - Warmly, Donna (Migraine.com team)
2. By grammyb
 June 26, 2019
 Ur welcome DonnaPa....
By hh45612
June 26, 2019
Visual contorting geometric shapes flying all around, halogen bright lights, black holes, colors slip-sliding around, smaller zipping lights and shapes that is 24/7 aura; sickening, decreasing ability to see clearly. Cramping right-sided brain-into-eye stranglehold grip, so much so that I literally had a black eye on the right by mid-morning.
By virginiakramerage
June 26, 2019
It's like the round lights in school that made your hair stand up. But the electricity is just bouncing around the nerves in my face and never stops for days on end.
By deedeevee1
June 27, 2019
It's a theif!! It has stolen who I worked very hard to become. It has stolen memories, opportunities, and joy!! It has vandalized my life and left me for dead with what feels like a gunshot to the back of my head!!
By tulin2
June 27, 2019
The back of my head and upper neck feel like a very thin glass bulb, just waiting to shatter if I move.
By bluesguy
June 27, 2019
For me, it is like someone is shoving an icepick into my left eye, then the pain travels to my left temple, and to the back of my head and neck.
By ni3ci
June 27, 2019
I would describe it as an intense never ending daily pressure that burrows through my eye, over my entire head and neck, that’s all consuming taking away my freedom to just enjoy life. There are a few moments where I think that its let off but then it hits me again like a wave of pulsating pressure and pain, like someone has their hands inside my head squeezing my brain. It makes me want to pop my head off to empty out all the pain!
By luvmyfam22
July 12, 2019
There are so many ways to describe my migraines, depending on the day and the pain presenting itself for the moment. But, one way I think it may feel like to me that encompasses my life and the migraine itself is a cork screw wildly twisting its way through the cork to get it out, leaving broken pieces throughout the wine rendering it undrinkable. It feels like that cork screw is constantly twisting sharply in my head, trying to break my brain apart, rendering me useless...unable to function on simple daily tasks or thoughts. Oh, for the end of the tunnel!!