Health Topics A-Z

What Are the Symptoms?

The symptoms of migraines include:

• A brief period of depression, irritability, anxiety, moodiness, and decreased appetite, as much as 24 hours before the onset of a headache.
• Symptoms of an aura an hour or less before head pain starts.
• A severe, throbbing headache, sometimes concentrated on only one side of the head, or around one eye, lasting between four and 72 hours.
• A headache that worsens with exertion.
• Nausea and vomiting.
• Extreme sensitivity to light, such that light is very painful to the eyes and head, requiring retreat to a darkened room.
• Extreme sensitivity to sound.
• Weakness of an arm or leg, difficulty speaking, or confusion.
• Severe exhaustion, confusion, or moodiness sometimes lasting several days after the headache resolves.

• You have severe headaches.
• You notice changes in your vision, weakness or paralysis in a body part, or difficulty with balance and walking, especially if these problems do not resolve after the headache is over.
• You develop a fever or stiff neck.
• You have unintentional weight loss.