eye migrains?

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I amI was wondering if anyone else gets these. ever since I was little I would get intense pain focused in my left eye (usually the left eye) and left side of my head. these can range from mildish to debilitating and normally start mild and become debilitating to the point where I shut down. I need to isolate yself and block out all stimuli that I can. I noticed this usually happens after a lot of stress during the day or if I have been out in public or dealing with people for long periods.. I have also found insaficeint sleep increases the odds of one happening. Des anyone else get these?

Yes. But most of my headaches (always in my left eye and that side of the head) are caused from occipital neuralgia, which starts with the major nerves in the neck area. Almost identical to migraines (for me,as they are also on my left side and just as painful), except that there's pain and sensitivity to touch in the back of my head, where the skull meets the neck.

From the title I thought maybe you were referring to ophthalmic migraines, which are migraines with just the visual symptoms and no pain. I had one of those once. It was super freaky and I was convinced I was having a stroke. I have not had the type of migraine you are describing however.

They do have pain. I got those in intermediate/middle school, it gave me the creeps and terrified me, the flashing lines... knowing a headache was coming and then I ALWAYS threw up at the end of it.

I get them sometimes. Intense pain right behind one of my eyes. If I'm at home I get my cold pack out of the freezer, lie down, and lay it on my head covering my eye, temple, and forehead. If I'm out somewhere I find the nearest washroom and run cold water, scooping it with my hand to splash it over my eye. Sometimes it works more than others, but it's the only solution I have. The cold pack always works though. May not take the pain away completely, but definitely feels a lot better.

Migraines cause food to be instantly rejected by my stomach. That would include medications. Sometimes on an empty stomach I would have the dry heaves, or salivate so much I had to stay situated over a toilet. Migraines are Hell on earth.

Occipital neuralgia, similar, only rarely upsets my stomach, but can still be hell.

OP...many types of headaches, especially those in the eye, are similar, so I hope you've been seeing a doctor about them. And migraines can definitely be brought on by stress, but by other things as well, such as diet, menstrual cycles or a heart problem, which makes one susceptible to stress-related headaches (like with my niece, who had to have heart surgery at age 23 and still has the migraines that are related to her lifelong heart condition).

I think this eye pain you describe is a female problem with hormones.

learn about trigger points (muscle contraction knots). the book by clair davies is a good self-help guide. this information will likely help in the future, even if it doesnt cure you of these particular headaches.

It lists about 9 muscle groups altogether under eye & temple pain. eg. sternoclamastoids at the front on the neck (pain is often referred to specific areas elsewhere) if you squeeze these gently between your finger you might find them painful (mine were) - they shouldnt be, and can probably returned to usual functioning in a few days of doing the exercises.

http://www.amazon.com/Trigger-Point-The ... 202&sr=8-1

(you can d/l this on bittorent or something too if your ok with pirating)

http://triggerpoints.net/ - this site provides the basic info and charts for free, but doesnt give self-massage instructions - usually its pretty intuitive, but sometimes you might have to work near a nerve or artery (especially around the neck!)

I have migrenes pretty often, at least twice a month. And I hate it. It can last from about an hour or as much as a week and it makes me really sick too. I get really shaky and then either throw up or pass out. I once passed out on the bus on my way home from school and everyone thought I died.. I am trying everything I can to avoid the migrenes. Not too cold, not too hot. Not too much bright lights, not too little light, Not sleep too much, not stay awake too long, no stress, no alcohol, no sweets or chocolate and no food with artificial sweetnings.. Still, the migrene attack anyway

I get painful headaches around my right eye and the right side of my face. Not a migraine as such. I've been taking a low dose of amitryptiline (whatever) which has helped a lot; it's reduced the frequency at which I get them and drastically reduced the painfulness of them when they do happen. They are sometimes (but not exclusively) triggered by stress or by being in the open air.
I recorded them over a half year or so but couldn't find any other pattern to their occurence. I was kinda hoping they'd be tied to the lunar cycle, 'cause that'd be cool.

I sometimes have severe pain in one eye (usually the left), like being stabbed from the back of the eye outwards. Sometimes I have a pain like a steel band tightening around my head too. It is always accompanied by nausea and abdominal upset. I tend to imagine (because the imagining helps me) that the head pain is purely psychosomatic and caused by the abdominal upset, like I have toxins that desperately need to come out - vomiting or a bowel movement provide some relief.

If I catch it early, then a single aspirin in plenty of water can prevent the worst. I need to go and lie down somewhere dark, quiet and warm while it takes effect. I press all five fingertips of both hands together lightly, and wait until I can feel my pulse between each pair of fingertips - this is a technique for equalizing blood flow and body temperature across the two sides of the body (there is no mystical significance, it is used in therapy after stroke).

I don't get pain in the eye, but I do get the visual "jagged flickering" sensation, sometimes called "aura", before a migraine.

Mind you, for the last twenty years or so, I have been on beta blockers for high blood pressure, and one good side effect of this beta blocker is suppression of migraines. So what happens now, if I am over-tired and over stressed, is the aura, followed by an ordinary headache, or no headache at all, instead of the debilitating migraine. Like the OP, when I used to have real migraines, I had to turn off all the lights, stop any sounds (like TV or radio), and go to bed and sleep it off - after taking the strongest over-the-counter pain-killer I could find (paracetamol with codeine and maybe a calmative too).

Anyway, the first time I had the visual "aura" experience, I think I was a bit worried about having a stroke too. It is a weird sensation the first couple of times. And yes, the first time I had a migraine was when I was meeting my future mother-in-law for the first time - so stress was the trigger.

The last time I had my eyes tested the optician mentioned the type of migraine LostInSpace is talking about. I think he referred to it as a visual migraine and it involves flashing lights and some visual disturbance, but no pain.

I once had an "ocular migraine," but I've regularly been getting "sinus migraines."

It's possible the ocular migraine was a sinus migraine, but it's been a long time ago.

They're triggered by allergies. I use OTC generic Excedrin (key ingredient is caffeine). When one comes on, I pop a couple antihistamines, decongestants and generic Excedrin and it goes away in a half hour. A sinus allergy will mess with my eyes, but the pain is also in the nose and forehead.

I have migraine, which mainly comes on as opthalmic disturbances at first (a wiggly flicker in the center of my vision, which opens up and spreads, then becomes the inverse; good vision again in the center, but wiggly, flickering peripheral vision). If I take 3 Advil RIGHT WHEN the opthalmic symptom begins, I can avoid the headache 90% of the time. If I miss it, or if it comes on during sleep, it's nearly impossible to get rid of the banging, pulsating headache for at least 3-8 hours. The other thing that happens sometimes is that I will start hearing dings and squeals in my hearing, along with the visual disturbances. If that happens, I know it'll be a bad one if I don't take it easy, go in a quiet dark place, and take Advil.

I never thought about this having anything to do with the Autism Spectrum...

Charles