Migraines after running - partner is really struggling.

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Sombrero 12 Feb 8:34pm, 12 Feb 2022 12,488 posts	0 Sombrero My girlfriend often gets really bad headaches around an hour or so after running - yesterday was an easy run (45 mins) and today was a good effort at parkrun but after both, she felt rubbish. She eats well, drinks plenty of water/tea, gets sleep, isn't stressed. But is really fed up with it - her eyes felt really bad after we got back from parkrun today. She usually struggles in the heat, but now it seems to be happening in cold weather too. Any ideas?
Ness 12 Feb 8:54pm, 12 Feb 2022 19,598 posts	0 Ness Sounds awful for her. I'm no expert so can't offer any advice, sorry. Is it due to hydration level? Would it be worth trying rehydration salts before a run or after a run.?
Sombrero 12 Feb 9:44pm, 12 Feb 2022 12,489 posts	0 Sombrero Yeah, we're going to try that. Good call.
RooA 13 Feb 9:31pm, 13 Feb 2022 1,763 posts	0 RooA Not on the pill is she? I got crippling headaches after running when I was on the damn thing. Stopped as soon as I stopped taking it.
Velociraptor 13 Feb 9:42pm, 13 Feb 2022 56,390 posts	0 Velociraptor Have a read about primary or benign exertional headache, Sombrero. It's a migraine-related phenomenon and normally responds to the same painkillers that would be used to treat a headache in any other situation (NSAIDs can be particularly useful if your girlfriend is able to take them, and your GP can prescribe different ones if ibuprofen doesn't work for her). It may be worth taking a painkiller before exercise sessions.
Sombrero 14 Feb 12:41am, 14 Feb 2022 12,492 posts	0 Sombrero Cheers, I'll look into the suggestions
olde english 14 Feb 1:47pm, 14 Feb 2022 115 posts	0 olde english had the same probs, 10+ years of no probs then headaches started to creep in after/during running. They were more on the slow burner end of the migraine scale with some good old party disco lights in the eyes, a tickle of projectile vomitting and staggering round rather dazed. Rinsed my work med insurance, few brain legions found which may have been (be) the culprits, nobodys really sure. Anyhows... tried the meds approach, but ditched them after a week. they re the anti depressent family of drugs which just md me groggy. Then i just took the non drug kitchen sink approach of high vit B dose, avoid iboprufen and paracetamol (brain doc was v vocal on that 1, wasnt really listening to the explanation on why as i was busy eating the biscuits, but did implicitly say stick to asprin) swapped most of my tea and coffee to decaf, paid a lot more attention to hydration, ramped my iron up (it was ok on tests but at the low end) , took a break from 'training' and just jogged about. think the issue is now gone after 2 years..but of course these things do just come and go as well, but i figured all the steps i took arent going to damage me..well apart from the no 'training' bit..that has pushed me backwards. Hopefully it'll just go away with some simple changes.
Sombrero 15 Feb 11:27am, 15 Feb 2022 12,493 posts	0 Sombrero Thanks, I've passed all the information on to her.
Evan 16 Feb 1:57am, 16 Feb 2022 55 posts	0 Evan Fetch sent me to this thread after I sent him a note about my experiences with exercise-induced headaches because of something he posted about his son on the Rundle blog. I don't think my experiences are exactly on point because mine were almost exclusively triggered by races and competitive sports, but your description sparked a few questions in my mind: What's her age range? How long ago did this start, how frequent are they, and has this varied over time? Does the amount of sun exposure affect the severity or likelihood of an occurrence? When you say she struggles in heat, does she experience other problems, such as greater than normal difficulty performing athletically? Could you elaborate on what you mean by her eyes felt really bad? Was the headache centered behind them or was this something else? As I said above, I don't think my personal experiences are all that on point (my migraines used to start with an optical disturbance, which would subside and then would be followed by severe head pain a short time later). But as someone who is dating a woman with a fairly rare neurological condition (multiple sclerosis) and an extremely rare neuromuscular one (myotonia), I've learned that sometimes suffering unusual conditions rationalize them by thinking they're the same as something which other people experience and could be described similarly, but are not at all the same.

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Maintained by Sombrero

My girlfriend often gets really bad headaches around an hour or so after running - yesterday was an easy run (45 mins) and today was a good effort at parkrun but after both, she felt rubbish.

She eats well, drinks plenty of water/tea, gets sleep, isn't stressed.

But is really fed up with it - her eyes felt really bad after we got back from parkrun today.

She usually struggles in the heat, but now it seems to be happening in cold weather too.

Any ideas?

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