From the "Science Is Stranger Than Science Fiction Department":
Migraines are not a lot of fun, as many of us know. Since a lot about the actual science of why we get migraines is still unknown, this condition is notoriously difficult to treat. Stress certainly is a major contributing factor to tension headaches (which are different from migraines). A new study from Queen’s University’s Biology department suggests that migraines may actually be a survival mechanism to help us survive times of extreme stress. How did they come to that conclusion? By studying comatose locusts (wouldn’t that make a great name for a band?).
What Locusts Do
So, what stresses out a locust? They don’t have to pay taxes or clean the carpets. Extreme heat and lack of oxygen stresses them out. First, they breathe really fast, and then they go into a coma. This bit of suspended animation helps them get through this incredibly stressful time to survive to happier times. When the temperature lowers or the oxygen becomes more abundant, then the locust revives.
A locust’s breathing is regulated by its nerve cells. When the nerve cells have more potassium inside of them than outside, the body is balanced and the locusts merrily locusts along. But when the potassium levels are more OUTSIDE of a locust’s nerve cell than inside the cell, then this coma response is triggered. It is thought this might be genetic.
And it is also thought to be parallel to why humans get migraines and strokes — it forces the body into a time-out.
What Humans Do
So, when a human is overloaded with stress, the body finally says "ENOUGH!" and drags the rest of the body, kicking and screaming (literally) into a much needed rest. Unfortunately, migraines are a little too exuberant about doing their job. I’ve had migraines (as well as other kinds of headaches) most of my life (as had both of my parents). When I get a migraine, I have a tendency to always look on it as An Extremely Bad Thing.
But perhaps things could be worse. My migraines are on our side, so to speak. They may be trying to help us through stress.
Perhaps in looking at migraines from a different perspective, we can panic less about them when we get them, not fear them as much and not blame ourselves for getting them. Lots of times when we get a pain like a migraine or a headache, we think we are being punished for something wrong that we did. Time to let that reasoning go and relax.
Hope this helps.
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10 Comments
Write a Comment»Good article. Interesting info. I didn’t know all that about locusts!!
I think I’ve only had a migraine once in my life, about twenty years
ago. I hope never to have another one. And yes, it was connected
to a time of extreme stress in my life. It would have been easier to
get through if I’d been a locust, and just gone comatose!!
Thanks for your comments. I didn’t know all of that about locusts, either, until I started researching the article. I still think “Comotose Locusts” would make a great name for a band.
My wife has migraines and it does force her to break out of her anxiety and totally go lie down and relax. I asssume relaxing before hand on a regular basis might be helpful.
Joseph
http://www.ExploreLifeBlog.com
http://www.peace-together.com
Migraine disease is incredibly complex, but there are a lot of things that can be done about dealing with the pain and trying to prevent the pain from coming back so frequently. Forgive me if I now plug my blog, Dealing With Headaches at http://www.dealingwithheadaches.com/
Rena that’s really interesting. I think we migraineurs just have the shut-down switch set at a lower setting than most folks. Should be hope in reducing the stress and trigger load that we might be able to recalibrate our switches and not shut down as often. Be more resilient than a locust, in other words!
Hi, Megan. Welcome to WWR. Thanks for your kind words. There’s also a theory by Dr. Andrew Weil that diabetes may be an evolutionary step to make sure we don’t eat too many unhealthy foods. I’m not sure if locusts get diabetes, though!
Very well written. Never knew locusts can have migraines
I’ve had migraine since I was a kid. I’ve learned to cope with it eventually.
My mother had migraines all her life. When she was in her 60s, she finally went to a doctor who said, “I could swear you have a hole in your eardrum.” There was indeed a hole in her eardrum, which she had patched. She never had a migraine again after that.
I am sure that’s not the cause of everyone’s migraine, but always check out the physical causes first - if you can find a doctor who will take you seriously, that is.
I have the occasional migraine and it’s always an unnerving episode. Exercise seems to do the trick for me but during a rough headache, that’s often easier said than done. Enjoyed the read, thanks.
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