"severe migraine"

[aarfy]

A family member was recently in hospital. He had a funny turn and was left unable to speak properly for quite a long time. It was associated with stroke like symptoms which is bizaar as he is only 23 and reasonably healthy. His final diagnosis was severe migraine and I was wondering how plausable and common migraines are that would bring on such severe symptoms in someone who had never had one before? Not really trusting the doctors on this one!

[FP]

A first migraine can be as severe as any other migraines.  My first one was aged 14 and I lost the sight in one eye for a couple of hours.

My son who has also suffered migraines experienced loss of use in one arm and general weakness on one side plus slurred speech.

Migraine can have very similar affects to strokes.

So yes, it is very likely that the diagnosis is correct, especially as he has had all the various tests in hospital. 

[catra1]

i get severe ish migraines that follow a pattern of flashing lights, face paralysis, faint, wake up, throw up....then I am out for about 6 hours or so. I have been told by my doctors that If i take the pill (contraceptive) because of the type of migraines I have it could result in a stroke so the docs won't prescribe it...so there is a link somewhere... I could go on and on and bore you. I believe my migraines are due to stress and hormones. Feverfew helps, pills don't I can't keep them down...
I had my first one at age 14/15 in the middle of a school lesson (not a good day!). Also they run in my family but all the people who have them on my dads side experience very different types of migraine...what makes me annoyed is people who have bad headaches and say "i'm having a migraine" when you talk to another migraine sufferer you just know that you are talking about the same thing (level of pain) I would say 8/10 people I know who say they get migraines are just having really bad headaches...
call me a cynic!

Catra :)

[artee]

There are many reasons for the onset of migraines aarfy. Don;t forget that migraines are a symptom of something wrong in the body. It is not a disease in itself. And there are headaches also, and these are a symptom as well.
So the need to get a proper 100% diagnosis is so important. Now, you can have a stroke when you are very young. A stroke is caused by some form of blockage in the artery to or in the brain, (clot or embolism), or haemorrhage. If it happens in the heart it is a heart attack. 
My nephew, 12 yrs old died of  a clot.
Headaches and migraines can also be caused by problems in the liver, kidneys, eyes, back ( pinched nerve), stress, nervous system and other faulty internal organs.
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLD,GGLD:2004-35,GGLD:en&q=migraines
You may find some help at the above address if you click on it

[kick3m0n]

the symptoms sound very plausible...I think you should listen to the medical profession here (not sure why you wouldn't????)!  My father in law got his first, acutely severe migraine at about 40 years old.  Total paralysis down one side, eye sight affected, speech too (he thought he was having a stroke).  My friend got her first migraine at age 20.......again, very severe symptoms including paralysis and speech difficulties.

[emmalee]

I have suffered from migraines in the past, one of my worst had frightening symtoms,  I lost the ability to speak and when I went to get up off the bed to get help my legs wouldnt work.  It lasted half an hour,  thankfully since coming off the pill it no longer an issue.  It sounds like your relative had a really bad one after never having one before which made it all the more worrying for him.  He should see a specialist who can give advice on triggers and hopefully he should be able to carry on as normal, Im afraid its trial and error though !!

[flaming]

There is The Migraine Clinic in London, which a lot of people have found helpful.  It is a homeopathic clinic.  I think most GPs have heard of it.  Homeopathy is limitedly available on the NHS now.

I do know two women who have had migraine headaches - one because of taking HRT too long and another because of hormonal problems, but I have never know men to suffer from them.

[FP]

Flaming, loads of men suffer from migraines.  My Father used to get dreadful migraines (as did his father) and my son also has them.  I also have male friends that have migraines. 

[finnimore]

I was diadgnosed nearly two years ago with Something called Cluster headaches, which is a form of migrane. It hit me every evening lasting for about two hours for six weeks before it subsided. I was told at the time it tends to reocure for the same period every year. Some people more often

It would be the most awful pain like a stabbing pain on the left side of my face. I was virtually parralized with pain and my left eye would be very blood shott.

I was told it affests mainly men (1 every 2000)at the age of 30 or there abouts. Men who smoke are likely too get it, red wine also is bad.

I still smoke but gave up red wine completely and have not had another headache since

[gavinbecky]

I suffer from miagranes which can occur instantainiously i have had two really bad ones the first when i was at school and everything went dark and i thought i had gone blind . The second last year when my right side went all tingly and my legs wouldnt work i was sent to the hospital by the NHS helpline i was worried sick but the nice DR said it was a miagraine and i wasnt actually dying like i thought .

[noxlumos]

When my wife was pregnant with our daughter she lost her speech was violently sick and had a genral feeling of confusion as well as a feeling that her hands were floating and other sensory oddities. The Drs then too intially decided it was a super severe migraine since she normally gets migraines and migraine of the abdomen as well. However when these started getting more frequent she saw a specialist who then decided after a brain scan that it was a rare form of epilepsy. That was seven years ago and since then she has only had a handful of attacks and is not on any medication for it.