What is a trigger?

Certain physical or environmental factors, such as foods, hormonal changes, weather,
and stress, can lead to or "trigger" a migraine. However, it's important to remember
that triggers are different for everyone. That's why, to help prevent migraine attacks,
you need to figure out which triggers affect you and which ones don't. Keeping a
headache diary is an effective way to track triggers, and it will help you talk to your
healthcare professional about your condition.

Headaches result from biochemical changes in the brain. Stress for instance, can
certainly trigger these changes and make headaches more likely to occur. However,
stress by itself rarely causes headaches in someone who is not otherwise prone to them.
The same is true for other psychological problems such as depression and anxiety.

If you have frequent headaches, managing your stress can be a first step toward bringing
your headaches under control. Nonetheless, it is important to recognize that headaches
are a genuine medical problem and not simply a product of emotions or an excuse to get
out of responsibilities. It is also true that poorly controlled headaches can trigger
psychological problems such as depression, rather than the other way around.