How to deal with a migraine at work

Experiencing a migraine at work can be one of the worst things, or at least that’s how I felt. First, there was the fear and panic I would have a migraine at work, which would impact my ability to work. Next, there was the actual migraine attack when it would happen and panicking about do I take medication, do I go home. Then last came the guilt of whether I did leave work or if I had to take a sick day. Can you relate at all to these feelings? If so, read on as I discuss simple ways to help you with learning how to deal with a migraine at work.

This article is not providing medical advice and your migraines should be managed fully by a health care professional. Please speak to a medical professional to provide you with medical advice. Let’s dive into some tips to help you with work and migraines!

Migraine Symptom Tracker

One of the first tools I used when I used to work in a traditional 9-5 job was using a migraine symptom tracker. For myself, this was so helpful in me learning more about the connection between my migraines and stress at work and understanding any patterns or cycles that were happening. Each day I would track on a scale of 1-10 how stressed I felt and what causes or triggers happened. For days I had migraine symptoms or migraine I noted these down.

This included the following:

• Stress levels 1-10
• Events that caused stress
• Migraine Symptoms – what they were and duration
• The severity of migraine symptoms, what treatments I took
• When the symptoms or migraine passed

For myself, this list was helpful to where I was in my migraine journey this helped me! However, I encourage you to customize this list for your workplace and your own migraine needs.

Once I had a month’s worth of data, I was able to see clearly any correlations between migraine attacks and my workplace environment, as well as what triggers or events might have been my migraine triggers. For myself, I quickly learned that being in a boardroom all day with bright fluorescent lights always caused migraines the next day. You can read my post on ways to deal with light sensitivity here for additional tips!

Your work environment

Now your work environment may be something you can control, or it could be something you can’t. What I mean by this is do you have a private office space, or is your office shared with others or in an open area interacting with either customers or other colleagues?

If your work environment is private and personal, then you can try making some adjustments to see if it helps. With a more open or customer-facing work/office space this can be a bit more challenging. Let’s dive into what you can do as a migraine worker and migraine in the workplace!

Private work environment

Do you have a private or personal space that you can control and alter? When I was working in my 9-5, I did and for me, it was the absolute dream. For my migraines in the workplace, I found they decreased after making a small couple of adjustments to my space.

Here are some suggestions for you:

• Use lamps instead of overhead lighting
• Have a reclining office chair that is comfortable
• Essential oils for aromatherapy
• Reduced screen time, putting filters on your screen to reduce the brightness
• Medication/Treatments in a nearby drawer for migraines
• Using a TENS machine

Shared work environment

If you have a shared space that is either open or a rotating work space here are some suggestions on how you can help with migraines at work! These can be tougher to navigate, and each suggestion may not align with your workspace depending on your job.

Here are some suggestions for you:

• Asking for a non-scented work environment
• Reduce overhead light – get light-blocking sunglasses, I use Theraspecs
• If there is an empty office ask if you can use that space
• Keep a pouch of your migraine essentials that you bring to your workspace each day.
• Take breaks often, get up, and walk
• Noise-canceling headphones

Speaking to medical professionals about migraine at work

If you live with migraines or chronic migraine you should be speaking to a medical professional to oversee your health. They can help you with learning different treatment options and medications to help with managing migraine that can help reduce migraines at work.

They can also speak to you about workplace adjustment solutions, as well as complete any necessary workplace accommodations paperwork for human resources (if applicable). It’s important to keep your medical professional up to date on how your migraines are so they can help you not only navigate the migraine symptoms but also confirm and speak to your employer as needed about your health (with your approval of course).

They can also often provide resources for groups or support to help you with navigating migraines which can help with migraine at work symptoms and fear.

Take a sick day

As much as there can be guilt surrounding sick days, if you’re feeling so unwell from a migraine this might be the best solution. If you feel like you cannot perform work duties, then you likely shouldn’t be at work.

Now different work environments have different work sick day policies, some are paid, some are unpaid and some are a medical leave of absence. Speak to your employer or human resources department about what your role entails for sick day compensation or options. Some employers will let you work remotely, and this may help you still complete tasks but from your own space.

I will say it’s important to understand that migraines are a neurological disorder and can impair productivity and overall task completion. If you feel severely impaired by your migraine headache symptoms then likely a full sick day off is warranted.

If you’re asking yourself should I go to work with a migraine, check out these helpful questions below!

• Do I feel unable to perform my work duties?
• Can I cause harm or injure someone going to work in this condition?
• Am I able to get myself safely to my job?

Navigating migraine at Work

Learning about migraine at work and how to tell your boss you have a migraine at work can be tough. It’s not easy, and it took me over 4 years to reach my ideal setup with accommodations, environment, and learning the right treatments to help me. It’s important to keep trying and keep open communication with your boss when you can so they’re aware of when you’re working with migraines and can help. I hope this post helped give you some ideas on how to manage migraine at work and learn more about working with chronic migraines.