My flight with the overly perfumed passenger last week got me thinking about specific odors that are migraine triggers for me. Do floral scents trigger migraines for you? I can vividly recall a beautiful floral bouquet being sent to my hospital room after just having a child. It didn't take long until I could no longer stand the odor of the bouquet. I reached out to my sister for help and had her relocate the flowers to a different hospital department. Hopefully, they were fully appreciated in their new home. I love the way fresh flowers look, I just prefer not to smell most of them. Is there a way to enjoy their beauty without suffering from their floral scents? There may be hope. I have found that sticking to my Migraine Plan has decreased my sensitivity to certain things, one of which is odors. That being said, certain floral scents still seem a bit risky to me and it may be that I still haven't recovered from the memory of my postpartum bouquet (or last weeks plane ride).
Do you ever wonder why a floral scent triggers migraines? Here is my conclusion after some research. The scent of a flower is a chemical that is produced in order for the flower to survive. The flower can actually change the chemical it emits in order to either attract pollinaters or repel predators. The odor is a chemical messenger that is dissolved in the air. We unsuspecting migrainuers inhale it and it interacts with receptors in our bodies that transmit it through the nose and olfactory bulb and then on to the limbic system (part of the brain). The limbic system is tied directly to the pituitary and hypothalamus glands which control hormones that affect heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, memory, stress levels, and hormone balance. The hypothalamus produces growth hormone, sex hormones, thyroid hormone, and serotonin. The fluctuation or change in hormones is well established as a trigger for many a migrainuer. Our weary heads are triggered by the changes created by sniffing our flowering friends (or fellow airplane passengers).
What can we migrainuers do about floral scents? When we have the opportunity we can let our loved ones know about our sensitive snouts. When we get the stinky bouquet it may be an opportunity to educate our friends about what flowers we can tolerate. There are a number of flowers that give off barely any scent at all. The following flowers I can enjoy without triggering a headache:
Tulips
Anemones
Poppies
Ranunculus
Calla Lilies
Amaryllis
Protea
Hydrangeas
Orchids
Do you ever wonder why a floral scent triggers migraines? Here is my conclusion after some research. The scent of a flower is a chemical that is produced in order for the flower to survive. The flower can actually change the chemical it emits in order to either attract pollinaters or repel predators. The odor is a chemical messenger that is dissolved in the air. We unsuspecting migrainuers inhale it and it interacts with receptors in our bodies that transmit it through the nose and olfactory bulb and then on to the limbic system (part of the brain). The limbic system is tied directly to the pituitary and hypothalamus glands which control hormones that affect heart rate, blood pressure, breathing, memory, stress levels, and hormone balance. The hypothalamus produces growth hormone, sex hormones, thyroid hormone, and serotonin. The fluctuation or change in hormones is well established as a trigger for many a migrainuer. Our weary heads are triggered by the changes created by sniffing our flowering friends (or fellow airplane passengers).
What can we migrainuers do about floral scents? When we have the opportunity we can let our loved ones know about our sensitive snouts. When we get the stinky bouquet it may be an opportunity to educate our friends about what flowers we can tolerate. There are a number of flowers that give off barely any scent at all. The following flowers I can enjoy without triggering a headache:
Tulips
Anemones
Poppies
Ranunculus
Calla Lilies
Amaryllis
Protea
Hydrangeas
Orchids
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