Some people describe the pain of a migraine as their head being in a vice.
But a migraine is much more than just a headache.

It includes symptoms happening before the pain starts, and after it goes away. One of those symptoms is aura, and it can be just as debilitating as the headache itself. And auras can also slightly increase your risk of certain other conditions.

"Every blind in my house is drawn."

Regan Larish-Hunter shuts out the light because sunlight, lamp light, any light can trigger a migraine.

"It’s just a whoosh. It's like a veil that goes over you."

But it's not just the headache pain that Regan dreads. She also dreads the aura, the visual disturbances, that happen beforehand.

"I get little sparks. Little floaters and flashes. People's faces will start to disappear.""

"If we image the brain during that time we can see that there are areas not functioning quite properly."

Dr. David Dodick says what's happening in your brain during an aura is like the ripple effect you get when you toss a pebble in water.

"That ripple or wave starts in an area of the brain called the occipital cortex."

That's the part of the brain that controls vision. So when a trigger such as light causes neurons there to activate, a wave of abnormal electrical activity spreads. As it moves across different lobes of your brain, it can cause different symptoms: visual disturbances first, then tingling, speech problems and weakness in your limbs. As Regan knows, symptoms can be scary, but they're generally not dangerous. However, people with aura have a slightly increased risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease. This risk is higher if you smoke or are a woman on the pill.

"Women who have migraine with aura should not take the pill." says Dr. Dodick

Regan has been able to reduce the frequency and severity of her migraines with medication. And after years of suffering she's enjoying life.

There are many medications available for migraine sufferers. The problem is they don't work for everyone.

Regan takes oral medication to stop her auras and she also has injections of Botox in areas of her face, head and neck.
She went from having up to 20 headaches a month ... To three.