Have you ever smelled something so bad that you instantly felt your head hurt? It’s not your imagination, but odor plays an important role in triggering migraines. People experiencing migraines are likely to be extremely sensitive and intolerant to smells. Strong odors from cleaning chemicals, gas, paint, or perfumes can induce a migraine attack.

Some of the most common odors that have been known to trigger migraines are nail polishes, pesticides, perfumes, cigarette smoke, paint, detergents, asphalt, and exhaust from vehicles. Exposure within an enclosed space for even a short period of fifteen minutes can trigger a headache. So if you are someone who is sensitive to odors, you should be vigilant and try and avoid long exposure to strong smells. Here’s how to prevent odor-induced migraine attacks.

Understand your triggers
You may not be sensitive to all types of strong smells. Observe what situation, objects, or odors cause your headache and try to avoid being around them for long durations. If you discover that something that you come in contact with daily is causing your migraine, you should consider shifting from that situation or removing yourself from that environment as prolonged exposure could leave you with long term migraines.

Get some air
A change in your atmosphere will most assuredly relieve you to some extent. If you are stuck in a place where you can feel the onset of a headache due to any odor around you, try and step out or simply open a window.

Take charge
If you discover that your migraine is triggered every time you are around a strong perfume, speak to your near and dear ones and help them in understanding the situation. Ask your boss if they can help you in creating a fragrance-free atmosphere or your roommate to not wear strong perfumes around you. It is very important that you take this situation seriously because living with a constant headache is not helpful for your health.

In addition to these tips, there are effective medications that help in instantly relieving you of the pain — Aimovig is one such drug. This is an FDA-approved prescription medication used to treat episodic and chronic migraine headaches. It is also known to reduce the monthly migraine attack days in some individuals by half, according to clinical trials.

Aimovig contains erenumab, a monoclonal antibody developed from immune system cells by blocking certain protein activity in your body. The medicine comes in a syringe or autoinjector pens with the option of two strength levels – 70 mg and 140 mg. Patients should definitely seek a doctor’s advice for frequency and usage.

QULIPTA™ (atogepant) is a prescription-based treatment for migraines that comes in the form of tablets. They are available in the form of 10, 30, and 60 mg doses. QULIPTA™ can be taken with or without food.