The Difference Between Migraine Belief and Knowledge

Migraine illness and caregiving don’t always work well together. I’m a caregiver for my 86-year-old mother, whose physical and cognitive abilities have declined a lot in the last few years. For the last 11 years, she’s lived in an independent-living apartment that’s only about a six-minute drive from my house, which means I can easily help her out and we both get to maintain our independence. 

There was a time when I could talk freely with Mom about my migraine situation. If I woke up with a migraine, I could call her to let her know I’d be running a little late or ask her if we could postpone our scheduled activity to another time. Those days are done. If I tell her I’m running late because of a migraine, she thinks the idea of spending the day with her has caused my episode. I can’t convince her otherwise, so I take medicine as soon as I wake up enough to realize what’s happening and keep my plans with her even if I’m still in pain.

A few years ago, if I were with Mom and a migraine episode started, I could have shared that information with her and popped a triptan tablet with her watching. Not anymore. I must keep the migraine a secret and discreetly take my medicine. If she realizes what’s happening, she immediately goes to the negative and will not stop blaming herself for my migraine. Sometimes she even cries a little. It drives me crazy that no matter how adamantly I tell her simply being with a person doesn’t trigger migraine episodes, she dives deep into her belief in the truth. She can’t help it. Reasoning doesn’t apply when it comes to cognitive decline.

I’ve explained to Mom that the only way another human can personally trigger a migraine is if they’re smoking a cigarette around me or wearing strong perfume. What that person is exposing me to can trigger a migraine because the illness is sensory related. Helping Mom pay bills, buy groceries, or go to doctor appointments are not sensory activities. Triggers are typically related to the body’s senses. Things like glaring lights, strong smells, loud noises, certain foods, and changes in barometric pressure are the usual culprits.

I don’t try to reason with Mom anymore when it comes to migraines or many other topics. It's hard to convince people that belief isn’t the same thing as knowledge. Though the two are closely related and often used interchangeably in everyday conversations, they each play a distinct role in how we understand the world.

Beliefs are subjective ideas influenced by emotions, culture, and individual experiences and accepted as truth without proof. Mom believes she causes my migraine episodes even though she has no evidence. Her emotional state of mind and her inability to carry out the motherly desire to help her daughter often misleads her to believe she is responsible.

Knowledge is backed by scientific evidence or philosophical reasoning. Scientists have determined migraine disease is a recurrent episodic neurological disorder. Studies show direct links between sensory triggers and the onset of an attack. I know what my migraines are, and I know the treatment methods that work for me.

I don’t yet know a lot about cognitive decline in the elderly, but I’m learning. Understanding the difference between belief and knowledge helps me make better decisions when it comes to the coexistence of caregiving and migraine illness — but don’t just take my word for it. Do your own research and guide your migraine journey with knowledge.

Originally published at WebMD.com on 10/13/25.