It can be comforting to know that no amount of money or fame can prevent migraines. Migraines affect every demographic in every part of the world, and Hollywood isn’t immune. Here are a few celebrities who have been open about their struggles with migraines.
Migraines Don’t Discriminate: 5 Celebrities With Migraines
Lisa Kudrow
Famous for the ’90s sitcom Friends, where she played creative and often-spacey Phoebe, Lisa’s had migraines since she was a child. Her father also suffered, which is common — migraines run in the family. And even more fascinating: Dr. Kudrow is a migraine specialist who discovered lidocaine administered as nasal drops stopped migraines in 60% of patients tested in his study.
Serena Williams
You have more in common than you knew with the greatest athlete in the world: Serena Williams gets menstrual migraines, which are migraines related to hormonal cycles. She’s talked extensively about the pressure of being a female athlete of color, where you have to be twice as good to survive. “I know it doesn’t look like it affected my tennis,” Williams told ESPN, “but especially in the sun, playing with a migraine makes it worse.” She went through several doctors who told her to “tough it out” before finding a treatment plan that worked.
Janet Jackson
The famous musician is no stranger to migraines. In 2008, she canceled concerts because her migraine pain overwhelmed her. Janet suffers from vestibular migraines, which affects her sense of balance, which doesn’t work well when your job involves singing and dancing in front of thousands of people. She was able to work with her doctors to develop a plan to get her back on the stage.
Terrell Davis
Running back Davis briefly stopped playing when migraines hit, causing him to see double on the field. Unsure what was wrong and concerned he wouldn’t be believed, Davis didn’t tell anyone. While he’d suffered from what he thought were normal headaches since he was 9, he didn’t know there was treatment available. Finally, he met with doctors and discovered a list of triggers, including chocolate and caffeine.
Jordin Sparks
Pop singer Jordin Sparks is now the face of Excedrin migraine. Sparks remembers watching her mother suffer from debilitating migraines as a child and feeling helpless. When she started experiencing her own migraines, she was able to quickly identify her symptoms and take control.
Our Team: We are Here to Help
We are a small, dedicated app development team that wants you to better understand your migraines and triggers. Everyone on the team has lived with migraines at some point in their lives. We are your community, and we’re here to help. Reach out any time with questions. [email protected].
As always — please seek the advice of a doctor for medical questions. Our app team cannot give medical advice.
Track Your Triggers
Get the Migraine Insight Tracker – iOS App Store
Write to us [email protected]