When I was young (i.e. between 10 and 18) I used to get migraine headaches a few times per year. I never went to a doctor, I would simply take Tylenol and sleep it off because it happened so infrequently. In the past year or two I have been getting migraine headaches on a regular basis. I notice that the headaches coincide with my menstrual cycle. I usually get hit with a migraine headache either a week to a few days before my period or during my period. The migraines can last anywhere from one day but usually last at least a few days. I have noticed that they have been getting worse and worse as time goes on. I do not get any auditory or visual hallucinations before my migraines. They usually creep up on me in the days before my period and before I know it, I'm hit with a bad one. If I don't take any medication at the VERY beginning of symptoms, then nothing I take can make it feel better. Pain is usually located in the front with the worst pain on both sides of my head. I am planning to speak to my doctor very soon about this so that I can get prescription medication. My question is, what tests will my doctor need to perform on me to test whether I have migraines or if I have something else? What medication would he likely prescribe to me? What medications are addictive? I refuse to take any medication that is addictive. And is there anything I can do in the week leading up to my mentrual cycle to prepare myself better for the impending migraine? I am also on birth control pills, I don't know if that makes any difference, but I have read that the estrogen in BC pills can play a factor in migraine headaches.

here is a site with good info. It's hard to speak for your doctor; some might treat based on history, some might want to order additional tests such as EEG (electroencephalogram), CT scan or MRI of your head. There are many treatments; hormonal, or drugs to control the vascular spasm, or pain meds, or a combination of all. Only narcotic pain meds would be defined as "addictive," but there's probably no drug combination that will "cure" the migraines, meaning taking something once to end the process. In other words, you may need to take some sort of medication on a long-term basis, at appropriate intervals. That's not really "addictive," if that's your definition.

i also had a very similar problem and the migraines started with and were worsened with the birth control pill. you ought to stop taking them.
however, i still get a migraine once a month usually either at ovulation or just after my period.
if you are at an age that you ought to have regular periods on your own without any hormones, you can keep track of your ovulation on your own. although doctors never seem to tell anyone that.
it´s called natural family planning and is the same method that mother teresa taught the women in india. you can contact your local catholic church for more info on an instuctor or a class.
besides, then you will figure out how your body works much more accurately, you really should have that knowledge anyway. it´s easy to blame other ailments as a side effect of the pill, but it´s possible that something else is the cause.

Also try to avoid excessive caffeine, which is also in chocolate, and salt.

This may only be a myth, but I've heard that it works. Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead, and the ache will go away. It's really worth a try.