Your headache diary also plays a key part in guiding your treatment plan. To determine how well your migraine medications are working and to lessen any side effects that may occur, it's important to keep an accurate record of when you take these drugs, at what dosage, and how well they alleviate your migraine pain. Did they stop the pain completely or just lessen the intensity? How long did they take to start working? Did the pain relief last for the entire length of the headache? You should also note all side effects that occur.

As you keep your diary, write down all of your prescription and over-the-counter medications, not just your headache medications. It's possible for some drugs to lessen the effectiveness of your migraine medication, and the doctor or neurologist who is treating your migraine may not be aware of prescriptions issued by other health care providers you see.

After you begin a course of treatment for your migraine, it becomes even more important to track physical and emotional well-being on a daily basis, and not just when headache strikes. Side effects from various migraine-preventative and -abortive medications and painrelieving drugs can run the gamut from dizziness and fatigue to gastrointestinal distress and chest pain, so watch for anything out of the ordinary that you experience.

Take care to note when side effects appear in relation to when medication is taken and how much is taken (if you aren't on a fixed dosage). Sometimes, side effects lessen over time, so pay attention to how intense they are and what impact they're having on your daily routine.

Sometimes, excessive use of pain-relieving drugs or migraine-abortive medications can actually cause persistent headaches. This is known as a medication-overuse headache or rebound headache. That's why it's important to keep careful headache diary notes on all prescription and over-the-counter medication use — including the name and amount of the drug and the time you take it.

Never assume your medication dosage needs to be increased without first consulting your health care provider. If your headache diary shows that you're taking increasing amounts of medication or that you are taking your medication more often, and that the frequency of your headaches has increased, this can be a sign of medication overuse.