Earthquakes, Migraines, Crave Popcorn – Charlotte King Effect

I've suffered migraines on and off for over 25 years. Sometimes stress could account for them, but many times this was not the case. I've gone to emergency rooms with blood coming from my nose and ears and a migraine so intense I'd have people squeeze my head as hard as they could just to stop the pain for a minute. I've intentionally hit my head off a wall during one of these episodes because the pain was so great and I could not control myself. I'd eaten popcorn for breakfast. Yes, popcorn! It was as if I couldn't get enough. I had dreamed about popcorn, craved it for days.

At the store a couple days before I told my husband, "I feel like I'll die if I don't get some popcorn." I think he thought I was exaggerating, but I was not. I literally felt as though I might die if I didn't get popcorn. He loves me so he bought popcorn and I ate it for 4 days.

Originally, I believed the migraines were due to prior head injuries and some of that may still be the cause. However, I went to the doctor 8 times in one year for severe migraines. The shots I had at home didn't do the trick.

I had been sitting in training for my job when all a sudden the chair felt like it fell through the floor.

People in my training class stared at me like I was crazy. I grabbed the edge of the desk and swooned. I felt like vomiting and the room was spinning. I asked if anyone else watched the Smart board presentation moving and everyone said no.

Immediately after I got the absolute worst migraine I've ever had in my life. I prayed over the commode as I vomited profusely. I had to have assistance walking because the ground was seemingly moving beneath my feet. It must be an inner ear infection. I'd have a couple of them and it seemed quite the same.

I went to the doctor within the hour and she told me my ears looked fine. She couldn't find what was wrong with me and drew blood for lab work. She gave me a stronger shot than the one's I had at home, but even then I was miserable. She asked the strangest question, "Do you notice your migraines happening around the time earthquakes happen?"

Flabbergasted, I said, "Huh?" She then told me I may have earthquake sensitivity and in Missouri we had a 4.0 earthquake an hour before. I'd never heard of such a thing and I told her I don't follow earthquakes.

Ok - this is getting creepy. What the heck does an earthquake have to do with a migraine? I went online when I felt better and searched, "Earthquake Sensitivity." I laughed about it at first. It seemed ridiculous, but I had suffered for so long and I had to know.

That's when I learned about, "The Charlotte King Effect." The name comes from a woman named Charlotte King, who is known for her ability to predict earthquakes and volcanoes. She has a predominance of symptoms as an earthquake or volcano nears. One of those symptoms is a migraine! Other symptoms included, vertigo and being imbalanced.

Upon further researching in forums and across the web, I found many others like her. Then I found popcorn! There are many people who crave popcorn just before an earthquake, including Charlotte King. She describes her experience here. It turns out, it's not just popcorn. It seems any corn product may do, but I crave popcorn and occasionally corn chips.

Now I pay attention to my migraines AND earthquakes. Here's what I've learned.

Faulkner County Arkansas is about 250 miles from me. Last year, Faulkner County experienced a long series of earthquakes.The more than 1000 quakes went on for so long, starting in the summer of 2010 and lasting into 2011, I began to be able to tell people when the earthquakes occurred over 2.3 in magnitude.

When at first I got a daily headache I didn't think about the earthquake possibility. I'd already realized there were significant earthquakes worldwide and had made a relationship to the migraines. Faulkner County brought a whole new meaning to that relationship.

After 2 days on the couch being nauseous and dizzy with a headache, I remembered earthquake sensitivity. I looked online and sure enough there were several in Faulkner County, Arkansas.During the 2 years since realizing the sensitivity to earthquakes, the only quakes I noticed affecting me were over 4.0. The Faulkner County Quakes weren't always as big, although a few were larger, but more of them affected me.

When a quake was over 3.5, I would frequently crave popcorn and have trouble putting my feet on the floor properly. I got dizzy and nauseated and a migraine would require a shot. If you've ever gotten a new pair of glasses, you understand this feeling of the ground not being where it belongs. Under 3.0, I would get a headache, uncomfortable but not a migraine and feel imbalanced. An earthquake 4.0 or more made me extremely sick. I had several body pains and my dental work hurt.

Research - My migraine's medical history became important to me.

I started digging through old hospital records and checking dates. I would then compare them to the earthquakes by year on the USGS (United States Geological Society) website. It was shocking how many migraines had occurred just before, during or immediately after the date of a large earthquake somewhere in the world.

The 8.0 earthquake in Japan in March of 2011 was incredible for me. I had been bumping into things, holding onto walls to walk and felt like vomiting for days before. The day of the quake, I felt like dying. I lay on the couch all day and barely got up at all. For 2 days following the quake I felt sick and had a migraine. I took 2 shots during that time and didn't get any relief.

Interestingly, I haven't experienced symptoms for every single one. This makes me think there is something different about my diet, the moon phase or something that prevents some earthquakes from making me sick.

Have you experienced any of these symptoms? Have you ever considered earthquakes or volcanoes as the cause?