How Serena Williams Lives With Migraine - and New Paths to Relief

Serena Williams won 23 Grand Slam singles titles while quietly living with migraine. For years she did what a lot of people with migraine do: she pushed through, hid the attacks, and kept playing. Her story is a useful place to start, not because a celebrity's experience proves anything clinically, but because it mirrors what millions of people go through and points to a simple truth. Migraine is a real neurological condition, and the options for managing it have grown well beyond "tough it out."

This article looks at what migraine actually is, why powering through it can make things worse, and what today's evidence says about relief, from new medications to behavioral approaches you can pair with medical care.

Key Takeaways

• Migraine affects roughly 12% of US adults and is far more common in women; it ranks among the leading causes of disability worldwide and first among young women.
• Serena Williams has described getting about two attacks a month before treatment and pointing to stress as a contributor, a pattern many people with migraine will recognize.
• Acute relief now spans triptans, gepants, and ditans, giving people who cannot use or do not respond to older drugs more choices.
• CGRP-targeted therapies are now considered a first-line option for migraine prevention, alongside established oral preventives and FDA-cleared neuromodulation devices.
• Behavioral approaches like CBT, relaxation training, and mindfulness may reduce attack frequency for some adults, though the evidence is still low-certainty and works best alongside medical care.

What Serena Williams' story reveals about migraine

Williams has talked openly about living with migraine since her 20s, often competing through attacks on her way to the top of tennis. She has said she got about two attacks a month before treatment, and she has pointed to stress as something that made her attacks more frequent.

Two things in her account are worth sitting with. The first is how long she kept it private. Migraine is an invisible condition, and many people, like Williams, hide it and keep performing rather than explain a pain no one else can see. The second is the "push through" reflex itself. She has described reaching a point where she could not push through anymore, which is often exactly when people finally seek care.

In 2021 Williams also became a paid spokesperson for AbbVie's migraine drug Ubrelvy (ubrogepant). That partnership is a good reminder to read celebrity health messaging carefully. In 2024, the FDA's drug-promotion office told AbbVie that an ad featuring Williams overstated the drug's efficacy, because it implied fast, complete relief the clinical trials did not show. In those trials, only about 19% to 22% of people were pain-free at two hours after a single dose. The drug helps, but the honest version is more modest than a commercial suggests. That gap between marketing and evidence is exactly why realistic expectations matter.

What migraine actually is - and how common it is

Migraine is not just a bad headache. It is a neurological condition involving changes in how the brain processes sensory signals, and attacks can bring throbbing pain, nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound that can last from hours to days.

It is also extraordinarily common. Migraine affects roughly 12% of adults in the US, and it is far more common in women than men. National survey data show women are about twice as likely as men to report a severe headache or migraine, at roughly 20% versus 11%. Its toll is heavy enough that migraine is a leading cause of disability worldwide, and first among young women.

A smaller group lives with chronic migraine, defined as 15-plus headache days per month for more than three months, with at least eight of those days meeting full migraine criteria. Chronic migraine affects roughly 0.9% of US adults. The line between episodic and chronic matters because it changes which treatments clinicians reach for.

Why "pushing through" often backfires

Williams' instinct to power through is understandable, and for a single attack it is sometimes unavoidable. As an ongoing strategy, though, it tends to work against people.

Delaying acute treatment is one reason. Migraine-specific medications generally work best when taken early in an attack, so waiting it out can mean a longer, harder episode. Untreated or under-treated attacks, especially when paired with frequent over-the-counter painkiller use, can also contribute to more frequent headaches over time.

Stress is the other piece. Williams named it directly, and stress is one of the most commonly reported migraine triggers. Constantly overriding pain, skipping rest, and staying in fight-or-flight can feed the same cycle you are trying to escape. None of this means an attack is anyone's fault. It means that treating migraine actively, rather than enduring it, is usually the better path.

New and established paths to relief

Migraine care has changed a lot in the past decade. Options now fall into a few clear categories, and many people do best combining more than one. Any change to a migraine plan should be made with a clinician.

Acute treatment: triptans, gepants, and ditans

Acute treatments are taken to stop an attack in progress. For most people without heart or blood-vessel risk factors, triptans are first-line for acute migraine.

Newer classes give people more room when triptans don't fit. Gepants (such as ubrogepant and rimegepant) and ditans (lasmiditan) are options for people who cannot use, or do not respond to, triptans. Ubrogepant, the drug Williams promotes, was approved for acute migraine in 2019, and a later trial found it can help when taken during early warning signs. As the FDA letter about Williams' ad showed, these drugs help a meaningful share of people, but not everyone, and not instantly.

Prevention: oral preventives and CGRP therapies

Preventive treatment aims to make attacks less frequent and less severe. Long-established oral preventives like topiramate and propranolol still have strong evidence for reducing episodic migraine.

The bigger shift is the arrival of CGRP-targeted therapies, a group of drugs designed specifically for migraine. The American Headache Society now calls these a first-line prevention option, meaning people no longer have to fail older drugs first. For chronic migraine specifically, several of these agents have trial support for cutting monthly migraine days.

Neuromodulation devices

For people who want or need a non-drug option, several FDA-cleared neuromodulation devices use mild electrical or magnetic stimulation to treat or prevent attacks. Independent guidelines give these devices weak or conditional recommendations, which means they may help and are generally well tolerated, but the evidence is not as strong as for established medications. They can be a reasonable addition, particularly for people limited by drug side effects.

Behavioral and mind-body approaches

This is where a program like Lin Health fits, and where the evidence deserves an honest framing. A 2025 systematic review found that cognitive behavioral therapy, relaxation training, and mindfulness may reduce migraine frequency in adults, though the strength of evidence is low and many trials had design limitations.

The nuance matters. In a randomized trial, mindfulness was no better than education at reducing attack frequency, but it did improve disability, quality of life, and people's confidence in managing their condition. And some approaches that get marketed heavily, including acceptance and commitment therapy, biofeedback alone, and hypnotherapy, do not yet have enough evidence to be called effective for adult migraine. Behavioral care is best understood as a way to reduce the burden and disability of migraine and to support people alongside medical treatment, not as a standalone cure.

Movement, sleep, and everyday triggers

Lifestyle factors round out most migraine plans. Regular exercise may reduce attack frequency and intensity, with the strongest evidence for combined aerobic and strength training. Aerobic exercise alone has shown a weaker, less certain effect. Exercise is worth doing for many reasons, though the trials are small, so it is best framed as a helpful habit rather than a standalone fix.

Two more levers are worth naming:

• Sleep and routine. Irregular sleep is a common trigger, so consistent sleep and wake times help many people.
• Supplements, with a caveat. Among nutraceuticals, magnesium has the strongest nutraceutical evidence grade for prevention. Talk with a clinician before adding it, since dose and drug interactions matter.

What the evidence does not say

Being clear about limits is part of good migraine care.

• No single treatment works for everyone. The right plan is usually a combination, found through trial and adjustment with a clinician.
• Behavioral and lifestyle approaches are supported for reducing burden and, in some cases, frequency, but the evidence is low-certainty and does not support dropping medical care.
• A celebrity endorsement is not clinical evidence. The FDA's action on the Ubrelvy ad is a reminder that marketing can outrun the data.

How Lin Health helps with chronic migraine

If Williams' story resonates, the "push through it alone" part is often the hardest to let go of. Lin Health is built around a different idea: that chronic pain conditions, including migraine, involve a nervous system that has become stuck in a heightened alarm state, and that the brain can be gently retrained alongside medical care.

Lin Health's approach is based on neuroplastic and behavioral research. It is not a replacement for a neurologist or for migraine-specific medication. Instead, trained recovery coaches work with you on the behavioral and lifestyle side that medications do not address, using tools drawn from CBT and mind-body techniques. The program is coach-led, app-supported, and covered by most insurance plans, with short wait times that often mean a same-day call.

You can read more about how the brain shapes chronic pain, explore chronic migraine prevention approaches, or see what a brain-first approach looks like in practice.

If you have tried medications and still feel stuck, adding behavioral support may be worth exploring. Check your insurance eligibility to see if Lin Health may help with your migraines - most patients pay zero out of pocket.

FAQ

Does Serena Williams still get migraines?

 Williams has said her attacks became less frequent after she began treatment, and she has partnered with a migraine drug maker. She has not described being migraine-free. Her experience reflects better management, not a cure.

Is migraine more common in women? 

Yes. National survey data show women are about twice as likely as men to report a severe headache or migraine, roughly 20% versus 11%. Hormonal, genetic, and other factors are thought to contribute.

What is the difference between episodic and chronic migraine?

Chronic migraine means 15 or more headache days per month for more than three months, with at least eight days meeting migraine criteria. Fewer headache days than that is considered episodic migraine.

Can behavioral therapy really help migraine? 

It may. Cognitive behavioral therapy, relaxation training, and mindfulness may reduce attack frequency for some adults, though the evidence is low-certainty. They also help reduce migraine-related disability and are best used alongside medical treatment, not instead of it.

Are the newer migraine drugs better than older ones?

Not necessarily better, but they expand the options. Gepants, ditans, and CGRP therapies help people who cannot use or do not respond to triptans and older preventives. The right choice depends on your health history and should be decided with a clinician.

Does exercise prevent migraines? 

Regular exercise may reduce how often and how severely migraines occur, with the strongest evidence for combined aerobic and strength training. Aerobic exercise alone has a weaker, less certain effect. The studies are small, so exercise is best seen as a helpful habit within a broader plan.

The bottom line

Serena Williams' story is less about tennis than about a choice many people with migraine face: keep pushing through, or treat the condition as the real neurological problem it is. The encouraging news is that there are more paths to relief than ever, from newer acute and preventive drugs to behavioral and lifestyle approaches that can be layered on top. The best results usually come from combining them, with a clinician's guidance and realistic expectations.

This article is for informational purposes and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare provider before starting, stopping, or changing any treatment for migraine or any other condition.

Medically reviewed by the Lin Health clinical team. Last reviewed: July 2026.