Body Awareness and Characteristics in Migraine: Physical, Behavioral, and Psychological Relationships

Abstract

Background/Objective This study is aimed at investigating the relationship between body awareness and physical, behavioral, and psychological characteristics in migraine patients. Design This study was planned as a cross‐sectional study. Methods A cross‐sectional study was conducted with 116 participants aged 18–55 years, diagnosed with migraine. Body awareness, physical characteristics, behavioral characteristics, psychological characteristics, and pain intensity were evaluated using the Body Awareness Questionnaire (BAQ), Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire (CMDQ), Patterns of Activity Measure‐Pain (POAM‐P), State‐Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and numerical pain rating scale (NPRS), respectively. Results No statistical correlations were found between the “BAQ total” score and all CMDQ scores ( p > 0.05). The “BAQ total” score showed significant weak positive correlations with “avoidance” ( r = 0.249, p = 0.005) and “overdoing” scores ( r = 0.263, p = 0.003). The “BAQ total” was moderately and significantly negatively correlated with “trait anxiety” ( r = −0.356, p < 0.001). However, its relationship with “state anxiety” was not statistically significant ( r = −0.105, p = 0.236). Conclusions Body awareness in individuals with migraine is associated with behavioral (avoidance and overdoing) and psychological (trait anxiety) factors, but not with physical characteristics. These findings underscore the complex interplay of sensory, cognitive, and behavioral processes in migraine, highlighting the need for holistic, biopsychosocial interventions, such as mindfulness‐based body awareness therapies, to improve pain management and patient outcomes.