UPDATE: I decided to update this article because it’s been just over a year since I began wearing Avulux® glasses to help me and my kids during a migraine attack. The original article can be found here in Web Archives.
I have my fair share of “migraine glasses” in my purse, in my drawer, and in my backpack. You will not find me without a pair on me or nearby. Special glasses made to block certain types of light known to trigger migraine have really been a game changer in my life, which is why I have several articles dedicated to them. I am a true believer and each pair I have serves its purpose.
In 2019, I was asked to trial a pair of Avulux® glasses. I had been eyeing them for some time and I was pleasantly surprised when the Association of Migraine Disorders asked if I wanted to give them a shot. How could I say no!!?? Product reviews are my favorite to write about because many of us never know what to trust or just want peace of mind knowing that “it” helped someone else. So hopefully this review will do that for you.
Update: I am now partnered with Avulux® as an affiliate, if you click any link in this article using my affiliate links I will receive a small commission. If you use my coupon code ACHYSMILE you will also receive $25 off! I am a huge fan of Avulux® and hope this review will help you decide if they’re right for you too!
Who or WHAT is Avulux®?
Avulux® is a company that has created an approved Class I Medical Device in Canada and the European Union. According to their website:
Avulux® received approval after presenting clinical data showing that Avulux® can prevent and treat migraines, including the associated headache pain. Avulux® Migraine Glasses are the only glasses on the market approved to actually treat migraine symptoms while also helping with light sensitivity.
Avulux®, Health Canada – Medical Device Establishment License MDEL #7612. [https://avulux.com]
The company also boasts a full 60-day money-back guarantee if the glasses “don’t bring you the relief you expect.” In my opinion, that makes the glasses worth it. Let’s face it, most of us with chronic migraine are desperate for relief. I am. No if’s or and’s about it. I’ll try almost anything, especially if it might be something that will also benefit my kiddo’s migraine attacks. But how much money have we wasted in that search? Hopefully my experience will help!
Avulux® and Photophobia
Photophobia is a main trigger for people with migraine.[1] Avulux® has a great explanation on their website about photophobia, aka Light Sensitivity. They explain how researchers found that certain types of light increased headache pain intensity, while others decreased pain intensity. Avulux® glasses utilizes filtering technology that decreases pain in order benefit people with migraine who are triggered by light sensitivity. I highly suggest you read the article I linked above about the science behind Avulux®. It’s an easy to understand scientific explanation about the different types of light filtering available and why theirs is the only pair on the market that is clinically proven to provide migraine symptom relief.
What’s So Different?
As a chronic migraine patient, I have tried many types of glasses and sunglasses that are made to hopefully alleviate or decrease the pain intensity of migraine. It is my honest opinion that Avulux® is my favorite. Not because of what the website has to say or what I read in other blogs or reviews. I say this based off my own personal experience over the last three months.
The sleek, almost white glasses arrived on July 5, 2019 and they’ve been my go-to since that day. I still use my other glasses I’ve reviewed, but there’s something special about this pair. Putting on my Avulux® glasses feels like lathering aloe on a bright red, angry sunburn. It’s a strange sensation, one I welcome wholeheartedly.
They aren’t sunglasses, but I still wear them out in the sun if I am out and in the middle of a migraine attack. Sometimes, I only have eyeball symptoms and the glasses are the first thing I reach for before trying any acute medications.
Mostly, I use these migraine glasses in two ways: as a preventative before even getting migraine symptoms or as soon as an attack happens. Why use them before an attack? Well, if I’m going to do something that usually triggers an attack, I figured this is a good time to try and avoid it in the first place if I can. Examples of this are: long-term computer use, going to a baseball game (Go Jack Britt!!!), and most importantly — my favorite past time — going to the movies.
Migraine Glasses, Are They a Cure?
Not for me, BUT it’s an amazing tool I’ve added to my emergency migraine kit. In my case, it is true that a lot of time I do not need to take acute migraine medication after wearing them before the headache pain begins during the migraine aura phase. I also came to realize that if I wore them when using my computer or during long-term use of my cell phone, I didn’t get triggered. Once I had that light bulb moment, I decided to test my theory.
I wore the glasses for two weeks straight each time I was on my laptop, even though I didn’t have symptoms. The reason for this is because extended laptop uses always triggered mild symptoms, like eye fatigue and pain, and if I didn’t medicate by the end of the day, I’d have a full-blown migraine by the next day. So, for me, this little experiment was worth it. I’m excited to tell you that not one time in those two weeks did I have eye fatigue, nor pain due to laptop use.
I did have hemiplegic migraine attacks during this time, though they were due to hormonal and environmental factors, as well as from bad posture (I have herniated discs in my neck and back). The Avulux® glasses did not abort these attacks, but they did provide relief for eye pain, which I was very grateful for.
I have Hemiplegic Migraine and Migraine with Brain Stem Aura and with these attacks, my eyes always feel like there are cactus needles inside my eyelids. Usually, I’ll have this sensation in my eyes before the actual headache pain begins. I’m telling you; it’s using these specific glasses truly feels like aloe on a burn.
The Avulux® website states:
In many cases, if you put the glasses on at the earliest onset of your migraine, your migraine may never strengthen and will disappear before it ever begins. If you cannot put the migraine glasses on at the earliest onset of your symptoms, then simply put them on as quickly as you can. Once the migraine headache has already set in, it usually takes about 20-30 minutes for symptom relief to occur.
If you have frequent migraine headaches or are a chronic migraine sufferer, meaning that you average more than two migraine headaches weekly lasting at least 3 hours a day, you should consider wearing your glasses at all times, whether day or night (we do not recommend wearing them while driving at night).
When Might the Glasses NOT Work?
Instead of rewriting what Avulux® has already explained on their website, I’m going to quote it for you right here. Be sure to click the link below about Migraine from the Mayo Clinic to help you understand the many ways migraine attacks might be triggered. The are several reasons why your headache may not improve. Your headache may not be a classic migraine headache (read here for more information). Another reason may be that you are in the minority of people that don’t respond to this treatment. The third reason may be that you have not kept them on long enough, or consistently enough throughout your daily activities.3
Well, I Wear Prescription Glasses
Update as of 12/08/2022: Avulux® has prescription options available in most of their styles as well as a bring-your-own frame option! When you use my code, ACHYSMILE, you will receive $25 off.
But, Are They Cute?
Avulux® glasses are available in many styles now! was provided with the Lilu style in light grey and I love it…but unfortunately this color is no longer available. Not to worry, the style is still going strong in Red and Clear! My only issue is that they are made for medium-sized faces and I have a small, narrow face. So, they are slightly too big on my face. I usually find a good pair for my face in the children’s section! Ha! It’s no surprise to me that these are a little too big. But that doesn’t keep me from wearing them and they still look good on me, so, I’m not complaining. But if Avulux® ever does make a frame for really small faces, count me in!
The migraine glasses come in 7 styles, 2 of them with clip-ons, as well as a style for fit-over glasses and a bring-your-own frame option. I appreciate all the style options, there really is something for everyone. The website has filters that you can select for frame size, style, frame shape, and frame material…so finding one that fits you shouldn’t be too difficult. To add to that, they also have a virtual try-on on your iPhone or Android phone.
Retail prices start at $334.99 USD (as of 12/08/2022) but if you use my code, ACHYSMILE, you will receive $25 off. The Bli style is very similar to the Lilu but are a smaller width (I think these would have been a better fit for me). All Avulux® migraine glasses are packaged in a sturdy box and come with a study carrying case and branded microfiber cleaning cloth, which I really liked. The other pairs of glasses I’ve received came with microfiber cases and I always worried about them being squished in my purse. I don’t have that worry with these lenses.
Will My World Turn Red?
Many glasses advertised as “migraine glasses” have a reddish or orange tint to help mitigate the blue light that is known to aggravate migraine.4 I have several pair with a red/orange tint in different brands and I still use them. They are great quality, but they do not have the same level of relief as my new Avulux® Lilu glasses. What I absolute LOVE about them is that the lenses don’t turn my world red, nor do they distort my iPhone screen. “Avulux’s® precision tinted optical lenses specifically absorb the wavelengths of light that cause migraines to begin and strengthen, while allowing the beneficial wavelengths of light in,” according to their website.
I Have a New Tool in my Emergency Migraine Kit
The most important item in my Emergency Migraine Kit is a pair of Lilu’s outside of my medications and electrolyte mixes! I think I need a bigger kit! With everything I’ve been adding to my tool belt of migraine fixes, I’m so happy to have a pair of glasses I truly trust. If one of my kids is having an attack, I immediately give them the Avulux® pair and use one of my other pairs (a different brand) for myself if I need to. I’d rather they use the Avulux® migraine glasses than anything else…and that’s the truth.
I just want to say “thank you” to the Association of Migraine Disorders and Avulux® for giving me the opportunity to review these stylish migraine glasses. I am very honored you both considered me for this opportunity and my eyes and my weird brain are very grateful! A fews years later and they are still my go-to glasses when I am experiencing a migraine attack or light sensitivity. Even more importantly, I use them to avoid a migraine attack altogether when doing something I know will trigger an attack.
To get your own pair(s) of Avulux® glasses, go to the link below, it already has the $25 ACHYSMILE code you will see once you checkout: https://avulux.com/discount/ACHYSMILE?ref=achysmile
References
- Choi, J.-Y., Oh, K., Kim, B.-J., Chung, C.-S., Koh, S.-B., & Park, K.-W. (2009). Usefulness of a Photophobia Questionnaire in Patients With Migraine. Cephalalgia, 29(9), 953–959. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2982.2008.01822.x
- Understanding the Science Behind Avulux® Migraine Glasses. Avulux®. https://avulux.com/pages/understanding-the-science-behind-avulux-migraine-glasses
- Migraine. Mayo Clinic. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/migraine-headache/symptoms-causes/syc-20360201
- Light and Headache Disorders: Understanding Light Triggers and Photophobia. National Headache Foundation. https://headaches.org/2017/03/27/light-headache-disorders-understanding-light-triggers-photophobia/
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