In cases of illness, breaking the fast is permissible only when there is a risk to a person’s life, when a serious deterioration in health occurs or is feared, or when the illness becomes so severe that fasting is no longer possible or entails extreme hardship.
For individuals who suffer from chronic conditions such as migraine, fasting may trigger or exacerbate these chronic pains. Some migraine attacks may be alleviated through breathing techniques and relaxation exercises; however, others may render fasting exceedingly difficult for the person. In such cases, fasting may become excessively burdensome.
Therefore, if migraine attacks cannot be brought under control, the individual may assess their own condition and, depending on the severity, may break the fast and make it up later by performing a compensatory fast (qaḍāʾ).