Top Remedies for Migraine

Top Remedies for Migraine

Among all types of headaches, migraine is the worst. The surge of throbbing pain comes with a host of discomforting symptoms such as vomiting, nausea, and intolerance to light and sound. The unpleasant sensations can persist for hours or days. For some people, carrying out their everyday activities becomes impossible. Migraine patients rely on medications to reduce the duration of pain. Besides some remedial tips, lifestyle modifications can help.

Are You About To Migraine?

Migraine is complicated because it is not just an unbearable episode of pain that eventually ends; it is more than that. Some people experience a strange aura of disturbing sensations before the attack, like seeing light flashes or blind spots, tingling or numbness in any body part, mood changes, and trouble speaking. The sensations would not diminish immediately after the pain subsides, but these would take longer to settle and make you feel cured. Knowing your pre-migraine aura is beneficial as it may help you take necessary precautions.

Identify Your Migraine Trigger

Migraine starts when changes in the brainstem interact with the trigeminal nerve. As a result, the brain undergoes some chemical changes to a pain pathway. Every migraine patient may have a different set of factors responsible for instigating the pain. Identify your reasons for finding out the suitable remedies. Which one is your migraine trigger?

• Changes in hormone levels in women are linked to the menstrual cycle, menopause, pregnancy, and taking contraceptives.
• High caffeine and alcohol intake
• Stress 
• Sleep disturbances
• Physical exhaustion
• Strong sensory stimuli such as lights, sounds, or smell
• Change in weather
• Specific medicines
• Certain food items and food additives (processed, high content of salt, sugar, and fat)

Medication Overuse

No one can avoid medicines under severe painful conditions. The high intensity and frequency of migraine attacks could result in medication overuse. Overuse medication headache is a consequence of taking high doses of aspirin, ibuprofen, and acetaminophen. This compels you to take high-potency medicines.

Self-care remedies can help break this vicious headache cycle.

Drug-Free Remedies for Migraine

1) Hydrate Yourself

Dehydration is an important trigger for migraine. The caffeine intake in people struggling with migraine is usually high. Caffeine drinks might provide temporary relief for headaches. But, its overuse dehydrates your body in the long run. If you suspect an attack, drink enough water. Drink plenty of water on normal days to stay hydrated, especially on hot days and after exercise. Sugary drinks, teas, green teas, and alcohol do not serve the purpose. It is advisable to drink plain water, detox water, or infused water.

2)Evaluate Your Diet

As mentioned earlier, many foods are potential migraine triggers. Maintain a diet record. Remember and note down the things you ate on the day of the attack. Sometimes, you might not locate a particular thing. In that case, try to identify the eating pattern of the previous days. Try to amend your past dietary habits by eliminating the suspected items not all at once but one by one. It would help you to detect the real culprit. Below is a list of “dangerous” foods you need to check.

• Frozen ready-to-cook meat
• Aged cheeses
• Red wine or other alcoholic drinks
• Food with preservatives, additives, and flavor enhancers
• High in sodium
• Chocolate
• Icy drinks

And the list goes on. Dietary changes are always the most effective remedy for any disease. To implement a healthy diet, do not stick to a particular mode of eating, and finally, moderation is the key.

3)Eat Magnesium

A magnesium-rich diet could stave off the migraine aura. Feeling an aura before a headache is a neurological phenomenon. Many health experts suggest magnesium supplements for neurological disorders. Though a magnesium supplement cannot stop a migraine, its regular consumption could help prevent it. You can also get magnesium from food sources. For example, nuts, leafy greens, eggs, milk, and whole grains contain high magnesium content to replenish your magnesium intake.

4)Sleep Well, No More No Less

Do you sleep less or too much? Both scenarios could be a reason for having a bad headache day. Sleep disturbances make you too sensitive to less intense pains. Try to maintain your sleeping hours between 7 and 9 and at a fixed schedule. A sudden change in sleeping hours could be intimidating for your head. That’s why, when you stay awake for weekend parties, the next day can weigh heavy on your head. In addition to night sleep, take small breaks in between a long hectic day. It reduces stress levels and rejuvenates your body. Relaxing nerves and muscles before they become overworked help prevent headaches. Avoid using caffeine in the evening. Get away with your gadgets.

5)Acupressure or Acupuncture

Both are popular ancient Chinese medicine techniques. In acupressure, the practitioner exerts pressure on certain body points to improve blood circulation and muscle relaxation. An acupuncture practitioner injects needles to heal your body. For instance, gently but firmly press the base of the left thumb and index finger with your right thumb and finger for about 5 minutes. The practice helps to cope with the aura phase of migraine. Repeat the process several times. Other points could work effectively to alleviate the feeling of nausea and vomiting. If you are not in a position to implement such methods, ask someone to massage your forehead, the back of the neck, forehead, and shoulders. It would release the tension in upper body muscles. You can do it yourself too. Take a tennis ball and move it to your upper region. Certain essential oils like lavender or peppermint oils help to relax your nerves.

6)Kill Your Stress

Stress is a major trigger for all forms of headaches. Both migraine and stress share a reciprocated cause-and-effect relationship. Find ways to manage your stress. It purely depends on your personal choices. A person can find stress relief in any activity they choose. First of all, try to evade stressful situations. Fleeting the stress is not possible most of the time. Then you can find ways to release your stress to avoid migraine episodes. See what you can do.

• Yoga, breathing techniques, and meditation ·
• Journal writing ·
• Listening to music to relax your nerves 
• counseling or therapy

7) Moving To a Somber Place

Finally, if you have a migraine attack, reassure yourself that the episode will eventually end after some time. Retreat to a dark, quiet room away from light and noises to reduce the duration of the attack. Cool down with an ice pack, a chilled gel pack, a wet cloth, or ice cubes tied in a towel. Put any on your forehead, neck, and shoulder. A warm or cold shower could be quite soothing. It might influence your blood circulation in upper body areas to slow down the pain signaling. Some people might find solace in wrapping warm compresses around their forehead.

8) Managing Light Sensitivity

For some patients, screen lights can also be a trigger. So monitor your screen time to adjust the light sensitivity. You can use anti-glare screens for your gadgets. Keep your office and home windows covered on sunny days. Remember to wear sunglasses when going out.

9) Throw Away Your Chewing Gum

You put chewing gum in your mouth and forget to throw it away. You realize its presence later when your jaws and head muscles start aching. The small innocent act could turn into disastrous pain. The same goes for chewing other things out of habit or grinding your teeth inside, or pressing your teeth in anger. If you are into such habits and are also a migraine patient, deal with these. You might seek help from a therapist. You might also try getting a mouth guard.

10)Exercise

A regular exercise routine can decrease the number of migraine days. It influences the production of endorphins in the body to deal with stress and headaches. Besides, you sleep well when you exercise. Although, it is hard to exercise during the episode. But you can still make some easy moves depending on your condition. If you are not fond of doing exercise, yoga can be an amazing alternative to release muscle tension. The technique involves slow moves that yield a plethora of health benefits similar to those you get from exercises.

Other activities like swimming, dancing, Zumba, hiking, and cycling can also help you live a migraine-free life.

11)Vitamins 

Vitamins are crucial for maintaining neurotransmitter levels in the brain important for mitigating migraine pain. Your body cannot store vitamins; that is the way you have to top up their presence in the body. For instance, deficiency of vitamin D, vitamin B2, and  B12 leads to frequent migraine episodes.

Conclusion 

The migraine phenomenon with its accompanying symptoms is unbearable. A person under a migraine attack does anything to get rid of the nastiest pain. No doubt, medicine is foremost and unavoidable, but drug-free natural remedies may also effectively reduce the span and intensity of the attack. Besides, home remedies can help manage high drug dependency.