Natural Home Remedies for Migraines Headache at Headaches-Migraine-Relief.com

Migraine headaches are among the most serious and painful type of headaches. They are usually described as an intense, throbbing or pounding pain that involves your temple, forehead, around the eye, or the back of the head. They can also be accompanied by flashing, brightly colored lights in a zigzag pattern usually starting in the middle of the visual field and progressing outward and can also include abnormal tastes and smells.

Migraines are caused by the enlargement of blood vessels and the release of chemicals from nerve fibers that coil around these blood vessels. As your blood vessels enlarge, the nerves surrounding them stretch. This stretching action causes the nerves to release chemicals. These chemicals cause inflammation, pain, and further enlargement of the artery, which intensifies the pain.

About 10% of the world’s population suffers from migraine headaches. And this serious problem is largely under-treated and, in most sufferers, undiagnosed. In fact, less than half of migraine headache sufferers are diagnosed by their doctors.

The first course of treatment for migraines are over-the-counter analgesics and pain relievers (like acetaminophen and ibuprofen among others). Your doctor can also prescribe other medications like triptans to relieve the pain from migraine headaches. But these remedies only treat the symptoms of migraines; that is, they are only effective once the pain begins.

Using traditional migraine remedies on an ongoing basis can also be very expensive. And, they only mask your headache symptoms. They do nothing to eliminate the cause of your headaches. Using these traditional treatments, your headaches will return again and again!

Alternative holistic medical approaches can also be effective for some migraine sufferers. Of course, you should discuss these alternative approaches with your doctor before trying any of these treatments.

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Here is a case wherein after umpteen zillion migraine treatments, this kid despaired to the point where when she had a migraine, she would go into the coolest, darkest place in the house – which was the bathroom – and lie down on the floor with her head beside the cold stone of the tub and cry out, “Just kill me. Please, just kill me.” This kid had had too early on the subjection to the worst of physical ailments. For this type of pain you simply cannot meditate away with your thoughts neither can you do any mind-control exercises nor experiments that will prevent your head from thinking about pain..as the pain is IN the tool you use to think away or re-think.

On the other hand, one of the advanced migraine treatments of the sixties and seventies (especially the latter) was to make use of a form of biofeedback, psychically reducing or to do away with the pain by focusing on changing the alpha/beta wave patterns by warming the hands and rubbing the feet, etc. The blood leaves the extremities during [most] migraines. If you suffer any of these abominations, you will observe at onset your feet and hands turn cold. So in turn warming by rubbing does a couple of things: the blood flow returns, and it alters your brain wave patterns/activity so the focus is not so intense.

These versions of migraine treatments were recommended after the kid had been suggested to chemical migraine treatments (Equigesic, sub-lingual pills, Caffergot, Darvoset, and more); to allergy identification migraine treatments (by trying to find the offending food or smell source and getting rid of it); and to those migraine education sessions in the family doctor’s office that helped only to the degree that they justified and consoled with pamphlets on the history of migraines and famous migraine sufferers or the medical explanation that a normal blood flow runs through the fingers of veins, axons, dendrites at a regulated pace, but abnormally pools and bunches in one area thereby creating the traffic jam throbbing as blood attempts to gush into an area only capable of taking half that amount. The kid undertook several migraine treatments as they were developed and initiated. She even did a research on migraine treatments. However she continued to suffer the bastards. The years of Qualuudes and other ill-gotten street versions of migraine treatments aside, she found that only two methods combined work for her: doctor prescribed Imitrex (which she took at onset, foregoing, after the first trial, the preliminary pills that made her puke more) and the highly controversial (addictive) Vicodin. The frustrating reality is that migraines are not fully explicit and migraine treatments are just left to that; generally treatments that can get you high enough to forget but that do not treat or eliminate.

Anyone that suffers from frequent and persistent migraine headaches may be ready to try just about anything to get them to stop, and to keep them from every coming back. Between the pain, the nausea, and the dizziness, sufferers often find themselves willing to try just about any of the migraine treatments that are available to them. In this article we’ll list some of the most effective treatments, and some that are considered “alternative” but that seem to work for many.

Beta blockers are among the most common migraine treatments prescribed today. They work by slowing down the heartbeat and were originally designed to treat high blood pressure; the slower the heartbeat, the lower the blood pressure. Many have found that they are very effective as migraine treatments as well, as they slow the nerve impulses that may trigger migraines. If you’ve been prescribed beta blockers, be sure to follow your doctor’s order completely.

Another medicine that is usually prescribed for high blood pressure but that works as effective migraine treatments are calcium channel blockers. These cause the blood vessels to relax, which is how they affect blood pressure and relieve migraines. Like beta blockers, calcium channel blockers need to be taken exactly as prescribed.

There are other migraine treatments that are not as harsh as these and which don’t require a prescription. For example, one study in Belgium found that persons who took Vitamin B2 daily had about 30% fewer migraines than they did before. Feverfew leaf is one of the most common homeopathic migraine treatments, and is also used to treat arthritis. It seems to work as an anti-inflammatory agent and controls the release of serotonin, which is believed to contribute to migraines.

Botox injections are quickly becoming popular migraine treatments. As they paralyze the nerves, they prevent them from sparking a migraine headache. While there is still much debate over the use of Botox injections as migraine treatments, many who have tried them have reported that they do seem to work. If all other options have failed, you may speak to your doctor about them.

Acupuncture is another of those migraine treatments that is still considered alternative. This may be because it is still unclear to many doctors and scientists as to why acupuncture works the way that it does. Many experts assert that it is really nothing more than suggestive and has no real medical value. However, many who have tried it report that it does work, and since it seems to do no harm, it can be considered as an option for those who have tried everything else, or who do not want to try harsh medicines.

Of course, preventing a migraine in the first place is always one of the best migraine treatments there is. If you know that a particular set of circumstances will trigger a migraine in you, such as certain foods, bright lights, and undue stress, do what you can to avoid or reduce these. Take up a relaxing hobby such as yoga or meditation and mind your diet. After all, what’s the point of researching migraine treatments if you won’t do what you can to prevent them from happening in the first place?

A migraine is a throbbing, intense headache in one half of the head. It can affect people of all ages. The cause of migraine is not known.

During an attack, the blood vessels in the brain dilate and then draw together with stimulation of nerve endings near the affected blood vessels. These changes to the blood vessels are probably what cause the pain, but migraine is still a condition that is poorly understood.

It is a condition that causes episodes (‘attacks’) of headaches. Other symptoms such as feeling sick (nausea) or vomiting are also common. Between migraine attacks, the symptoms go completely. There are two main types of migraine:

• Migraine without aura – sometimes called common migraine.

• Migraine with aura – sometimes called classic migraine.

Symptoms

• The headache is usually on one side of the head, typically at the front or side. Sometimes it is on both sides of the head. Sometimes it starts on one side, and then spreads all over the head. The pain is moderate or severe and is often described as ‘throbbing’ or ‘pulsating’. Movements of the head may make it worse. It often begins in the morning, but may begin at any time of day or night. Typically, it gradually gets worse and peaks after 2-12 hours, and then gradually eases off. However, it can last from 4 to 72 hours.

• Other symptoms that are common include: feeling sick (nausea), vomiting, you may not like bright lights or loud noises, and you may just want to lie in a dark room.

• Other symptoms that sometimes occur include: being off food, blurred vision, poor concentration, stuffy nose, hunger, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, passing lots of urine, going pale, sweating, scalp tenderness, and sensations of heat or cold.

Treatment for Migraine

The first line of treatment is always to try and identify trigger factors, which means keeping a careful record of events, mainly of foods that have preceded an attack. Particular foods are identified as migraine triggers in about 20 per cent of sufferers.

– Botox which has been used with success in some sufferers for reducing the frequency and intensity of migraine attacks.

– Acupuncture which has offered some sufferers relieve and a better quality of life.

– Chiropractic (a method employing a holistic approach to pain relief through massage, spinal manipulation and periodic adjustment of joints and soft tissue) which has had some positive results with migraine sufferers.

–Natural healing products (produced from essential oils and applied to the forehead, neck and temples as well as the soles of the feet) are becoming popular for treating migraine headaches.

Although the treatments for migraine headache have improved considerably with the passage of time but the available treatments are not effective for everyone suffering from this disease. The migraine treatments are divided in different types according to their method of treatment. Different treatments include preventive or prophylactic medications and alternative therapies to cure the migraine headache.

Calcium channel blockers

both verapamil hydrochloride and flunarizine are efficacious. (Flunarizine is available in Canada but not in the United States.) Contraindications are heart block, depression, and hypotension; side effects include weight gain, edema, constipation, and depression. Flunarizine may have extrapyramidal side effects as well. The suggested dose range of verapamil is 180 to 320 mg per day; flunarizine is effective at 5 to 10 mg per day.

If you suffer from migraines and want to learn more about them along with information on choosing a migraine headache treatment, read on.

An Introduction to the Causes of Migraines

Migraines affect approximately one in six people across the country and are defined essentially as a headache that prevents you from carrying on your day-to-day life. In general, women are more susceptible to migraines. It’s also believed that migraines are genetic and may run in the family.

While the exact cause of migraines is unknown, it’s believed to start when serotonin is released into the bloodstream. But, what triggers that serotonin release? Some experts chalk it up to stress, others to poor diet and still others to everything from environmental stimulants to hormones.

Diagnosing a Migraine

The most obvious symptom of a migraine is the throbbing and almost unbearable pain behind your eyes. Most migraine sufferers complain that they’re extra sensitive to light, smell and various sounds – often wishing they could escape to a dark and quiet room. Some migraine suffers complain of nausea and vomiting as well.

Treating Migraines

The most common migraine headache treatment is an acetaminophen which is administered after the headache has occurred. Other drugs used include triptans or ergotamines.

However, using drugs to dull the symptoms of a migraine is not a truly beneficial treatment. Instead, sufferers should focus on identifying the cause of their migraines and preventing them from occurring.

The most common preventive method is to eliminate foods that may trigger migraines like caffeine (in any form), alcohol, nitrites, coffee and cheeses. In addition to eliminating these foods, you should also focus on increasing your magnesium aspartate and Vitamin B levels.

The next most effective method of reducing the instance of migraines is by reducing daily stress levels. Try to exercise every day and engage in relaxation or meditation breathing. You could sign up for a Yoga class or simply relax each day to a meditative tape.

Butterbur

When taken twice a day over a period of time, Butterbur root has been proven to be effective in preventing migraines. However, because certain kinds of butterbur root can be toxic to the kidneys and liver, you should look for a variety that’s approved for long-term use. Common side effects of butterbur include itchy or dry eyes, diarrhea and nausea.

Feverfew

Feverfew is traditionally used to heal colds, coughs, fever and dyspepsia. However, the active constituents in feverfew are anti-inflammatory and they also promote melatonin, which helps the body rejuvenate.

Because of this, feverfew can help reduce the instance of migraines and is an effective migraine headache treatment. Though rare, feverfew can cause mouth ulcers and indigestion.

As all who suffer migraine headaches are acutely aware, the intense pain can be crippling when it occurs – and the need for relief becomes paramount. No conventional or alternative treatment will produce the same positive results for everyone. However, for those who routinely seek relief, the effort to find a helpful solution is well worth it when one actually works.