Does Medication Always Have To Be The Answer?

It has become the norm for medical professionals to hand down a prescription to his or her patient suffering with chronic migraines. Prescription medications are a simple solution to a complicated problem. Migraine headaches are a neurological disorder therefore they need to be treated with a bit more care than a prescription medication can offer. For those who have problems with a prescription based treated there are other steps migraine sufferers can take to help reduce their migraine pain.

By simply making a few changes to their normal routine, men and women will notice fewer migraine attacks during a single month. Some simple steps to reducing migraine headaches are:

• A set scheduled time for going to bed and waking each morning.
• Having a daily exercise regime – exercise has proven to help improve quality of life for individuals suffering from various conditions from diabetes to migraine headaches. Individuals who are not physically fit are more prone to migraine attacks.
• Avoid skipping meals and long bouts of fasting.
• Avoid stress (if possible) – exercise can help release negative endorphins and research has proven that daily exercise can help improve mood and improve clarity of thought.
• Refrain from overuse of caffeine do not consume more than two caffeinated beverages in a given day.
• Bright and flashing lights are often associated with migraines therefore keep protective eyewear on hand and avoid places with flashing lights.

When All Else Fails
When all else fails and if the above changes have little to no effect there are other natural migraine treatments that can help the miserable migraine patient such as:
• Chiropractic Care
• Acupuncture
• Massage Therapy

Massage Therapy
Massage Therapy can be a very useful migraine treatment, especially if the headaches and migraines are triggered by stress or tension. A massage therapist is trained in working the muscles around the head, neck, shoulders, and back in order to increase blood flow in those areas and help relieve muscle tension. The increased blood flow also helps in improving the oxygenation levels within the bloodstream which aids in migraine relief. Massage therapy can be a more relaxing way to deal with tight muscles that may cause migraines. Massage therapy can relax tight muscles that trigger migraines, reduce sensations of pain and stress, and also help to improve sleep; all are factors needing to be considered when searching for a migraine treatment. Additional studies have shown that the use of massage therapy along with Chiropractic care can be even more beneficial. This is because when given first, massage therapy can help to loosen the muscles in the head, shoulders, and neck and produce better results with spinal manipulation.

Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic care often involves the use of spinal manipulation, adjustments of the joints and soft tissue, as well as massage therapy as a holistic approach for migraine treatment. Often the cause of a migraine can be traced back to misalignment of the muscles and nerves in the lower back, shoulders or neck. Anyone searching for an alternative form of migraine treatment not involving prescription medications should most certainly look into the option of chiropractic care.
Studies have shown that many migraines originate in the spine, often because of misalignment of the vertebra, and then can irritate the nerves that travel the length of the spine to the brain. This misalignment makes a person more prone to chemical imbalances in the brain. Some research has been done which says that manipulating the vertebrae—a chiropractor’s specialty—relieves the pressure against inflamed nerves and can in turn relieve the headaches. Chiropractic treatment also deals with many of the causative factors to migraines such as relieving the restriction in movement in the neck, muscle tension in the neck, as well as muscle tension in the upper back and shoulders which when not corrected can lead to posture problems that may influence migraine occurrences.

Acupuncture
Is an ancient Chinese practice that involves the insertion of very fine needles into certain points of the body and has been proven as a very effective migraine treatment. Studies have shown that acupuncture is useful as an additional management or acceptable alternative in regards to pain management.

Tags: constipation, Depression, emotional stress, Fatigue, migraine triggers, strange food cravings, triggers