Chronic migraine sufferers are looking for a way to prevent a migraine from settling in and making a mess out of their life for seventy two hours. There are several approaches one suffering with intense migraine pain may take in hopes of lessening the duration and intensity level of a migraine. The most common preventative measures are avoiding triggers or factors that can set off a migraine or take medication to help lessen the chances of a migraine developing.
Individuals that suffer from mild migraines on rare occasions tend to treat their migraine headaches with over the counter medications. Over-the-counter medication can help relieve migraine pain temporarily and should be administered as instructed by the manufacturer. There are two types of over the counter medication.
Acetaminophen
Acetaminophen is often taken to help reduce mild pain such as: headaches, backaches, muscle aches toothaches and even mild cold symptoms. Acetaminophen is a pain reliever that relieves pain by changing the way the body feels pain by lowering the body temperature. Caution needs to be had when taking Acetaminophen, if taken in large doses over a long period of time damage can be caused to the liver and the kidneys.
Non–steroidalanti–inflammatorydrugs (NSAID)
NSAID is typically used in conditions where chronic pain is felt. The purpose of NSAID is to relieve pain where inflammation has occurred. There are two forms of NSAID:
- Aspirin – examples of over the counter medication that have aspirin would be:
- Aleve
- Motrin
- Advil
- Non-aspirin – examples of non-aspirin over the counter pills would include:
- Ibuprofen
- Motrin IB
You might be wondering what the differences are between over the counter medicine that has aspirin vs. the medicine that is aspirin free. The difference is that medicine containing aspirin prevents the platelets from becoming blocked and forming blood clots. The downside to large doses of aspirin is that it increases bleeding but aspirin is often used to help prevent heart attacks and strokes.
Though medicating with over-the-counter medicine would be the ideal way to treat a migraine, there are those cases that need something more drastic in their approach to treating a migraine headache. This approach could include prescription medication, migraine surgery or nerve muscle removal.
Prescription Medication
Over-the-counter medicine has its place and works wonderfully at treating some common ailments, but when it comes to severe intense migraine headaches. When medicines such as: Tylenol, Advil, Motrin, Aleve and Ibuprofen no longer has any positive effect on the intense migraine pain being felt the need for prescription medication might be. It is important that migraines sufferers realize that medication prescribed for migraine relief is not a cure for migraine headaches themselves but are used for one of two purposes:
- Relieve Symptoms
- Prevent Attacks
Keep in mind that no prescription medication can prevent a migraine 100% but there are those prescription medications available that can help reduce the number of migraine attacks experienced as well as lessen the level of pain felt by the migraine sufferer. A few of the medication that a doctor might prescribe to assist with lessening the occurrence of migraines would be:
- Anti-depressants
- Anti-Seizure Medication
- Blood Pressure Medication
When All Else Fails
Migraine Surgery
Migraine surgery has been a treatment option for those individuals who simply do not respond well to medication and feel that their quality of life is habitually hindered as a result of their migraine headaches. Deciding to undergo migraine surgery implies that a surgical cauterization of the superficial blood vessels in your scalp will need to be had in order to limit and possibly remove all signs of migraine pain forever. However, before the surgery could happen, a doctor must first determine with absolute certainty that it is indeed the superficial blood vessels causing the intense migraine pain before operating.
Trigger Sites
There is reason to believe that by the removing of muscles or nerves in certain areas that are considered trigger sites could be helpful in relieving migraines. Trigger sites are said to exist where sensory nerves are stimulated by a certain muscle, due to the stimulation caused by the muscle a series of painful symptoms begin to develop thus creating a migraine. Migraine surgery such as this one is not often considered as a migraine headache treatment plan unless no other form of migraine treatment is providing the needed relief to improve quality of life.
Tags: herbal supplements, Migraine Medications, Migraine Support Formula, Prescription medication, side effects, Triptans
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