Several Safe Alternatives To Migraine Treatment

A migraine headache is what medical professionals call the act of the blood vessels in the brain expanding. As the blood vessels expand they begin to create painful sensations in the head that are often described as throbbing or pounding. These painful symptoms increase as the blood vessels continue to expand. There comes a time when the blood vessels begin to release a harmful chemical into the brain thus setting off even further complications like:

• An intense throbbing, pounding feeling typically located on one side of the forehead
  • Pain can also generate in the back of the head
  • Pain can formulate right above one eye
  • The pain is often described as unilateral meaning the pain is typically felt or experienced on one side of the head.
    • Reports have shown that about one third of most migraine headaches are described as being felt on both sides of the head also referred to as bilateral.
    • The pain felt from the migraine on one side of the head can alternate to the other side of the head during the next migraine attack. If you frequent migraine attacks on the same side of the head please speak with your doctor immediately this could imply something more serious is occurring.
    • Nausea
    • Vomiting
    • Diarrhea
    • Paleness
    • Coldness in the hands and feet
    • Sensitivity to light and sound

Cause And Effect

When suffering with a migraine headache, the migraine sufferer wants nothing more than to find a dark room to hide in till migraine relief can be found from the intense pounding that threatens their functionality. After years of suffering with debilitating migraine headaches, patience is hard to come by when searching for a migraine treatment. The need for migraine relief becomes so intense that wisdom, careful thought and consideration for the future does not come into play when selecting a treatment option. But what causes all this migraine pain?

• Stress

• Sleep – one’s sleep habits have much to do with migraines, whether it be: sleep deprivation, too much sleep or broken up sleep they are all connected to headaches. Studies have shown that when sleep habits are improved migraine headaches are less current and have shorter duration.
• Fasting – caution should always be had when headache prone individuals take to fasting. A lack of nutrients to the body can reduce blood sugar levels setting off a series of stress-related hormones.
• Hormones – for women who experience migraines once a month around the time of their menstrual may be aware of menstrual migraines and how they can affect functionality. Some women during their monthly cycle lose estrogen and the loss of estrogen sets off a chemical imbalance and the result is a migraine.
• Lighting – lighting has been known to enhance mood and is often used as a mood enhancer however, flashing, bright high intensity and visually stimulating light sources can be a factor in developing painful migraine symptoms.
• Smells – cigarette smoke
• Alcohol – Tyramine is a chemical found in wine that has been proven to activate a migraine quicker than if no alcohol was used.
• Foods
• Aged cheese
• Chocolate
• Caffeine – often used to help improve energy levels can have the reverse effect on headache prone people. Caffeine in small doses may have little effect on migraine sufferers but if overindulgence is had one can expect regular migraines.

Doctors often prescribe migraine medication to help alleviate migraine symptoms. Migraine symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to light and even diarrhea can force individuals to miss work and seek solitude. Prescription medications such as antidepressants, antiseizure medicine and blood pressure medicine is often prescribed as a form of migraine treatment. Triptans and Ergots are also forms of migraine treatments that doctors hand out to migraine patients. Though these forms of prescription medications have been known to help temporarily relieve migraine headaches, they do come with several side effects and warnings that should be read over carefully before use.

Side effects such as depression, mood swings, and thoughts of suicide, sleep deprivation, fatigue, heart attacks and strokes are all risk factors to be concerned with when taking prescription medication.

Migraine Treatment Alternatives

Prescription medication is not for everyone, so there is a need for migraine treatment alternatives. Thankfully, there are safer alternatives to treating migraines such as:

• Chiropractic Manipulation
• Acupuncture
• Physiotherapy
• Herbal

Safer is always better in that the use of natural remedies such as Ginger, Fever Few, Riboflavin and Magnesium Citrate are not foreign chemicals and are not substances that can cause a severe bodily reaction. Chronic Migraine sufferers should note that clinical studies have shown that the right combination of herbal ingredients can be more effective in reducing migraine occurrences and migraine symptoms than prescription medication.

Tags: headaches, migraine attacks, migraine treatment, Migraines, side effects, symptoms, treating migraines, vascular headachce