There aren’t many things in life that are more miserable and debilitating than a migraine. The nausea, light sensitivity, visual aberrations, and sharp searing head pains all come together to make a painful cocktail that can put you on your butt within a few hours, and leave you feeling spent for days.
Unfortunately, nobody really knows what causes migraines. Despite the fact that 12% of the population suffers from migraines on a regular basis, the scientific community has never been able to figure out an underlying cause. We know genetics plays a role, and that certain factors can trigger it like the food we consume, poor sleep, depression, and some medications. But we don’t know what really causes it.
However, we do know many ways to treat a migraine, which include:
Applying heat or ice-packs to the head. Both might sound like they could increase the painful symptoms of a migraine, but they are effective. However, these methods don’t work for everyone. You’ll have to see what works best for you through trial and error, which could be said for any migraine treatment.
Consuming caffeine in small amounts has been known to alleviate the symptoms of a migraine. And more importantly, it works well with other medications. For whatever reason, when caffeine is consumed with either acetaminophen and aspirin, it drastically increases the pain relieving effects of those medications.
However, it should be noted that this doesn’t work for everyone. For some people, caffeine can actually increase migraine symptoms, or increase the likelihood of having a migraine.
Certain teas can help a great deal. Just as certain foods and drinks can trigger a migraine, there are substances that have the opposite effect. Chamomile and green tea are known to alleviate migraine symptoms, as well as teas that include ginger or peppermint. Ginger, in particular, may be the most potent natural migraine treatment. One study found that ginger was just as effective as a common migraine treatment drug known as Sumatriptan, but had fewer side effects.
Reducing your exposure to light is probably the most intuitive migraine treatment. Migraines almost always cause a painful light sensitivity and are sometimes caused by bright lights, so it’s natural for most people to shut the blinds, turn off the lights, and close their laptops while they suffer through the symptoms. Doing so won’t usually “cure” a migraine, but it’s the fastest way to relieve the pain and nausea.
However, you should take this a step further. In my personal experience, the best thing to do when you have a migraine is to take a nap for about an hour. Every time I’ve done this, it has dramatically reduced the short and long-term symptoms. I still feel pain for a day or two, but it’s very mild. And the sooner you catch some shut-eye after experiencing the early symptoms of a migraine, the more effective your nap will be.
My wife had migraine’s for years. Tried everything, nothing worked. Kept taking very strong pills. Got migraine’s daily for the last couple of years. Started using cannabis oil. Helped some. But then she had to go on high blood pressure pills. As soon as she did…..her migraine’s stopped. Now she get’s about one a month instead of one a day. If this is you, ask your doctor for coversyl and amlidopine.