5 Practical Tips For Dealing With Migraines And Living a Full Life

Only a sufferer going through excruciating, throbbing pain knows what it is to live with migraines. The National Headache Foundation of Chicago reports that around 30 million Americans are dealing with migraine attacks. If you’re one of them, you must be well aware of how the pain can take away from your quality of life. If you’ve been missing more work days and career advancement opportunities than you like, know that it is possible to manage the condition and live a fuller life. Migraines need not be the reason why you miss out on the most important milestones in your kids’ lives and spending quality time with your partner.

Here are a few tips you can use for dealing with migraines so you can lower the number of attacks. As Robert Cowan, MD, director of the Headache Program at Stanford University advises, “A lot of lifestyle choices determine how disabled you’ll be by a migraine and how often you’ll get one.”

Learn to Identify the Triggers

Most people talk about how specific triggers usually set off the attack. While these triggers may not be consistent, if you can learn to identify them, you may be able to avoid them. One of the best strategies for dealing with migraines is maintaining a diary or phone note app. Each time you have a migraine, put down everything you ate and did right before your head started to ache. Look for a fixed pattern that might help you identify the cause. Some typical triggers include:

• Insomnia and disturbed sleep patterns
• Stress and anxiety
• Loud noises and bright flashing lights
• Dipping blood sugar levels
• Hormonal imbalances and changes
• Caffeine and alcohol
• Dehydration
• Changing weather patterns
• Strong odours, perfumes, incense, or any other
• Smoking
• Motion sickness that comes from sitting in the front seat of a car or reading in a moving vehicle

Avoid Eating Foods that are Known Triggers

As your healthcare practitioner will advise, avoiding certain foods might help you in dealing with migraines.

• Foods that contain sweeteners like aspartame
• Certain foods that contain tyramine like for instance, soya, red wine, figs, fava beans, aged cheeses, chicken liver, among others
• Fruits like citrus fruits, bananas, and avocados
• Processed meats that contain sodium nitrates such as cured meats, salami, hot dogs, and bacon
• Dairy products, nuts, chocolate, and baked items
• MSG-containing foods, marinated, pickled, fermented, or processed foods

Check with Your Doctor for Medications and Vitamin Supplements

Certain vitamins have proven to help you by lowering the number of migraine instances you get and even lessen the time frame for which you have them. Check with your doctor for prescriptions of Vitamin B2 or Riboflavin and Vitamin D. Minerals and herbs like magnesium, butterbur, feverfew, ginger, and peppermint are also known to help. You medical practitioner will likely recommend pain medication to help you in dealing with migraines. Typically, patients may have to try out a few drugs before they find one that works well for them.

Make Some Lifestyle Changes

Sometimes, a few lifestyle changes can help you in dealing with migraines. For starters, avoid the triggers that set off an attack and follow these simple rules.

• Choose fixed times for going to bed and waking up. Inadequate or too much sleep can give you migraines.
• Get regular exercise.
• Slowly cut back on the caffeine that you consume every day. Monitor other sources of caffeine aside from coffee.
• Learn to let go of stress by using stress management techniques including meditation, massages, yoga, or any other.
• Too much pain medication can cause headaches. Lower the dosage and check with your doctor for alternatives.
• Think about trying homeopathic remedies.

Consider Getting Botox Injections to Help

Your doctor might ask you to consider getting Botox injections for dealing with migraines. That’s because the treatment has been cleared by the FDA for relief from chronic headaches. Michael A. Moskowitz, MD, Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston says, “Till recently there have been no treatments available to treat people who suffer from chronic migraines. A recent medication has become available specifically to treat chronic migraine headaches, called onabotulinumtoxinA (Botox). Chronic migraine sufferers can derive significant benefit from this current form of therapy.”

However, as the experts at the BHRC, center for Botox in Los Angeles will advise you, it is important that you get the treatments at a certified aesthetic clinic from professional practitioners. That’s because according to FDA guidelines, the injections are to be given in specific locations in the head and neck at intervals of 12 weeks.

Migraines are a debilitating condition that can affect your day to day living. But, it is now possible for you to manage the intense pain with the right medications and treatments. Work with your medical practitioner for the optimum solutions that can help you in dealing with migraines so you can continue to live a normal life.