Migraine Treatment Options in 2024
Most people are familiar with migraines and have been affected by them in some way.
Whether they suffer from migraines themselves or know someone else who does, migraines are an exceedingly common condition affecting a large portion of the population.
Non-drug mitigation options:
- Hot water bath, ice:
Many people choose a hot bath before going to bed, and the water temperature is warm and comfortable; If the neck, back and body are tight, use warmer water to wash these areas. A hot bath helps relax your muscles and mood. Use a hair dryer after a hot shower on hot hair and head, especially sore areas. After the bath, you can put a hot water bag on the neck and back to reduce muscle tension and spasm.
② Too late to take a hot bath, hot water is also effective.
③ Migraine patients are particularly sensitive, too cold need to be heated; It's too hot and requires ice, constant demands for balance. Some people put ice cubes in an ice pack or wrapped in a towel and apply them to the headache site, and migraine symptoms can be significantly reduced. Should you apply heat or ice? Individuals vary greatly, choosing the way they feel comfortable with their bodies.
- Drink effective beverages:
① Recommended to drink ginger soup, ginger tea, the effect is better for most patients, even if eating ginger tablets are effective. Ginger reduces prostaglandin production and relieves migraines.
② Hang Baiju has the effect of dispersing wind and clearing heat, and has a certain effect on the treatment of migraines; a cup of feverfew works well.
③ A few patients reported that drinking a lot of coffee, milk tea, strong tea, red bull, and very hot sugar water before the attack may relieve migraine, or even immediately terminate migraine attacks. Note: More people who are migraines induced by espresso, need to find an effective beverage for their own.
- Massage:
When waves of severe pain hit, accompanied by neck stiffness, massage Fengchi point, Fengchi point will be very painful, but the effect is better. According to the pain site, you can also choose to massage the temple, Yintang, etc., the main purpose is to release the muscle group and fascia of the head and neck.
Brushing your hair is also a form of massage.
- Apply:
Others apply cooling oil near their temples to ease pain, while others apply fever-reducing patches to ease headaches. Not for everyone, please try more.
- Stay in bed:
Poor sleep and low energy are the main causes of migraines. "The secret of health, when good sleep first", I believe that the body's self-healing ability is strong enough.
To quickly relieve headaches, first away from the noisy environment, close the curtains, create a quiet, light, warm space, bed rest. Choose soft and comfortable pillows and quilts, adjust the sleeping position, find the most comfortable position, relax the muscles of the whole body, lie flat, rest, sleep.
- Relax your mind:
When migraine attacks, not only the physical need to rest, but also the psychological rest. Many migraines are caused by stress, anxiety, and fatigue. Relax the mood, relax the mood, the headache will disappear more than half, the heart can cause more than three thousand diseases.
"First sleep the heart, after the eyes", relax the mood to help sleep.
- Help you sleep:
① Adjust breathing:
If you can't sleep or relax, adjust your breathing, breathe gently and gently, and focus on your breathing to help eliminate tension and anxiety.
② Try meditation:
It doesn't have to be done sitting down, it can be done lying down, adjusting the breath, paying attention to and feeling the present moment in and around the body, without judgment, and forming an unimpeded flow of perception.
There is no point in fearing pain. Let migraines come and go. Accept the present and learn to live with it.
If listening to music helps relieve mood, turn it on.
- Nausea and vomiting:
If you have a headache and want to throw up, then throw up, most of the relief immediately; Also consider drinking lots of hot water to induce vomiting.
However, violent jet-like vomiting should be prevented and avoided, which is harmful to the body.
Acupuncture and scraping:
Conditions permit, you can consider trying.
- Drug relief options:
If non-medical relief is not available, use analgesics as soon as possible to relieve pain, especially during the onset of migraine.
- Ibuprofen, acetaminophen, etc., are the choice of mild to moderate migraine drugs. Aspirin is not recommended.
- Triptans specific painkillers are used for moderate and severe migraines.
- When migraine is accompanied by nausea and vomiting, it is best to use non-oral approaches, such as Zolmitriptan nasal spray, spray the nose, pain relief speed, usually 20-30 minutes to take effect. Zolmitriptan nasal spray is one of the fastest acting and most effective migraine specific pain relievers known.
The principle of analgesic medicine:
- Take the medicine as early as possible. As soon as the headache appears, the earlier the better.
- Use painkillers no more than 4 times a day, no more than 2 days a week, and no more than 10 days a month. Control the amount of medication you take, or overdose headaches may result.
Epidemiology of Migraines
- About 12% of the population suffers from migraines
- More common in women (17%) versus men (6%)
- An estimated 39 million Americans have migraines, according to estimates from the American Migraine Foundation
- Migraine is ranked as the second leading cause of disability worldwide, second only to low back pain
- Migraine has a strong genetic basis
- If one parent has a history of migraines, the child has a 40% risk of also developing migraines
- If both parents have a history of migraine, this increases to 75%
