Preventive therapies offer an alternative approach to treating migraine symptoms when they appear, by decreasing frequency, intensity and duration of episodes. They may also enhance responsiveness to acute medications when necessary.
Keep a journal to identify what causes migraines. Over time, you might discover patterns such as stress, light/sound stimulation, certain foods/additives/additives or weather changes as potential migraine triggers.
1. Keep a diary.
An effective way of keeping track of symptoms, potential triggers and treatments is with a migraine diary. You have various options when selecting either traditional paper diaries or digital options like Migraine Buddy.
As with any medical condition, it is crucial that you are as detailed as possible when recording an episode. Include dates and times as well as severity. Also record any prior symptoms like nausea or light sensitivity as well as your diet – skipped meals or unusual food choices included – physical activities undertaken, stress levels incurred and hydration levels. Women may note their menstrual cycle dates since this can often trigger migraines.
Over time, diaries help individuals identify patterns that can help identify triggers or assess whether new treatments are working effectively or not.
2. Deep breathing.
Breathing deeply and mindfully has been proven to activate the parasympathetic nervous system, helping reduce stress and promote relaxation – something which may help alleviate both intensity and duration of migraine attacks.
One of the most effective strategies is diaphragmatic breathing – placing your hand on your stomach so you can feel it rise and fall as you inhale and exhale. For an alternative approach, alternate nostril breathing could also work wonders in calming nerves, decreasing inflammation and increasing oxygen flow to the brain.
Recent study participants reported that deep breathing exercises were easier for them to do in various settings than meditation – for example during travel or at work – while still being effective at preventing and relieving migraine symptoms. They also indicated it as being beneficial in mitigating and lessening migraine attacks.
3. Relaxation techniques.
Migraines often coincide with high levels of stress. Research indicates that those who learn relaxation techniques, along with identifying triggers and taking medication as prescribed by their physician, experience significantly less migraine pain and enjoy a higher quality of life than those who don’t take such measures.
Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is the go-to remedy for migraine prevention. This involves gradually tensing and then relaxing various muscle groups one at a time until all tension has been released from them. Tensing them first makes you aware of what tense muscles feel like and increases your ability to identify when they’re stressed out, increasing migraine detection rates significantly.
Retraining your nervous system helps retrain itself to respond differently to internal and external changes that can trigger migraine attacks. Do this for approximately 2 minutes each hour throughout the day to lower the risk of migraine attacks.
4. Exercise.
Regular exercise is important for everyone, but for migraine sufferers it can be especially helpful. Before embarking on any new workout program, consult your physician first, and gradually increase the intensity with light stretching or walking as part of an introduction period. After exercising it’s also crucial that you cool down afterwards as heat and humidity can trigger migraine attacks.
Exercise-induced migraine (formerly exertional migraine) may occur during or following strenuous physical activity; it typically appears in hot weather and at higher altitudes.
Understanding and avoiding migraine triggers isn’t always straightforward, since they often involve multiple elements. However, keeping a diary, avoiding foods known to induce migraine attacks and using relaxation techniques may all help. Furthermore, getting sufficient rest, staying hydrated and managing stress are all effective strategies for decreasing migraine attacks.
5. Medication.
There are various steps you can take to prevent migraines, including taking painkillers. They work best if taken at the first sign of a migraine attack – soluble pills (tablets that dissolve quickly in water) are most efficient at this.
As with other headache medicines, there are headache medications designed to prevent migraines such as CGRP inhibitors and anti-seizure drugs; these will require a valid valid prescription.
Other prevention techniques, including acupuncture and relaxation training, may also help decrease stress-induced migraines.
Consider trying a nerve stimulation device that sends electrical pulses directly to the trigeminal nerve, which has been associated with migraines. Though its exact mechanism remains unknown, these devices could potentially help relieve headache symptoms as well as prevent menstrual migraines in women predisposed to experiencing them.
