Finding relief for migraines is key to rebuilding your life and enjoying social events and hobbies without experiencing pain, leading to greater productivity and improved mood.
Cognitive behavioral therapy, acupuncture and biofeedback may all provide non-pharmacological therapies for managing migraines in addition to prescription medication. Following a regular sleep schedule, eating regularly and staying hydrated are also ways of improving quality of life and managing migraines effectively.
Avoiding triggers
Migraines can be extremely painful and cause multiple symptoms. Determining triggers is the first step toward successfully managing migraines.
Some triggers exist within your environment, including bright lights and strong odors. Others relate to changes in food or beverages consumed, and yet more are associated with hormonal fluctuations – such as those which arise before or during menstruation in women.
Staying hydrated, getting plenty of rest, avoiding caffeine and getting sufficient sleep are all proven strategies for mitigating migraine attacks. Biofeedback and relaxation techniques also can be effective ways to relieve tension and prevent an attack.
Avoid overdoing medications to prevent rebound headaches; seek advice from healthcare professionals about ways to decrease their dosage.
Getting enough sleep
If you are suffering from migraine, getting enough rest is critical to its relief and prevention. Sleep can help ease pain significantly while also helping avoid future headaches from happening altogether. Ice packs or hot water bottles may provide additional comfort during an attack.
Avoid caffeine altogether to help avoid migraine attacks; if necessary, have it in small doses only. Cold therapy can also provide relief by constricting blood vessels, thus decreasing throbbing.
Limit the frequency and dosage of acute pain medications such as OTC meds and triptans as directed; overusing can lead to medication-overuse headaches that are even more intense than migraine attacks.
Keeping a food journal
Food journals can help you gain greater insight into your diet and which foods may trigger migraines. They can be written on paper or using one of many apps available that sync up with smartphones and fitness trackers. When writing your food journal, be honest. Being truthful makes the experience more effective as an educational tool and may encourage healthier habits – it is also key that specific amounts of each food item be listed so you can track exactly how much is being eaten each day.
Keep a migraine diary to help identify triggers such as aged cheese, chocolate and caffeine that could trigger an attack. Also take note of how long an attack lasted and any actions taken that helped relieve it.
Avoiding over-the-counter pain relievers
There are various strategies available to treat and prevent migraines. Medicine may help, while lifestyle modifications and trigger avoidance also have their place. Here are some tips that may help: getting more sleep; avoiding foods known to trigger migraines; managing pain when migraines strike – among many more!
Migraines are painful, throbbing headaches that affect both sides of the head. Migraines typically last several hours and may be accompanied by other symptoms like aura, light sensitivity, loss of appetite and feeling off balance.
Non-pharmacological strategies are highly recommended to increase patients’ knowledge about migraine, particularly its different phases (premonitory phase, aura phase and headache attack). This could include identifying and understanding trigger factors like environmental conditions, changes to sleeping patterns or diet, physical activity or stress related anxiety as well as medications or hormonal fluctuations that might cause or worsen episodes.
Keeping a migraine diary
A migraine diary can be a useful tool in tracking symptoms and triggers, helping both you and your doctor identify patterns which could lead to better treatments. A pencil-and-paper journal or app like Migraine Buddy or iHeadache are effective options; using apps may make updating it simpler so as not to become overwhelming by the task.
Note the time and intensity of each migraine episode when recording symptoms. Keep track of what was happening 6-8 hours prior as well as potential triggers like certain foods or weather patterns that could be responsible.
Maintaining a migraine diary can be an invaluable way of uncovering hidden triggers and patterns, yet keeping up can be challenging if living with chronic condition. A combination of a migraine diary with clinically-proven preventative devices like GammaCore may be an effective solution to treating your symptoms and managing migraines.
