How To Cure Migraine
Migraine is a neurological problem that results in severe headaches that are usually accompanied by nausea and unpleasant changes in sensory perception, including vision. The headaches often last for hours, and in some cases they may continue for two or three days. The severity of the headaches is often enough to stop normal functioning of the sufferer, and thus migraine can completely disrupt your life.
Migraine is not fully understood as yet, so a large part of treatment involves fighting the symptoms and controlling triggers. In fact, trigger avoidance is a large and effective part of managing migraine. Triggers differ from one person to the next, but a large number of migraine sufferers find that hunger, stress, and consumption of alcohol and caffeine lead to an attack. You should therefore pay special attention to these factors, but try to note any other substances or situations that seem to bring on migraine attacks. Once you have identified your triggers, you simply need to avoid them. Of course, this is sometimes easier said than done – for most people living in a modern urban environment, completely avoiding stress is impossible. You must therefore do what you can to avoid triggers, and beyond this, take measures to ameliorate attacks when they occur.
Massage, rest, and cold or warm compresses are the best home remedies for migraine attacks. If you can get a professional massage, so much the better, but even a self massage will help a great deal. Simply sit in a dark room, and gently massage your scalp, forehead, neck, and the area around your eyes. After this, it is advisable to lie down in bed for at least an hour, preferably with the lights out. You can simultaneously apply a cold or warm compress. This depends on you – some people find that a cold compress is more effective, while others favor a warm compress.
As far as your diet goes, ginger seems to help ease migraine, so you should make it a regular part of your diet. At the same time, cutting down consumption of gluten seems to reduce the frequency and severity of attacks, so avoid gluten rich foods such as wheat.
Two herbal remedies for migraine are feverfew and cannabis. Cannabis use for medical purposes is now legal in many parts of the world, and you should ask your doctor whether this is a viable option. Feverfew is more easily available, but has several potential side effects, including gastric problems and habituation. Therefore, it is not advisable to take either herb without a medical prescription.
