Migraine Headache Treatments
Migraine Headache Treatments
For people who suffer with migraines; a cure would be a wonderful thing, but at best we can only treat the pain and try to prevent them through medication and life style changes. The pain is debilitating and whether you have them occasionally or the condition is chronic, you just want relief. Migraine headache treatments are usually two-fold.
Prevention may involve making some lifestyle changes. You need to get enough rest, exercise, and eat a healthy diet. You will also want to avoid known triggers. These vary from person to person. Some foods associated with migraine attacks are caffeine, MSG, cheese, chocolate, and red wine. Of course, emotional stress also plays a big part in triggering headaches, but abrupt changes in altitude, bright, flickering lights, intense odors, and sudden changes in the weather may also bring n an attack. Of course, it is impractical to think you can avoid every trigger. You can avoid foods that you find bring on a headache, but there is not much we can do about weather.
If you have done the lifestyle changes and continue to have frequent headaches; your doctor may recommend drug therapy. Beta-blockers such as propanolol and timolol may help to prevent a migraine. Car must be taken to take them exactly as prescribed even if you are feeling fine. Some anti-seizure medications such as Depakote and Topamax may help to prevent migraine headaches as well.
About 75% of migraine sufferers are women and family history does seem to play a part. Approximately 70-80% of people who have migraines have a family history. It usually affects people between the ages of 15-55. Only about 5-10% of children are affected by migraines and they occur equally between boys and girls. These usually resolve when they reach adulthood or sometimes become the less severe tension headaches.
Most people who have occasional migraines will use over the counter drugs for pain relief. Aspirin and acetaminophen don’t usually work well. NSAID’s such as Aleve often help with the pain or one of the combination migraine formulas may also work better. Many people report that ice wraps are helpful in relieving pain and of course, resting in a quiet darkened room is a good idea. Some studies suggest the herb; feverfew may help to prevent migraine headaches. It has relatively few side effects, but check with your doctor before using any herbal remedies as a migraine headache treatment.
