Often characterized by a severe headache, nausea, and sensitivity to certain stimuli like light and sound, a migraine headache is not a typical headache. Because these headaches can often interfere with daily activities, suffers are constantly looking for successful migraine remedies. Some of these remedies involve medications and herbal or vitamin supplements. There are also a few things that an individual can do at the beginning of a migraine to lessen the symptoms.
Less frequent or severe migraines are usually treated with over-the-counter pain medications. Some of these medications are ibuprofen, aspirin, and acetaminophen. Certain brands also market special migraine remedies, which usually contain one or more of these medications and may even contain caffeine.
Individuals who suffer from intense chronic migraines that interfere with their daily lives, may need prescription medications. These migraine remedies will typically work to either lessen the pain or prevent migraines from happening. Stronger pain relievers may be all that is necessary in most cases, but some people may require a narcotic or barbiturate for extreme pain. Patients who suffer from multiple migraines every month may also take prescription medications daily that can help to prevent or lessen the severity of the migraines. Many of these medications are also used to treat a variety of other illnesses, including high blood pressure, depression, and seizures.
Taking herbal or vitamin supplements as migraine remedies may also be useful to some sufferers. These are usually taken to lessen the number of migraines, as well as to relieve pain. Feverfew, ginseng, and gingko are a few popular herbs that may help migraine sufferers.
Although the cause of migraines is not completely known, some recent research suggests that individuals with a low level of the brain chemical seratonin often have more migraines. Lower levels of this chemical can cause blood vessels in the head to dilate, causing an intense headache and other symptoms. Because of this, many scientists now believe that a vitamin B vitamin may be successful as a migraine remedy. B vitamins, including B3 and B6, keep blood vessels from expanding and dilating, resulting in less frequent or severe migraines.
At the first signs of a migraine, many chronic migraine sufferers have a few things that they can do to relieve the symptoms. Because lights and sounds often exacerbate a migraine, lying down in a quiet, dark room can help keep the symptoms at bay. In addition, some sufferers also find that massaging their temples helps.
A temple massage can be done with or without a cold compress on the head, eyes, and neck. This can be something as ornate as a special cold head wrap made specifically for migraines or as simple as a few bags of frozen peas. A shallow hot bath may also help to curb migraine symptoms, as this stimulates blood flow to other areas of the body, besides the head. Often, however, simply using one method will not usually help alleviate migraine symptoms. Sometimes two or more migraine remedies must be combined to get relief.