• An intense, pounding headache that only affects one side
• Auras, or warning signs, which might be seeing bright spots or zig-zag patterns that aren’t really there. They tend to disappear when the headache begins
• Nausea and vomiting. Migraine headaches are often called “sick headaches,” because of this symptom
• Anxiety
• Fatigue
• Numbness or tingling on the same side of the body as the headache

Migraines are caused when the blood vessels in the head dilate a great deal. The pain doesn’t come from the brain, as the brain has no pain receptors, but from the lining of the brain, or the meninges, the scalp, muscles of the head, and their blood vessels. Sometimes the blood vessels in the temple and the neck can be seen to be dilated. Placing cold compresses on them can bring relief, even temporarily.

Some specialists believe that people who suffer from frequent migraines also have a deficiency of serotonin, which is a neurotransmitter. One of its roles is to help regulate relaxation or constriction of blood vessels.

Migraine Symptoms: Types of Migraine

Some doctors divide migraines into three classes: common, classic and complicated. Interestingly, the symptoms of a complicated migraine may not produce pain. However, this sort of migraine headache has terrible and unpredictable neurological symptoms, like speech disorders, palsy, and hemiparesis.

What Triggers Migraine Symptoms

Migraine symptoms can be triggered by many things, including food allergies, red wine, MSG and nitroglycerine. They can be triggered when a person decides to stop drinking coffee, as caffeine is a drug that constricts blood vessels. Stress can lead to symptoms, as can intense emotions and hormones that come with menstruation, ovulation or birth control pills. Sleep disorders, exhaustion, eye strain and even weather changes can cause the symptoms.

How to Cope with Migraine Symptoms

Migraines can be hard to cope with, but there are some things a sufferer can do until they’re over.

Taking an aspirin every day might control migraine symptoms in some people.

Since some foods trigger migraine attacks, it might be good for the sufferer to note what they ate just before the symptoms began and avoid them in the future. Chocolate and hard cheese might trigger an attack.

When they feel a migraine coming on, a patient might want to rest for a while, listen to soothing music and just try to relax.

The patient can also press a cloth dipped in cold water to that side of their head or to their face. This may help the blood vessels to relax, as mentioned above. Other professionals believe that resting the hands in a basin of warm water might also relieve the headache. The patient can also take vasoconstrictors to narrow the blood vessels, or take other sorts of pain relievers.

If the migraine attacks are very frequent and debilitating, the sufferer might take calcium channel or beta blockers. However, these drugs have side effects and might not be helpful for everyone who has migraine symptoms.

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Bright glaring lights and loud blaring noises tend to intensify the head pain, thus the need to take migraine medications arises.

However, caution should be observed when taking drug based migraine medications. One has to consider the frequency and the severity of migrane attacks in order to determine the type of migraine medications to ingest. For those suffering only occasional migraines, simple non-prescription medications will suffice to alleviate the discomforts present during the migraine episode.

Difference between abortive and preventive migraine medications

For a deeper understanding of drug based migraine medications, it would be worthwhile to know that they are classified into two categories: the abortive medication and the preventive medication. The abortive medications are taken to provide relief from migraine already in progress in a person while the preventive medications are taken regularly and on a daily basis to prevent the onset of migraine in a person.

Hence, for persons suffering from migraine headache attacks whether mild or severe, abortive migraine medications are to be taken to lessen the discomfort of the pain brought by the disorder.

Effective abortive migraine medications

The most common of these abortive medications are aspirin, naproxen and ibuprofen, which are further classified as non-prescription drugs or over-the-counter medicines.

On the other hand, common abortive medications that require prescriptions include Triptans, Ergots and also Midrin. To get a prescription one has to go to the doctor. He will check and classify the migraine type and make sure that the right medicine will be taken.

The matter of preventive medicines is much more complex in the sense that there are many types of preventive medications to choose from. In determining which one to choose, its proven ability to effectively prevent the onset of migraine attacks should be considered.

Effective preventive migraine medications

Included under this type are the beta blockers, a migraine medication proven to be effective in preventing migraines since they are used for cardio or heart protection.

The tricyclic anti-depressants, which are also proven effective for migranes since they are used to treat patients suffering from clinical depression

Anti-convulsants, its relevance of success is used to treat patients with epileptic disorders; and the serotonin antagonists, drugs that effectively prevent migrane as treatment for patients with behavioral or psychotic tendencies such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Hence, it is not uncommon to resort to preventive migrane medication since migraine’s control and prevention will not only provide relief but will likely prevent the onset of other disorders as well.

Consulting your doctor for proper migraine medications will ascertain the real causes for these migraine attacks.

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The cause of it is still unknown but several factors can trigger the onset of migraine or sometimes called a headache with aura.  Some of the factors include stress and exposure to caffeine and alcohol among others.  Different people experience migraine attacks differently since these headaches can occur with or without warning signs.

Lucky are those people who have migraines that have warning signs before actually occurring because they can take medicines for prevention. This type of migraine is also known as headache with aura. A headache with aura is characterized by seeing flashes of light, blind spots, and/or patterns before the headache itself.  It can also be accompanied by other symptoms such as numbness or tingling in other parts of the body.

Generally the aura of a headache with aura occurs about 15 to 20 minutes before the headache pain actually begins and lasts up to 25 minutes before it goes away.  There are also instances wherein an aura is seen without a headache accompanying it.

The aura seen is believed to be a chemical wave that moves across the visual cortex of the brain which processes visual signals.   The visual hallucinations are the effect of the spreading of the wave.

In detail, the symptoms of a headache with aura include shimmering and bright spots, floating zigzag lines, blurred vision or loss of it, scotomas or blind spots, and flashes of light. As mentioned, numbness and tingling can accompany this type of headache.  Dizziness and speech difficulty can also accompany a headache with aura.

Seeing an aura will not necessarily classify the condition as headache with aura.  When you experience the symptoms mentioned above, it is best for you to consult your medical practitioners because these can be an indication of a stroke or retinal tear.

Once your doctor has ruled out these more serious conditions and classifies your headache as migraine, he will now be able to give you a prescription for pain relief.  However, it is still important to note that people who have migraine with aura have a greater risk for a stroke.

This also holds true for women who smoke, use contraceptive pills, and have high blood pressure. Also, people who have a family history of migraine often have a higher risk for developing this condition.

If you suffer from headache with aura, there are several over-the-counter drugs that can be taken to relieve the pain.   These drugs are commonly called NSAIDs or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Strong headaches with aura can only be treated by your doctor. He can get you a presciption drug (usually a member of the triptane family) which usually helps to eliminate the pain fast.

But certainly, the best way to prevent migraine from occurring is avoidance of the factors that can trigger it.

And since the trigger factors can be different for each person, it would be wise to keep a headache journal to take note when the headache occurred and what was the factor that triggered its occurrence.  In this way, you will be able to identify your trigger factors and will end up avoiding them.

If migrane headaches are usually seen among women, cluster migrane headaches are commonly noted among men. Its cause is still unknown but theories suggest that it is due to vasoreactivity and oxyhemoglobin desaturation.

Moreover, some researchers say that cluster headaches are related to hypothalamic hyperactivity after observing through Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans and Magnetic Resonance Imaging tests that persons who have such type of headache often manifest increase in neuronal hypothalamic density and hypothalamic size.

Another angle that differentiates them from migrane headaches is that in cluster headaches, factors such as food, genetics, and personality disorder have no usual findings to be considered as the causes of the attacks.

The most common symptoms of cluster headaches is the pain that can be described as agonizing, boring, and throbbing and is usually felt in the unilateral, oculotemporal, or oculofrontal areas. Some people may experience pain deep in and around the eyes. It can also radiate to the forehead, ears, and cheeks.

Other unique manifestations of cluster migrane headache include the following:

• The headache occurs at the same time of the day for up to eight weeks, and it can be felt eight to twelve hours daily.
• The person may be subjected to activities such as pacing, walking, sitting and rocking a chair
• Alcohol is not associated to induce the headache. But the onset is usually during activities like relaxation and napping.

More symptoms include tearing of the eye at the same side, rhinorrhea or runny nose, nasal congestion, ptosis or drooping of eyelids, edema around the eyes, sweating of the face, miosis or an abnormal constriction of pupils, bradycardia or slow pulse rate, flushing or pallor of the face, and high skin temperature.

Medications that are prescribed by physicians for those who are suffering from cluster headache are usually similar to the ones being ordered for migrane headaches. It is very important for the person to present or advise the physician of the medications he or she is presently taking or have been taking in the past, so that interaction of these drugs can be prevented or corrected and the right drug will be prescribed.

In addition, if the client is experiencing resistance to these drugs, the doctor may order an invasive surgical procedure, such as Radiofrequency Rhizotomy and glycerol Rhizolysis. These procedures have been successful treatments to some people who experienced chronic drug-resistant cluster migrane headaches.

Aside from pharmacological and surgical approaches, there are other proven interventions that help assuage the pain and decrease the occurrence of an attack. These include relaxation techniques, meditation, acupuncture, and massage therapies.

To prevent future onsets of cluster migrane headaches, it is advisable that the person who has encountered an attack once, must avoid precipitating factors such as burst of anger, prolonged anticipation, excessive physical activity and excitement.

Oxygen therapy can provide some help and a new (or better quite old) drug was recently brought back into focus for curing this type of headaches. The drugs name is LSD and the research findings are positive. The medication is redesigned to heal the headaches pain for good without the psychedelic side effects of the drug.

Cluster migrane headache incidences are quite common, but with the right knowledge at hand, it is possible to identify if there is an immediate danger or not with regard to the complications the illness could result in.

Sufferers do not have to stay in this condition any longer when there are means of alleviating the pain they experience when drug store migraine medicine is out of reach. Different methods work for different kinds of people. To know which one will be suitable for you, just try the following:

Try aroma therapy as a migraine medicine

Although it does not directly combat migraine headache, it can raise the body’s level of comfort and relaxation. There are various oil essences to choose from depending on your individual preference, but the usual choices would be peppermint, eucalyptus, chamomile and lavender scents.

Look for good quality ones and choose them over those that are deceptively cheap to prevent further headache.

Chiropractic, acupuncture and other therapies are also recommended as forms migraine treatment for many cases.

Drinking ginger tea, or any other forms of ginger for that matter, can act as a good migraine medicine primarily because of its anti-inflammatory attributes. Blood circulation is also stimulated.

Sweltering environment can cause dehydration and may in effect trigger migraine. Drink at least 8 glasses of water everyday to prevent migraine headache and keep your body from losing too much liquid.

Apply a cold compress by freezing a piece of cloth and placing it around your head to minimize the pain. Try soaking the towel on cold water mixed with a few drops of essential oils before placing it inside the freezer. It will guarantee better effects once you use it. Massage of the head can also help calm the nerves and ease the pain.

If the cold can’t do it, go for the hot. A hot compress as a migraine treatment can also do the trick, submerging the towel instead in warm water and you can also add essential oils if you choose to. Getting the hands to relax for a few minutes under tolerably hot water has been tried by many and often they came up with positive results.

Keep OTCs or over-the-counter migraine medicine ready for the initial symptoms of migraine. It is also advisable to take preventive medicines to decrease the chances of migraine episodes in the future.

Resting in a dark, quiet and ventilated room has helped most sufferers with coping with the pain. Heat and noise will aggravate the pounding pain so it is best to stay away from these conditions when migraine hits. Good diet habits and exercises are proven migraine prevention techniques and belong to the science of combatting body disorders.

Sufficient sleep and avoiding alcohol and smoke are going to keep your body healthy in more ways than one. Watch what you eat and watch what you drink. Many people reported having migraine attacks after intake of certain vegetables like tomatoes, peppers or combinations of tomato with cheese.

Just write down what you ate the day before the attack hit. This could be of help if your migraine is due to nutritional allergies. It’s always better to prevent than to treat it.

Since there are many ways treating a migraine attack, enduring the pain is not necessary the best when there is the option to go for a migraine remedywhich will work for you. However, if the conditions recur and not only then, an advice from the doctor is still the best measure. In addition he can prescibe instantly pain alleviating migraine medicine, for example triptane.

Migraine is probably the most common type of headache that prevents a person from performing his daily duties correctly since this headache type is very disabling. Migraine is characterized by a blinding pain which starts from one side of the head and can last for a few hours or days. However, at this time there is no definite cure for it.

To better one’s condition during a migraine headache attack a first remedy would be to take over-the-counter non prescription pain killers. But there are ways to lessen the pain with a home remedy. It is not complicated to do and will entail just a bit of common sense and know-how.

One home remedy that you can do is to use ice wraps. Ice wraps can be done by wetting a towel and then squeezing it to remove some of the water.  It is then folded so that it can easily be placed in the freezer. Once the towel has stiffened up, it is to be applied to the head and the eyes for relief.

Another remedy that you can do is to eat something salty. Although this will not really take away the pain as well as the wet towel approach, this treatment will buy you the time you need to do the preparation for the latter. You should eat the salty food just when your headache is starting.

A basic home migraine headache remedy is to have someone massage your head while you relax. This can be done in conjunction with the wet towel application.  Approximately ten minutes of massage will do.

The most fundamental way to avoid headache is, of course, to prevent it. Since migraine attacks are often triggered by several factors, so it is best for you to take note of the factors leading to the headache event.

By identifying these factors, you will be able to avoid certain food and situations which will trigger your headache. Taking note of your migraine trigger factors should be the first and the biggest step that you have to take to keep your migraine attacks in control.

These are just some of the home remedies that can be done to ease the pain that a migraine headache brings with it. Though, the effectiveness of these treatments is really dependent on the situation and severity of the migraine headache.

However, if these treatments and home remedies do not ease the headache, you should see your doctor to discuss your migraine type and get a working drug prescribed. There are several top migraine medication products around that should even work in your case.

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