Abortive Or Preventive Migraine Treatments – What Works Best?
If you regularly suffer the pain of a migraine, then you’re usually in need of relief from that pain. There are different approaches to migraine treatment, with some being more preventive while others are to handle the pain itself. Either process can help relieve the symptoms caused by a migraine and the actual pain it causes.
Anyone can suffer from a headache. Some individuals get a headache now and then and others folks can get headaches on a regular basis. Then there are the people who have a very severe and very painful type of headache called a migraine. The migraine is often preceded by warning signs like blind spots, tingling, nausea or increased sensitivity to light and sound and the excruciating pain can last for hours, days or for some very unlucky migraineurs it can last weeks.
Treatments that lean towards abortive care generally work to eliminate the painful headache with over-the-counter medications like naproxen, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, or Excedrin. Anti-emetic medication will be used to handle symptoms like nausea or vomiting which can come with the heavier types of migraines.
When these medications don’t work, then something like Samaritan will be prescribed to help with symptoms. Likewise, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or antidepressants will be prescribed as migraine treatments for its symptoms. Another type of treatment called ergots are at their most effective when taken at the first sign of a migraine. Sometimes other drugs are combined to provide a more complete treatment for your problem.
Once the initial pain is taken care of, migraine prevention is put in place. This is where you look for the trigger for your migraines. When undergoing prophylactic migraine treatments, the goal is to reduce the migraines duration, pain, and frequency and to increase the effectiveness of abortive therapies. There are several types of preventive migraine medicine, from diet changes to prescription medicine. This can be prescription beta blockers and antidepressants to vitamins and herbs like butterbur, riboflavin, cannabis, feverfew, magnesium citrate, coenzyme Q10, and B12 or melatonin.
Surgery can also be performed to sever the zygomaticotemporal nerve and corrugator supercilii muscle. Monitoring what you eat or incorporating a special diet like going gluten free can help reduce headaches. Other migraine treatments can include adding exercise, monitoring your sleep patterns, or using visualization.
Another option is aromatherapy which I’ve found to be a great way of dealing with my own migraines. A few drops of lavender oil on your pillow can be enough to kill off the worst effects of a migraine attack. Plus it can also help you sleep really well too – which is ideal after having a migraine.
Many times chiropractic care, as something in the body can be unaligned, can be extremely useful. Sometimes people can get a migraine headache through medication overuse, which is also something to consider when dealing with the pain.