Migraine Headaches

If you don't get headaches, bless you!! You are missing nothing.Do you think you get migraines:maybe--maybe not.An occasional headache is no fun, but a migraine can literally shut you down. There are normally warning signs when a migraine is coming on. They are called prodromal symptoms. These signs can include visual disturbances called an "aura". There can be tingling or numbness in an arm or leg. There will be pain beneath the eyes and the forehead. Gradually a throbbing pain with nausea as well as light sensitivity and even vertigo (dizziness) will begin. It is believed that fluctuating hormone levels may cause a contraction and dilation of blood vessels in the brain causing the pain we feel as a migraine headache. In the United States it is thought that more women than men have migraines. 18 million as compared to 5 million. This is the type of pain that that keeps people out of work or less productive if they are at work. There are triggers that can set off a migraine. One of those is muscle spasm in the cervical(neck) muscles. Knowing this can help you find a start to getting relief. Many times people resort to heavy duty medication such as barbiturates, narcotics, beta blockers, anticonvultants and serotonin
receptor antagonists. Each of these can have severe side effects, may not be effective and may actually make the migraine worse.
Chiropractors have always been effective with treatment of headaches, including migraines. Spinal misalignment in the cervical and upper thoracic vertebra can irritate nerves, cause muscle tension and swelling as well as trigger mechano-receptors. All of these can cause pain; head pain and headaches.There were articles discussing research by Harvard Medical School. The researchers compared results for physical therapy, massage, and other non-drug options as treatment for headaches. Outcomes showed that chiropractic adjustments helped with tension type headaches that have migraine type symptoms. This type of care has been found to be safe with no serious adverse events in nearly 20,000 patients reviewed.
Here some other suggestions often prescribed by chiropractors: 1) take a warm bath or shower, 2) rest in a dark room, 3) apply a cold compress to the back of the neck or forehead, 4) drink fruit juice, especially tomato juice, 5) massage the face, head, neck and shoulders, 6) take vitamin and dietary supplements such as multi-vitamins, magnesium and B-3.
If you have headaches, see your chiropractor for an evaluation. I believe there is a 95% chance of you seeing the results you would like to see.
This information has been brought to you by our weekly Optimal Health University from May 12-17, 2008.