How to successfully treat Migraines

What are Migraines?

Migraines are a type of headache that is most commonly experienced in your prime of life and relatively infrequently after the age of 40. Your susceptibility to migraines is typically inherited and can normally be caused by a combination of triggers.

According to the International Headache Society, a migraine is a headache that lasts for between 4 and 72 hours and has at least two of these symptoms:

• the pain is one sided
• it is moderate to severe
• there is associated throbbing
• it is aggravated by any movement

And….. there needs to be at least one of these associated symptoms.

• nausea
• vomiting
• sensitivity to light
• sensitivity to noise

This definition does not lessen the unbearable nature of other headaches, it just helps to categorise them. Other common types of headaches are Tension, Sinus and Cluster.

The precise cause of migraines is unknown. There are lots of opinions, but they’re commonly thought to be the result of irregular brain activity momentarily affecting chemicals, nerve signals and blood vessels in the brain.

It’s not yet clear what causes this variation in brain activity. It is probable that your genes make you more likely to suffer migraines as a result of a specific trigger.

Migraine triggers

Migraine triggers are very individual, and there are probably as many possible migraine triggers as there are sufferers. They are typically thought to be categorised as either physical, hormonal, medicinal, emotional, dietary, and environmental factors. This is probably not that helpful as these factors encompass just about every aspect of our daily lives.

If you can identify a consistent trigger, then that would help with prevention. There is a list of possible triggers on the Headache Australia website that may prove useful as would a diary of your daily eating habits. Bring this diary with you when you attend your first treatment at Essential Acupuncture Clinic

Results of recent studies confirmed that acupuncture “exhibited persistent, superior, and clinically relevant benefits for migraine” sufferers.

How can Acupuncture help?

The difference between a western and eastern approach is vast. Your doctor will prescribe you medicine but will not attend to the cause of the problem.

At an acupuncture session you will be treated with respect and dignity as Julie attempts to get to the root of the problem. Unlike your doctor, she will encourage you to return regularly so that she can provide preventative health care. She will closely monitor your progress and continue with sessions that will reduce migraine frequency, number of days with migraine, and pain intensity experienced.

Our experience with western doctors leaves us with the expectation that we visit them once and leave with medicine that cures us immediately. You will feel an immediate improvement after an acupuncture session but it is the regular and consistent treatments that are most effective. My clients that get the best results are those that visit at least once a week. They are smart, and realise that a little preventative care will result in a healthier, physical and emotional quality of life.

For an example of how this benefits an individual who used to suffer migraines prior to acupuncture treatment, visit this blog.

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