HTW: Relieving a migraine

While today's post is a little bit specialised, my hope is that I may help at least one person. You see, I am a migraine sufferer. Prior to this, whenever someone complained of a migraine I had imagined the pain to be that of a larger than average migraine. Boy was I wrong!


This fiend can get you at any time of the day or night, and for any reason. You will lose your appetite, your ability to think straight and in my case, your eyesight temporarily. So what do you do if you find yourself in the clutches of one of these demons?


SLEEP: For obvious reasons, sleep is amazing for our bodies healing processes. Changes in sleep patterns such as jet lag or changing study and work patterns have the potential to reduce the quality of our sleep cycles and bring upon a migraine. You may want to try getting up and going to bed at roughly the same times each day. It is also important to rest in a dark room. Other than disturbing your sleep, the light can sometimes trigger a migraine.


FOOD AND DRINK: While you don't want to drink too much caffeine, just a small amount is known to help the pain of migraines to disappear. Skipping meals is also frowned upon. It is better to eat a series of smaller meals throughout. You may want to take note of any foods which seem to trigger a migraine and steer clear of these. For me, pumpkin and coconut trigger a hell of a migraine. While this last one sounds a  little far-fetched, the hot ingredient (the seeds) of red capsicums are a great painkiller. For convenience, you can buy cayenne pepper capsules from most health food stores.


OTHER TREATMENTS: The cold is fantastic for migraines, so it is no wonder that applying an ice pack directly to your head helps to relieve the pain. Closing your eyes at the same time will help you to relax and help with the cooling effects of the ice pack. If you don't have access to an ice pack, simply place your hands into icy water while making fists. This will act the same as the ice pack over the head.


Studies have shown that taking 400mg of Riboflavin per day can help to eliminate migraines altogether. Riboflavin tablets can be found at most health food stores. Two remedies I have found of particular use while at work are to wear my reading glasses, as they will take a considerable amount of pressure off your eyes, and to drop two dissolvable aspirin tablets into a drink bottle filled with water and to sip throughout the day. I find it drastically relieves the pain and symptoms.