Migraine

Migraine is a recurrent type of headache that is severely painful and usually occurs only on one side of the head. An aura occurs right before one of these attacks. An aura could be manifested as visual flashes or spots or even ringing in the ears which is opposite of the side where the headache is about to occur. The migraine attack may also come with symptoms of dizziness, vomiting, nausea and double vision. If you suffer from migraine headaches and an attack begins then find the quietest, darkest spot in your home and lay down there. The area or should also be relatively warm to allow you to relax faster. Your eyes should remain covered but open. This usually means using some sort of blindfold but a scarf, long handkerchief or other material works just fine. Keep your eyes open as much as possible because experience has shown that shutting your eyes to try and cope with the pain uses extra facial and jaw muscles that can just increase the problem and not cure it. A migraine attack generally brings on a sort of anxiety attack in the sufferer. They know how much it's going to hurt so their heart rate increases. This increase in blood flow makes the problem worse. Once you've retreated to the quiet, dark area and covered your eyes from any possible stimuli then breathing is the next area to focus on. You must let your breathing relax. Panicked breathing will increase the pain you're already experiencing. It is important to learn the migraine pressure point or points that bring relief. A migraine pressure point is a point on your body that, when pressed, will lessen the pain in your head. Surprisingly, a migraine pressure point is not necessarily the point that hurts most.

A migraine pressure point may be pressed and released in slow, rhythmical fashion, and deliberately massaged to gain relief. This will release congested energy and blood from the head and ease your pain. You will be treating each migraine pressure point with these simple steps.

Use only the pads of your thumbs or first two fingers - never the ends. Keep the pressure light to moderate, depending on how sensitive the point is to your touch. Press hard enough so you can feel hardness or tension under your thumb or fingers. If a migraine pressure point hurts so much that you can't take a deep breath, apply less pressure on that point.

Let your fingers sink into the migraine pressure point as you apply pressure gradually. Feel your thumb or finger going gently, gradually deeper and deeper. While your thumb or finger is as deep as you want to go, massage the point with tiny, circular movements of your finger. Keep your thumb or finger on the migraine pressure point until you feel a movement or change there. It may feel softer or warmer. Now slowly, gradually release the migraine pressure point until your thumb or finger leaves the skin. Repeat several times at same point. Remember to be firm, but gentle. Insufficient pressure on a migraine pressure point will not be effective - too much pressure will create tension in your surrounding muscles.

Here are a few migraine pressure point locations to get you started. Start with the first, and work your way through each point, consciously relaxing as you do so. Locate the bony base of your skull in back. Place your thumb pads under the skull's base, each thumb about 1 inch from your spinal column. Holding your thumbs against the two points, tilt your head back slightly. Now press upward gradually, counting to 10, and breathing deeply as you do so. When you reach the deepest point, massage with tiny, circular motions of the thumbs, still holding the pressure. When you feel a change in the point, slowly release the pressure, counting to 10 again. Repeat 5 times. This migraine pressure point is located at the middle of your forehead, right between your eyebrows. Using the migraine pressure point technique described above, and your thumbs or one of the first two fingers, press inward gradually, counting to 10, and breathing deeply as you do so. When you reach the deepest point, massage with tiny, circular motions, still holding the pressure. As you feel a change in the point, slowly release the pressure, counting to 10 as you do so. Repeat 10 times.

Feel the face at the outer corners of your eyes. Move your fingers away from the eyes until you find the spots just behind the bone. Using the migraine pressure point technique and one or two finger pads, apply pressure gradually inward, counting to 10, and breathing deeply as you do so. When you reach the deepest point, massage with tiny, circular motions, still holding the pressure. As you feel a change in the point, slowly release the pressure, counting to 10 as you do so. Repeat 10 times. Massage, a common method of relieving migraine headaches, can be done by a professional - or you can do it yourself using this technique. A light massage combined with migraine pressure points will give you the greatest relief. You need only a few simple points about how to massage a migraine headache.

Surprisingly, you have a migraine pressure point on each hand. It's the fleshy part between your thumb and index finger. Using the thumb pad and index finger of your opposite hand, gradually squeeze the upper portion of this migraine pressure point, counting to 10 and breathing deeply. When you reach the deepest point, massage with tiny, circular motions, still holding the pressure. As you feel a change in the point, slowly release the pressure, counting to 10 as you do so. Repeat 10 times.

The last point you will use to massage migraine headaches away is located on the top of each foot. Locate the place where the bones come together between your big toe and your second toe. With thumb or finger pads, press downward gradually, counting to 10, and breathing deeply as you do so. When you reach the deepest point, massage with tiny, circular motions, still holding the pressure. As you feel a change in the point, slowly release the pressure, counting to 10 again. Repeat 10 times.

Different bodies respond differently to pressure points. These should work for you. If you want information on additional migraine pressure points, ask a local shiatsu professional. A professional will also be able to give you a complete treatment for relief or prevention of migraine headaches. Sometime in our lives, we experience headaches that come and go and are often so severe that our daily routines are affected. Oftentimes, when these headaches occur, we also experience some form of visual changes. Then we say, "It's probably just a migraine."

As opposed to a real migraine, an optical migraine also involves an aura that comes before a migraine attack, but there is the absence of pain. This is rarer than the migraine that comes with severe pain. It is also know as acephalgic migraine or visual or ocular migraine. It is a migraine aura unaccompanied by headache. The visual disturbances that are experienced are flashing lights that look like zigzag or "fortress-like" lights. These auras usually begin as small visual marches crossing the field of vision that slowly fades away. Attacks like these last for several minutes to almost an hour.

Migraines are usually diagnosed if the same symptoms are experiences over and over in many years. It is optical migraine if the same aura is experienced. In case there is a change in the visual pattern, it might be something more serious. A doctor should be consulted in this case.

The cause for migraine is not yet confirmed, it has remained unknown. However, there have been theories that these headaches are caused by allergies, temporary edema of the brain and even endocrine disturbances. One thing is for sure, it is due to disturbance in the blood circulation in the brain. It has been proven that the pain is associated with the narrowing of blood vessels in the brain followed by dilation. Not all headaches are migraines and not all visual disturbances are caused by migraines. There could be more serious causes that may force you to consult a doctor. Visual changes can also be caused by partial seizures, a retina in the eye could have been detached, a "mini-stroke" or a transient ischemic attack, multiple sclerosis or even a brain tumor. Optical migraines are usually experienced by more women than men at a ratio of 3:1. This is an illness that is usually inherited.

Sedatives and aspirin are common medications prescribed to patients with this illness. Resting or sleeping in a dark room usually relieves the symptoms. However, if the aural migraine is accompanied by severe headache, injection of triptans or ingestion or nasal spraying of the same drug gives relief. Beta-blockers, antidepressants and antiepileptic drugs are also effective for most patients.

It is important to recognize the aura that comes before the headache so that medication can be taken before the actual attack. This will prevent the pain from setting in. Biofeedback has been proven to be a good type of therapy for patients who get these attacks. Migraine headaches can be debilitating. They are by far the most severe headaches you can have. A migraine often starts with light sensitivity and is sometimes accompanied by nausea or vomiting. The severe headache will begin shortly after these symptoms have started. Over the counter medications such as aspirin may do little to help ease the pain. Natural migraine remedies can effectively relieve the severe pain without the side effects of drugs.

As soon as you feel the first symptoms of a migraine attack, drink a caffeinated beverage. While caffeine has been thought to trigger a migraine, once it starts the caffeine will actually help by opening up constricted blood vessels. Make sure you drink plenty water for the duration of the headache. Even mild dehydration can worsen headache symptoms. A warm shower or bath may help at the onset of the symptoms. If you are not able to take a shower, try putting a cool compress on your head. Sit quietly in a darkened room. This will help ease light or noise sensitivity as well as nausea. A face massage can ease the headache pain and stimulate blood circulation. A warm foot soak is also good for blood circulation.

Migraine is usually described as a "pounding" or throbbing pain felt in just one side of the head, but in some cases it may spread to the other side. There are two different types of migraine:

Common migraine (without aura) affects about 75 per cent of migraine sufferers. It is a sudden headache that comes on without any warning and worsens with time. Side effects of such migraine include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or increased urination, loss of appetite, fatigue, chills and irritation. Classic migraine (with aura) affects about 25 percent of people diagnosed with migraine. In this case people sense a headache coming on. Symptoms of an aura start about an hour before the headache itself.

The main symptom of classic migraine include visual disturbance such as seeing flashing lights or zigzag lines, visual hallucinations, blurred vision and inability to read, increased sensitivity to bright light, temporary blind spots and visual in size or shape of an object. Other symptoms are sensitivity to loud sounds, temporary numbness or a "needle" sensation in hands, frequent yawning, feelings of hunger and thirst. Rarely sufferers experience numbness around mouth, a brief inability to form a correct sentence, difficulty finding right words and weakness on one side of the body. If you have experienced any of these symptoms it doesn't mean that they will recur. But in any type of headache, where vision is affected it is always suggested to seek professional help.