As migraine sufferers know, this pain is a more serious, persistent, and painful version of a headache. Its effects last for extended times, making it very intense and painful. A migraine can often be accompanied by nausea and vomiting, as well as making people much more sensitive to light and sound. These are a few tips on how people prepare for an oncoming migraine.
1) Find a quiet, dark place to relax
Sensitivity to light and sound are the most common symptoms of a migraine. Try to avoid them as quickly as you can. This will not only help alleviate the pain but also reduce the stress you will experience due to the migraine. To further calm yourself, you can practice some breathing exercises to focus solely on inhaling and exhaling. This might help you take some focus away from the migraine and help you relax.
2) Get Early Treatment
Timing is critical when it comes to treating migraines. Take your prescribed medications or visit your physician or chiropractic provider as early as possible. Act quickly in the moment you feel like you are getting a migraine, instead of waiting for it to affect you, and you will save yourself a lot of pain.
3) Temperature Therapy
Just like applying an ice pack helps with an injury or a sore back, upping or lowering down your surrounding temperature works to lessen the effect of migraines. The only catch here is, you need to figure out what works through trial and error. For some people, applying an ice pack to their head numbs their pain for a while, and for others, using a heating pad can be quite therapeutic. Give both a chance to see what works and is best for you.
4) Acupressure
This is an ancient healing technique based on the Chinese Medicine practice of acupressure. It can be done by simply applying pressure to different acupoints. The pressure point for migraines is L1-4, also called Hegu. Using your right thumb and index finger, find the space on your left hand between your thumb and index finger. Rub against the sides for at least 5 minutes. Be firm, but don’t press too hard. Repeat the process on your right hand. This method often works for migraine patients and can provide quick relief.
5) AtEase Therapeutic Glasses
Using AtEase Glasses patients report alleviation of headaches within two to four minutes of putting on the AtEase glasses. If the glasses are removed immediately following the resolution symptoms, the headache returns, but if they wear them at least 15 minutes, the symptoms are stopped even after their removal. The glasses are designed to occlude all but a rectangular area of central vision. These glasses function on the principle of visual occlusion which exerts a positive physiological response in a multitude of medical conditions including traumatic brain injury and visual motion sensitivity. For more than 50 years, binasal occlusion has been the primary method used by many optometrists.
Patients normally have a heightened awareness of and/or the inability to suppress extraneous visual motion. AtEase glasses eliminate the peripheral vision noise, stabilize visual-spatial perception, and increase visual attention. All these changes reduce the pain and suffering related to headaches of all kinds.