A migraine is a terrible headache that tends to recur and is often accompanied by a feeling of nausea. The pain is usually felt on one side of the head. One may experience flashing lights, zigzag lines, bright spots, partial loss of vision, numbness or tingling in the hand, tongue, or face. Moving around makes the headache worse. While no medical tests confirm migraine, the diagnosis is based mainly on the above-mentioned symptoms.<\/p>\n
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Many scientists think migraine is a vascular disorder caused by a tightening (constriction) and sudden opening (dilation) of the blood vessels in the head, neck, or scalp. Others believe that an abnormal release of neuro-chemicals in the brain, such as serotonin or noradrenalin may cause the throbbing pain of migraine. In Ayurveda, two conditions, known as Ardhaavabheda (meaning literally the unilateral pain) and Anantavaata resemble the classical migraine.<\/p>\n
Causes<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Activities:<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n In most individuals the following activities may possibly trigger migraine.<\/p>\n \u2022 Stress and time pressure, major hassles, major losses, anger, frustration, depression and conflict.<\/p>\n \u2022 Excessive relaxation and positive feelings such as excitement.<\/p>\n \u2022 Smells and fumes, tobacco smoke, light glare or dazzle, weather changes and high altitude.<\/p>\n \u2022 Onset of puberty in girls, monthly period, birth control pills, pregnancy, delivery, estrogen therapy and menopause.<\/p>\n \u2022 Motion and travel.<\/p>\n \u2022 Too much, too little or interrupted sleep.<\/p>\n \u2022 Hunger or fasting.<\/p>\n \u2022 Excessive activity (especially if you are not in good health).<\/p>\n Food:<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n The food items that are known to trigger migraine are:<\/p>\n \u2022 Beer, wine and ‘hot’ liquor.<\/p>\n \u2022 Caffeine in coffee, tea, and cola drinks and some over-the-counter medicines.<\/p>\n \u2022 Dairy products such as ice-cream, milk, curd, cheese, butter and milk cream.<\/p>\n \u2022 Fermented foods, such as dosa and pickled foods.<\/p>\n \u2022 Grapes, lemons, bananas, figs, and raisins.<\/p>\n \u2022 Processed meats.<\/p>\n \u2022 Chinese food containing monosodium glutamate (MSG).<\/p>\n \u2022 Saccharin in diet foods or diet drinks.<\/p>\n \u2022 Onions and beans.<\/p>\n \u2022 Yeast-containing products, such as fresh breads and doughnuts.<\/p>\n \u2022 Nuts and peanuts.<\/p>\n Drugs<\/b>:<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n Medicines that might trigger migraine are:<\/p>\n \u2022 Blood vessel dilating drugs such as nitroglycerine.<\/p>\n \u2022 Drugs for high blood pressure such as reserpine, nifedipine; diuretics.<\/p>\n \u2022 Anti-asthma medications like aminophylline.<\/p>\n \u2022 Estrogens including birth control pills.<\/p>\n \u2022 Painkillers in general\u2014either overuse or withdrawal from them.<\/p>\n Self-Help Guidelines<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n \u2022 Spread your workload evenly during the day to avoid highs and lows of stress at work or at home.<\/p>\n \u2022 Do not sleep excessively, especially during Sunday mornings and holidays.<\/p>\n \u2022 Do not get too tired.<\/p>\n \u2022 Eat at regular times, and do not skip meals.<\/p>\n \u2022 Do not eat or drink anything you think brings headache.<\/p>\n \u2022 Limit the amount of tea, coffee and painkillers you use.<\/p>\n \u2022 Watch your posture. Try to keep your neck straight.<\/p>\n \u2022 Keep your muscles relaxed when you are not physically active. Try not to frown or tighten your jaw.<\/p>\n \u2022 Restrict your physical activities in hot weather.<\/p>\n \u2022 Avoid bright or flickering lights, loud noises or strong smells if they trigger headaches.<\/p>\n \u2022 Remember the classic advice; “Ati sarvatra varjayeth” or moderation in all things. <\/b><\/p>\n Treatment Plan<\/span><\/p>\n There are three factors which prevent migraine when used in a synergy. The first is to stop rebounding. The second is to reduce your exposure to avoidable migraine triggers. The third is to take preventive medication.<\/p>\n Rebounding occurs when you rely on painkillers and other quick fixes for temporary relief. Each time this type of medication wears off, the underlying problem\u2014migraine\u2014 is magnified. Rebounding also blocks your ability to respond to the next two steps in preventing migraine: reducing your exposure to avoidable trigger factors and, if necessary, taking preventive medication.<\/p>\n Reducing exposure to trigger factors is difficult because these factors from many sources are all mixed together at any given moment. This is the reason why people sometimes notice headaches after eating or drinking certain things, such as chocolate or wine, but sometimes don’t get headaches despite exposure to these items. Therefore, it requires observation and patience on the part of the patient to make sure that any addition in the diet does not trigger a headache.<\/p>\n Preventive treatment pays dividends in the end but can seem to be difficult in the beginning, before it starts working. As a preventive treatment, you may be advised to take specific Ayurvedic medicines such as Soota sekhara rasa, Mahaavaata vidhwansana rasa, Dasamoolaarishta, Shad bindu taila, Chandanaadi vati, etc. Once adequate headache control is maintained for at least several months, preventive treatment can be liberalized.<\/p>\n This may mean experimentally adding dietary items, one at a time, gradually reducing the dosage of preventive medication, or eventually, both. In this way, the level of preventive treatment required to maintain long-term headache control can be determined.<\/p>\n However, in the long run, it’s the elimination of dietary triggers which is a crucial step in preventing migraine. <\/b><\/p>\n Ayurvedic Remedies<\/span><\/p>\n \u2022 Hold an ice-pack to your forehead or temples to reduce your pain.<\/p>\n \u2022 Lie down in a quiet, dark room.<\/p>\n \u2022 You could try keeping a migraine diary. Writing down information about your headaches and what you were doing when they happened can help you find out what triggers your headaches. Then you can avoid those triggers.<\/p>\n \u2022 Take the juice of Tinospora cordifolia (giloy) in doses of 10 ml with honey.<\/p>\n \u2022 Apply a paste made of black pepper and rice with the juice of bhringaraaja on the forehead. Alternately, you can apply the \u2022 Drop some ghee, medicated with saffron flowers (kesar) into each nostril and inhale deeply.<\/p>\n \u2022 Take three grams of coriander seeds, five grams of lavender flowers (ustukhudusa), five seeds of black pepper, and five badam. Grind with water, sieve, and take before sunrise. Soak badam overnight in water and remove the skin before preparing the paste.<\/p>\n \u2022 Godanti mishran in the dose of 1-2 tablets twice daily with lukewarm water controls migraine. Pathyadi kwatham, an oral liquid in the dose of 15 ml twice daily with equal water is a good remedy. Shirashoolaadi vajra ras is very useful in general migraine headaches.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\npaste of sandalwood also.<\/p>\n