Self-Care Tips for Migraine
Migraine is one of the most common causes of chronic headache and it causes loss of work force and is more common in women. Although the exact cause is not known, the factors that trigger the disease and facilitate its emergence should be well known by the patient. In this way, it is possible to reduce the severity, frequency and duration of migraine attacks.
Program your living habits
A regular and quality sleep increases the body’s healing capacity. For this reason, it is important to sleep in a dark and well-ventilated room without exceeding a certain sleep time. It is known that too much sleep triggers migraine attacks. It is necessary to wake up at a certain time, which is not late in the morning, and to keep the body in normal balances.
Endorphins act as a natural pain reliever in our body, and regular exercise and healthy se x are known to increase the secretion of endorphins. In this sense, regular exercise by migraine patients will contribute to the stress-reducing effect of endorphins, preventing the development of anxiety and negative emotions.
Build healthy eating habits
Acquiring a healthy eating habit, staying away from foods that trigger migraine (alcohol, cheese, Far East sauces, processed delicatessen products, chocolate, etc.) and eating regularly at certain times cause your body clock to work more comfortably. Foods that cannot be digested enough due to certain food sensitivities and insufficient water consumption are also important factors that trigger headaches.
Stay away from stress
Stress is one of the biggest triggers of migraine pain. Recognize stressful situations to manage your stress. So aim to increase calmness in your life. Schedule your work and life schedule as much as possible, but make time for the things you enjoy. If you stay stressed during the week and only relax on the weekends, review your working style. It is known that patients in shift work lines experience more migraine attacks.
Don’t look at bright lights
Bright lights can cause the development of migraine attacks. Unnatural lights, reduce strong lights, if necessary, you can reduce this effect by pulling the curtains or turning off the lights when you realize that the pain will begin. Some patients can be protected from bright light by wearing sunglasses indoors.
Do not be exposed to strong odors
Sharp smells, especially perfumes, gasoline smell, some deodorants, chemical cleaners cause headaches. Avoiding smells known to trigger migraine attacks will protect you.
Some aromatherapeutic scents can help with mild headaches that occur before migraine attacks begin.
Peppermint oil suppresses the sensation of pain by reducing pain signals. Lavender oil can reduce your anxiety with its calming effect. By applying these oils to the temples and the inside of your wrist, you can control the development of pain by relaxing the muscles and activating the acupuncture points. Get away from blue light screens and loud noise.
In patients with migraine, blue light is often the most difficult shade to deal with. This is the color that glows from your computer and smartphone. So when you feel the migraine starting, get away from the screens. Rest your eyes by looking at the farthest point on the horizon for 20 seconds every 20 minutes while working at the computer.
Migraines can be triggered by almost any of your senses, including your hearing. Just like lights, loud noise can trigger your migraine. Avoid exposure to loud noise.
Do breathing exercise
You can calm your body and reduce your stress with breathing exercises that you will do for 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes at night before going to bed. With this method, you can balance the blood circulation of the brain and increase the amount of oxygen distributed to the body. Increase your relaxation and target different muscle groups in your body as you breathe in and out to release all your tension.
Benefit from acupuncture points on your body
Some points on the feet show a healing effect on other parts of the body as a reflex. Practically sitting and placing your bare feet on a tennis ball, roll the ball across your sole. Try to create a massage effect by paying attention to the sensitive points and the areas that focus on them. Relaxing your feet can reduce pain in other parts of your body, including your head.
Again, with the application of pressure to some acupuncture points of our body, a pain-relieving effect occurs. This method is called acupressure. The most well-known spot is the swollen and fleshy part between your thumb and forefinger. Squeeze this area between your two fingers, the pressure you apply here will relieve your pain.
You can reduce your pain with cold or hot application. Hot compresses that are heated to a degree that will not burn your skin, hot shower, moderate temperature sauna, infrared sauna help to reduce the sensation of pain by solving muscle spasms.
In some cases, cold application to the neck muscles is recommended as a method in which pain intensity can be reduced by obtaining an effect that narrows the blood vessels going to the head area.