What Have I Tried??

Being one who constantly lives with a headache, you think I would know some medications that would help. Well guess what, you're right! In my opinion and personal experience there are not a lot of medications that help me. It really depends on the type of headache I have. If it is from stress usually I would lay down and relax and follow my personal tips. Sometimes ibuprofen helps, but you have to take it with food or else you will feel worse and have an upset stomach. I take around 4 when I get a bad headache. I have also tried Excedrin and I really like it. It has helped me the most. It is a caffeine pill and so I only take one and it helps. Excedrin is a  special medications for migraines and can be found at any drug/grocery store. It is highly recommended by me that you give it a try the next time you get a migraine. Another healthy tip, if you feel that you have a headache coming on then take care of it right then so that later you are not taking care of an outrageously pounding headache, it's no fun.
Others say that Advil helps them. Another is Tylenol, which is an anti-inflammatory (f.y.i), also helps.



If anyone has any comments or questions please feel free to ask! I would love to answer your questions and concerns. And if I do not know the answer I will do the studying for you and give you the best answer!

Thank you for taking time to read my blog, I will continue to post more! 

Statistics & Facts

Not many people know much about what a headache/migraine is, but what I personally can tell you is that a migraine is pretty different from a headache. You have more severe symptoms and many other things. I am going to share with you some statistics that I found that will help you gain a little more knowledge. 

First I will start out with a basic definition then work up from there.

Headache:  pain in head:  a pain in the head lasting for some time caused by changes in pressure in the blood vessels leading to and from the brain.
So a headache is just basically a pain that you receive in your head, you don't get auras, nausea, light/sound sensitive (usually). 
Migraine: a throbbing headache usually affecting only one side of the head and commonly accompanied by nausea and visual disturbances. 
Also followed by auras, light and sound sensitivity. 
Aura: Vision disturbances, or aura, are considered a "warning sign" that a migraine is coming. The aura occurs in both eyes and may involve any or all of the following:

• A temporary blind spot
• Blurred vision
• Eye pain
• Seeing stars or zigzag lines
• Tunnel vision

Other warning signs include yawning, difficulty concentrating, nausea, and trouble finding the right words.

Not every person with migraines has an aura. Those who do usually develop one about 10 - 15 minutes before the headache. However, an aura may occur just a few minutes to 24 hours beforehand. A headache may not always follow an aura.

Migraine headaches can be dull or severe. The pain may be felt behind the eye or in the back of the head and neck. For many patients, the headaches start on the same side each time. The headaches usually:

• Feel throbbing, pounding, or pulsating
• Are worse on one side of the head
• Start as a dull ache and get worse within minutes to hours
• Last 6 - 48 hours

Other symptoms that may occur with the headache include:

• Chills
• Increased urination
• Fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea and vomiting
• Numbness, tingling, or weakness
• Problems concentrating, trouble finding words
• Sensitivity to light or sound
• Sweating

STATS: In the U.S., more than 37 million people suffer from migraines. Some migraine studies estimate that 13 percent of adults in the U.S. population have migraines, and 2-3 million migraine suffers are chronic.

Almost 5 million in the U.S. experience at least one migraine attack per month, while more than 11 million people blame migraines for causing moderate to severe disability.

Migraines occur most often in:

• Women (18 percent of women compared to 6 percent of men)
• People between the ages of 35 and 55
• Lowest income groups
• Caucasian people

More Migraine Statistics

• 91 percent miss work or can’t function normally during migraine attack
• More than 70 percent have a family history of migraine
• 70 percent of those in a Canadian study said migraines caused problems in their relationships
• 70 percent of all migraine sufferers are women
• 69 percent have consulted a physician at some time seeking treatment for migraine pain
• 63 percent have one or more migraine attacks monthly
• 59 percent missed family or social events
• 53 percent have severe disability requiring reducing activities or bed rest
• 51 percent said migraines cut in half their work or school productivity
• Almost half of all migraine sufferers are have not been diagnosed
• 49 percent said they had to restrict activities for at least one day during a migraine episode
• 49 percent restricted their activities at least one day during migraine attacks
• 47 percent of people who have symptoms that meet the guidelines to be diagnosed with migraines thought they had a tension headache, sinus headache or another type of headache
• 31 percent missed at least one day of work or school in past three months
• 25 percent have one or more migraines a week
• 24 percent have gone to the emergency room because the migraine pain was so severe
• 6 percent saw a doctor at a hospital for a migraine in the past three months

What does a migraine look like?

thank you for taking some time to read over my blog. I love sharing this information and keeping everyone updated and helping them gain new knowledge. I will continue to share more. 

RESOURCES:   

• www.google.com/search
• www.google.com/images
• www.dictionary.com
• www.migraine.com

Some Relaxing Tips

Wouldn't you like to know what can help ease that pounding headache or migraine of yours? Well I have some easy ways that can help.
Everyone always says "take some ibuprofen or Tylenol" it's like, I don't want to take medicine, I want to get it to go away without the drugs. Well that's how I am at least.
Many tips have been passed down through generations and some work for many people but as well as some tips may not help certain people. In my case, there are a lot of things that will not take away my headaches. Now I will share with you my opinion and things that have helped others. Like...
°Lay down in a dark and quiet room for a little and get yourself to stop thinking and just clear your head and take deep breathes.
°Lay a wet and possibly even warm tag on your forehead and lay down in a dark and quiet room.
°Make sure you are drinking lots of water.
°If you're stressed, which in a lot of cases can cause your headaches and migraines, then take a few minutes to relax and clear your head.
°I find that some sort of mint can help. Not artificial mint but pretty close to real mint flavor.
°I have heard from others that gatorade helps
°Caffeine; but in my situation this does not help, like soda.
° Rubbing your temples softly.
°Rubbing the back of your neck on each side of your spine, you'll feel two little bumps and they will be sore but I find that it helps.
° Pushing on pressure points on your hands.
Locations: The webbed part of your hand between your thumb and your pointer finger.
°Pushing on pressure points on your head with two fingers.
Locations: in the middle of your forehead.
Then a little lower than that, between the eyebrows.
And then in the indented part of the top of your eye socket, just below the pressure point between the eyebrows.
°Don't eat food that you know is a trigger for you.
If you would like to know some over-the-counter drugs the follow would be..
°Excedrin migraine. It is a caffeine pill and I would recommend only taking 1. It has helped me the most with my headaches.
°Tylenol
°Ibuprofen, but make sure you've eaten something first.
These are just a few that have helped me. Now all this may not help everyone, but give it a try. If you find something else that isn't on this list that helps then please feel free to share your ideas! I would love to hear them!

Headache/Migraine Triggers

There are lots of headache triggers that not many people know about or would ever even think about it being a problem. I had an appointment with the neurologist and they gave me a list of potential headache or migraine triggers. Some are...
Psychic Factors: Emotional upset/family or friends, emotional upset/occupation, business/reversal, business/success, anticipation anxiety, crisis/ serious, post-crisis period, New job/position.
Physical Factors: vacation day, weekend, strenuous exercise, high altitude location, New move, menstrual days, physical illness, overslept/not enough sleep.
Food and Drink Excesses: ripened cheese, chocolate, fermented foods, nuts(peanut butter), onions, citrus fruits, pork, nutra-sweet, baked yeast bread, MSG, bananas, sausage, gluten.
These are only a few and DOES NOT apply to everyone. Everyone's body is different. So try a few of these and see how your head feels after thing something like this. Actually pay attention, and if you find that it could be a cause, go without applying it and see how you feel after. It will take longer than a day, so don't expect it to work right away.
If you haven't had yourself checked for your constant migraines I would highly recommended doing so. Maybe an MRI, a blood test, a heart test to check for a hole in the heart, or anything else you can think of.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Or any suggestions or opinions, please share!
Coming up....
Some relaxing tips!
Medications I've personally tried, that have helped!
Statistics!
Anatomy, functions, and locations of headaches!

May 5, 2013