Migraines and Headaches

Many of us suffer from migraines and headaches, but what exactly are migraine headaches ? And how do they differ from other types of headaches ?

One way to tell if it’s a migraine is by the length of time it lasts. Migraine headaches aren't going to go away in a half-hour. Chances are your headache, if it truly is a migraine headache, is going to last anywhere from four to seventy-two hours. Yes, that’s right. Seventy or more hours is not common, but neither is it unheard of. Should your headache last that long, of course, you should be in the emergency room. Don’t wait nearly that long to seek medical attention.

Migraine headaches aren't usually just headaches. It is very likely that you will also be suffering from nausea, vomiting, extreme pain, sensitivity to lights, and auras. It is the aura component that most differentiates a migraine from a headache, though, it must be appreciated that some people do suffer migraines headaches without experiencing auras.

Treating migraines is quite difficult because no two migraines are exactly alike. Another person suffering migraine may never experience the symptoms you experience.

There are no credible records of the numbers of people who suffer from migraines, but it has been estimated that worldwide the number of sufferers could possibly be as high as 100 million. Migraines are not limited to adults, either.

Who suffers from migraines and headaches ?

Anyone but unfortunately, many children suffer from migraines. Regardless of how many migraine sufferers there really are, almost all estimates agree that two-thirds of migraine patients are women.

There are two types of migraines, the common migraine and the classic migraine. To just speak of a migraine headache is therefore somewhat misleading.

Common migraine - is slow to develop and is often preceded by feelings of depression or tiredness and anxiety. In addition, you may find you are irritable and subject to sudden cravings or bouts of unexplained yawning before the onset of a common migraine. Once the headache starts, a common migraine is almost always focused on just one side of the head.

Classic migraine - develops in a much more complex way. In fact, there are four stages to the onset of a classic migraine headache, namely:

Prodome

Aura

Headache

Post Headache

Although there are differences, both types result from the dilation, or expanding, of blood vessels that have become constricted due to the release of seratonin. This dilation causes pain in the nervous system. Both types can occur as infrequently as a few times a year or as often as a few times a week.

The Prodome stage - like the beginning of a common migraine, may begin with feelings of fatigue, irritability, or depression. The prodome stage takes about 24 hours before it slides into the aura stage.

The Aura stage - involves an expanding area of blindness caused the narrowing of blood vessels. The blind area is girdled by a shimmering border that may increase to include up to half your field of vision in each eye. Often there are visual disturbances such as bright spots, flashing flights, zig-zagging lights. Sometimes sufferers also experience burning sensations or a weakness on one side of their body. Generally, this stage lasts anywhere from ten minutes to half an hour.

The Headache - occurs when those constricted blood vessels dilate and blood literally gushes to the brain. At this point the headache as we think of it really begins with a severe, throbbing pain on one side of the head, though it is not uncommon for the pain to expand to cover both sides of the head. The pain is often heightened by bright lights or loud noises.

Post Headache - characterized by tiredness to the point of complete fatigue.

Migraine headaches are different to tension headaches in that tension headache pain, tends to encompass the entire head. Whilst it’s not uncommon for migraine pain to be localized not only on one side of the head, but sometimes in a specific area of the head, such as at the temple or behind one ear.

Headache Relief

If you suffer from frequent headaches you have probably tried all sorts of medicines for headache relief. Before your reach for the aspirin yet again, however, there are a few lifestyle changes you could consider to ease that nagging headache. Relief from pain could be as simple as eating the right foods or ensuring you exercise frequently, cutting down on your daily coffee intake, or developing regular sleeping patterns.

Another major cause of frequent headaches can be stress, so developing techniques to keep stress under control can be key to headache relief. Take stock of the tasks you need to complete during each day. Are there some activities you can drop, or others that you can ask someone else to do for you? Feeling you are on top of your workload, as well as taking regular breaks away from your work can be great for stress and headache relief.

Often we need to identify the cause of our headaches before we can find the best headache relief techniques. Keeping a diary of when you get a headache, what you were doing at that time, how you were feeling, what you ate, how long the headache lasted, and if anything provided relief, is the best way to identify patterns that can help effective headache relief.

More articles to read.....

Headache Relief
Is it a Sinus Headache ?
Migraine Headache Treatment for Children
Tension Headache
Stress Headache
Migraine Headache Medicine
Food Triggers for Migraine Headache
Menstrual Migraines
Natural Headache Medicine
Natural Remedy for Headache
Migraine Aura without Headache
Child Headache

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