Migraines and other Headaches

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MIGRAINES AND OTHER HEADACHES

Headaches really are worse for women than they are for men. What is about women's headaches that make them feel so intense and sometimes even disabling. The answer may be astrogen.

All purpose options

Thumbs up, pain down

Place your thumbs right in the centre of each temple. Massage firmly using a circular motion for a minute or two, or until you feel relief.

Take a hot bath or shower

This may further help your muscles relax.

Visualize away your headache

Imagine that your headache pain is caused by a rope that's knotted and wrapped tightly around your head. Then concentrate hard on seeing it unknot inch by inch. Watch as it slowly loosens and falls away from your head.

Try necking with a heating pad

When you have a stiff neck, you can get a headache, because the stiff muscles hurt and cause pain that can be felt in your head.

Ice a migraine

For easing migraines, ice usually works better than heat. A resealable plastic bag full of ice, wrapped in a kitchen towel, works.

Lie down in a dark room

If you have migraines, lying down in a darkened room and napping for an hour or so can usually make the headache history.

Have a snack

You can get headaches from just being hungry, because your blood sugar drops.

Take a coffee break

If you feel a migraine coming on, go some place quite and have a strong cup of coffee. Take aspirin or ibuprofen according to package instructions. Like ice, caffeine acts as a vasoconstrictor, which seemsto help migraines.

Keep a headache diary

Both tension and migraine headaches can have triggers.

Avoid migraine triggers

Avoid the most common offenders; that is, foods that have been aged, fermented, pickled or marinated. Other reputed problem foods are those containing monosodium glutamate, or MSG, nitrates or nitrites.