migraine relief
article submitted by Melanie

Migraines are the worst. This chronic condition can be exhausting, debilitating, and last for days.  The thing is when you get a migraine all your senses become hypersensitive, including smell, light and sound.  Any strong smell can also add to the nausea.

Migraines can be quite complex, having various triggers, mainly nutritional and hormonal. There are also links to a build up to tension in the neck shoulders and upper back and emotionally they often indicate a feeling of being backed into a corner or pushed around, and being in situations that you feel are out of your control.

Often once a full blown migraine hits sometimes the best thing you can do is lie down in a dark and quiet room, but before then (some people get visual disturbances like flashes of light (called an aura) before an attack) I'd suggest you try to identify and eliminate anything that might be a contributory dietary factor.  The most common suspects are cheese, wine, coffee, tea, chocolate and bread.  If the attacks seem to be connected to your menstrual cycle, geranium oil can be very effective as an alternative to lavender (although used as a preventative measure or at early onset you may find lavender easier to use). If you feel emotional factors are also causative then I definitely reccommend petitgrain. Black pepper can be very soothing as can peppermint. Peppermint or ginger (I advise you drink the herbal tea ) can also ease the nausea. Often people have a preference for one or the other.

Massage (definitely preventative only, as during an attack touch can be unbearable) can help ease the tension in head, neck, shoulders and upper back. The pain from a migraine happens when your blood vessels relax and dilate. This is because before you get a migraine when the blood vessels constrict creating a build up of pressure, which when released is like an explosion (figuratively speaking).  The muscle tension is what can create / add to the blood vessels constricting.  Dentist's believe that there is a connection between migraine and grinding / clenching the teeth when asleep, and you can get "gum shields" to alleviate this although I believe this is just another manifestion of severe upper body tension.  Indian Head Massage can be very beneficial for prevention. I reccommend using essential oils for the massage (marjoram can be very useful) but advise you get some one qualified / trained to do it (second year students need case studies and are well enough trained to do a decent job, so some colleges will offer discounted treatments!).

When experiencing a full blown attack there are pressure points that while the dont always get rid of them completely can be very effective all the same. I can think of 5 but I think it might be quite hard to explain where they are in a post, but I'll try the two simplest.

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