How to relieve a migraine?

Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
Updated on September 27, 2024
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Migraine is one of the most prevalent diseases among the population, mainly characterized by unilateral pulsating headaches, which can be accompanied by nausea and vomiting. The main ways to alleviate a migraine attack are: First, maintain a stable mood without too much emotional fluctuation, ensure bed rest, and rest in a quiet environment. Second, if the migraine is severe, you can take some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkillers for treatment, which mostly have good effects. If the results are unsatisfactory, some specific ergot pain relievers can be used for relief. Third, treat the symptoms accordingly. If there are obvious symptoms of nausea and vomiting, you can orally take or receive muscle injections of painkillers for treatment. Generally, after these treatments, there will be a significant relief from the migraine.

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Written by Liu Yan Hao
Neurology
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What to do if you always have migraines?

Migraine attacks are related to insufficient rest, staying up late, fatigue, or poor sleep, as well as certain foods consumed ordinarily, such as pickled foods and salted vegetables, which contain nitrites. Nitrites can trigger migraine attacks. Other foods like some dairy products and red wine can also easily trigger migraines. If migraines recur frequently, it's important to first identify the causes, such as staying up late or poor sleep. For poor sleep, sedative and sleep aid medications can be taken, and try to avoid staying up late. Also, consider if you frequently consume pickled foods, dairy products, or red wine, and if so, try to correct these habits, which might reduce the frequency of migraine attacks. Furthermore, during a migraine attack, you can take some pain relievers to alleviate the symptoms. (The use of medications should be under the guidance of a doctor.)

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Written by Feng Ying Shuai
Traditional Chinese Medicine
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Can migraines be massaged?

For some primary migraines clinically, we can alleviate clinical symptoms, reduce the intensity of pain, and decrease the frequency of pain through massage, which has certain clinical effects. How do we perform the massage? Generally, we select some massage areas according to the patient's clinical symptoms and characteristics, and also choose some acupoints based on differentiation. For example, for forehead pain, we usually start by selecting local acupoints, including Jingming, Sizhukong, Yangbai, and Touwei acupoints, then massage Baihui and Tongtian acupoints. For distant points, we choose to massage acupoints such as Houxi and others to alleviate the clinical symptoms of migraines.

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Written by Zhang Hui
Neurology
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How to treat migraines

Migraine is a very common type of headache clinically. Its treatment mainly includes the following aspects: The first method involves giving patients some non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkillers for treatment, which most patients find relieving. If the headache is severe and these drugs are not effective, then it is necessary to use some specific drugs, mainly ergot preparations. Second, symptomatic treatment. Migraine patients are prone to complications such as nausea and vomiting, and can be treated with some antiemetic drugs. Third, patients should rest in a quiet environment, avoid strong light and loud noises, and maintain a calm mood. Additionally, if migraines recur frequently, preventative treatment is recommended. The treatment plan mainly includes some calcium channel blockers and some β-blockers.

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Written by Zhang Shu Kun
Traditional Chinese Medicine
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Can migraine be treated with moxibustion?

Moxibustion can be used for patients experiencing migraines, as it is a type of physical therapy within traditional Chinese medicine that effectively helps regulate the body and alleviate symptoms. Initially, moxibustion can be applied to acupoints such as Sanyinjiao, Quchi, and Fenglong, which can effectively help relieve migraines. Alternatively, massaging the head with palms also has a soothing effect. If the pain is severe, taking pain relief medication promptly can also improve and regulate the condition. It is crucial to maintain adequate sleep, avoid excessive fatigue, and particularly avoid staying up late.

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Written by Feng Ying Shuai
Traditional Chinese Medicine
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Can acupuncture be used for migraines?

For migraine, such as some primary migraines, acupuncture can be used for treatment and has certain efficacy. It can alleviate the symptoms of headache, reduce the intensity of pain, and decrease the frequency of pain episodes. Generally, for migraines, some local acupoints are selected, such as Fengchi, Jia Che, Si Zhu Kong, and Shuai Gu for acupuncture. If the pain is very severe, electroacupuncture can sometimes be used to enhance the effect of acupuncture to achieve the effects of unblocking meridians and relieving pain. Of course, acupoints are also chosen based on the patient's condition to treat migraines. For instance, migraines caused by liver qi stagnation would involve selecting acupoints that soothe the liver and regulate qi, such as Qi Men and Tai Chong, to help treat the migraines.