Migraines and Inflammation: Pinning Down Their Link

March 14, 2021

migraines,how to make your head stop hurting

Migraines can cause significant disruptions in your life. If you’re a working professional, frequent attacks could lead to decreased productivity. If you’re a student, you might end up having a hard time focusing and remembering your lessons. Even if you’re in late adulthood, migraine episodes can also completely ruin your day and force you to skip your routine.

Good thing, if you know how to make your head stop hurting, you have a better chance of managing the situation better. So, how do you do that? Where do you start?

Firstly, you’ll need to know more about your health problem. For example, you’ll need to understand the reason why you suffer from migraines. Do you notice specific triggers? What symptoms occur along with your migraine attacks? The more you know about your condition, the better you can cope. Then, you can consider what remedies to use based on the root cause of your attacks.

In this discussion, we’ll learn basic things about migraines. We’ll also tackle its connection to various health concerns, most specifically, inflammation.

 

Migraine and Its Many Accompanying Symptoms

Rarely does a migraine attack happen without an accompanying symptom. Most migraineurs experience additional issues, including vomiting, nausea, sensory sensitivity, and vertigo. Others also report experiencing different symptoms before they suffer from a bad migraine attack. Some examples are as follow:

  • Unexplainable fatigue
  • Sudden food cravings
  • Neck pain
  • Repeated yawning
  • Depression or anxiety 
  • Irritability and mood swings
  • Hyperactivity
  • Visual or sensory aura (seeing flashing lights and feeling tingling or numbness on the limbs and face)

Often, an episode can last for a few minutes. However, if you suffer from chronic attacks, you might experience them for more than a day. 

 

Understanding Migraine Attacks

Part of your journey in learning how to make your head stop hurting is to pinpoint the factors that can make one more vulnerable to developing migraine attacks. This is an extra crucial step because each migraine case tends to differ significantly from the other. Some have mild and sparse attacks, while others suffer from worst episodes and accompanying systems.

migraines,how to make your head stop hurting

Risk Factors of Migraine – Who Are More Prone?

Although the pain tends to affect almost everyone, most migraineurs are in their teens or late 50s. Also, even if it happens in both males and females, studies suggest that women tend to suffer more intense pains. This may be because of factors like hormonal fluctuations during the entire menstrual cycle. 

Besides these risk factors, here are other things that could increase the likelihood of migraine episode:

  • Lack of enough sleep 
  • Excess intake of alcohol or caffeine
  • Anxiety of depression
  • Stress (mental, emotional, or physical)
  • Family history of migraines
  • Weather or temperature fluctuations
  • Sensory overload
  • Excessive intake of pain relievers
  • Previous neck or spinal trauma

It’s good practice to note the specific triggers that contribute to the worsening of your attacks. This way, you can avoid or reduce your exposure to your triggers. 

It would help if you also kept tabs on your migraines' time, duration, and frequency. Typically, migraineurs experience episodes that can for around 4 to 72 hours. It can also recur each month if you have a chronic type. 

 

Neurogenic Inflammation Can Trigger Migraine Attacks

Besides the risk factors we listed previously, recent studies continue to look for other things that could trigger or aggravate migraine attacks. One example of that would be neurogenic inflammation. While inflammation is one of the most interesting ways the body defends itself, it can also exacerbate many health issues, including migraine attacks. 

Findings from studies show that migraineurs typically have high levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), a chemical marker for inflammation. As a result, several researchers try to look into the possibility of using anti-inflammatory drugs in reducing the pain of a migraine episode. Essentially, anti-inflammatory medication may help reduce the swelling of blood vessels in the head, a factor that may affect the severity of a migraine. 

In addition to anti-inflammatory medication, researchers also look into the potential of using calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) inhibitors. Until today, clinical studies on CGRP inhibition show promising results in controlling and aborting migraines. 

 

How to Make Your Head Stop Hurting

The link between migraines and neurogenic inflammation also establishes the possibility of using upper cervical care in managing migraines. Basically, this approach focuses on the C1 and C2 bones or the uppermost neck bones that hold the head in place. 

Sometimes, after an accident or a physical trauma on the head or neck, the two cervical bones shift their position. This causes mechanical stress on the brainstem, a central nervous system organ that runs underneath these two bones. Aside from irritating the brainstem tissue, the shifting of the cervical bones position also disrupts signals transmitted to and from your sensory organs and brain.

The inflammation suffered by migraineurs likely results from this chain of events. Hence, if you can fix or restore the neck bones’ original orientation, you can potentially eliminate the inflammation and begin seeing massive changes in your condition.

If you have been looking for options on how to make your head stop hurting, going to an upper cervical practitioner might be your silver lining. It’s an all-natural approach that could be quite attractive for migraineurs looking for a lasting pain relief option. 

Learn more about this natural remedy for migraines today! You can contact a nearby upper cervical doctor for an appointment or queries regarding the natural approach.

Find An Upper Cervical Doctor in Your Areato schedule a consultation today.

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