Simple pain or migraine?
Pain is not the same as pain, experts say. A simple, tension headache is not as intense as a migraine, during which a person can engage in normal activities, although the head is pressed and bathed.
Meanwhile, a migraine headache is of high intensity and is accompanied by various symptoms – light and sound intolerance, nausea. Headache can also be primary, manifesting as an independent condition, or secondary, when pain is a symptom of body disorders.
“Primary headache signals an inappropriate lifestyle – lack of rest, irregular diet or lack of fluids.
For example, one of the simplest causes of pain is not drinking enough water. Too much tension and stress, high blood pressure, digestive disorders can also cause headaches. A headache can also signal a lack of minerals, such as iron – it’s not for nothing that one of the signs of anemia is dizziness and pain,” says Inga Norkienė, manager of the BENU on-call pharmacy.
Migraine “visits” even after a long absence
If a simple headache can last a day, half a day, a week or a month, and it can be suppressed with conventional painkillers, then migraine is characterized by attacks, when the attacks last for several hours or several days, and conventional painkillers are not always effective.
“Migraine attacks can be triggered by certain factors such as stress, poor diet, etc. By knowing them and avoiding them, attacks can be avoided or reduced, but one should not forget that migraine is a constant companion – it can appear again even when there has been no attack for a long time”, says neurologist Monika Žilionė, a doctor at the Biofirst clinic.
When should you consult a doctor?
According to a neurologist, if migraine pains bother you more than 4 times a month and it takes more than 3 months, you should consult a neurologist about prescribing preventive treatment.
“You should consult a doctor when the pain changes its nature, becomes sharp or sudden, and the location – it covers one or another unusual area of the head or face,” says M. Žilionė. – Doctors should be consulted urgently if the pain is accompanied by vomiting, body numbness or paralysis, fever or convulsions.”
I. Norkienė adds that it is worth contacting a doctor for those patients who have never complained of a headache before, but have recently started suffering from regular pains that recur twice a month or a week.
“Migraine patients should also visit a neurologist at least once a year, as the situation is constantly changing, new, more advanced drugs appear on the market that help not only to alleviate attacks, but also to make them less frequent,” notes the pharmacist.
Products that should be excluded from the diet
Headaches can be provoked by stress, neck muscle tension and factors such as lack of sleep, hormonal changes in the female body, certain foods and drinks.
“Alcohol, coffee, energy drinks, dark chocolate, fermented cheese, red wine, champagne, citrus fruits, carbonated drinks – people who complain of headaches often associate the pain with the consumption of these products,” notes I. Norkienė. – A regular diet is also very important, because pain can be provoked by both overeating and not eating on time, because the amount of glucose in the brain decreases and this causes unpleasant symptoms – headache.”
According to neurologist M. Žilionė, headaches also occur with magnesium and iron deficiency. That is why it is important to monitor your blood parameters, perform preventive blood tests, and in case of mineral deficiency, restore them.
Migraines, contraception and the three-eighths rule
“Migraine attacks in women are caused by fluctuations in estrogen levels in the body. This happens during the cycle or when using hormonal contraception, says the neurologist. – It is already known that certain contraceptives can cause an exacerbation of migraine pains, so if a woman does not need treatment with hormonal contraception and is bothered by frequent, difficult-to-control migraine attacks, it is better to avoid pregnancy when choosing barrier contraception.
Headaches can be prevented by a healthy lifestyle, regular, nutritious diet, work and rest regime, which is best illustrated by the rule of three eights: eight hours for sleep, eight for work, eight for leisure and rest.
“If it’s not a migraine attack, but an ordinary headache, cold compresses, a quiet, darkened environment, a walk in the fresh air, light, relaxing exercise or a massage can help,” says I. Norkienė. – Muscle-relaxing magnesium, coenzyme Q10, which ensures cell energy, B group vitamins, and fish oil also help prevent pain.
Oversleeping is not beneficial
The pharmacist adds that the use of probiotics and vegetables is also important – it supports intestinal health, which is directly related to brain activity: “The gut-brain axis works in such a way that if the gut is bad, certain processes are disrupted in the brain and vice versa.”
According to doctor neurologist M. Žilionė, to relieve migraine pain, it is necessary to avoid extremely long weekend sleep – it has been proven that if we sleep longer than a normal day, not following the regime can provoke a migraine attack.
“It is very individual, the provoking factors can be different and, unfortunately, it is not always possible to identify them quickly, but in time, at the beginning of an attack, pain medication or triptan group preparations will help prevent the attack from lasting up to several days,” says the doctor.
2024-08-22 12:19:36