We have all had at least one of these at some point in life and, regardless of the type and degree of pain they put us in, there’s only one truth…they SUCK! We go straight for the painkiller bottle and sometimes that takes the edge off. Or, maybe you’re one that goes to get a shower. I’ve dealt with these since I was in my teens and I don’t believe there will ever be a miracle cure. But, there are methods to help keep them at bay.
What about me? I have 3 different types of headaches; migraine, tension, and cluster. I have learned over the years to understand which is which for myself but have to understand why. My migraines come with an aura, which is basically flashing lights. I can’t close my eyes because it flashes behind my eyelids and that just makes it nauseating. The migraines are normally pretty bad as I have to go to a dark room and lay down. It is on either side of my head; sometimes it’s on the other side. They tend to last for a few hours when treated, not until then. My tension headaches typically come from my neck, as my cervical spine has it’s own share of issues. If I can’t get my neck tension under control, I’ll get a headache from temple to temple. This, for me, usually isn’t as painful, but lasts for quite a bit longer, even days if my body isn’t working with me. Finally, the misery of all misery, the cluster headaches. Fortunately, I don’t get these as often with medication. This starts out of nowhere, no hand-holding, behind one of my eyes, and feels like someone just put a knife through your skull. These are the shortest in length but often will be in batches, sometimes 10 minutes later, sometimes 1 day later, until that cluster is finished. It is called the “suicide headache” for a reason.
What do I do? I have done Botox, acupuncture, trigger point therapy, and numerous medications to no avail. Unfortunately, the only thing that has mildly helped, I take a medication called Topamax, dosed at 400 mg as a preventative. It is playfully (and honestly called “dopamax” because it dumbs your cognitive abilities, especially memory, which was already terrible. I also take sumatriptan spray alongside aleve when needed. There are other preventatives but you’d need to speak to your neurologist about those. Sometimes, I think half of the spray goes down the back of the throat and that is a horrible taste. I use an ice pack to dull any neck pain. Ice is a beautiful thing when dealing with any sort of headache. If your headache is caused by tight muscles, heat therapy or a shower will work. My migraines and clusters are made considerably worse by heat. Also, make sure you have a good pillow if you are presented with tension. I can’t stress this enough. Once I began using a cervical pillow laying on my SIDE, the tension on my neck has lessened considerably. I will link all that I use. Other things that I do besides stretch are have a theracane, which is a whacky cane used to put pressure on certain trigger points. It is held there until these points release and is a wonderful way to self-massage while sitting back and watching TV. Lastly, I have what’s called the “Chirp Wheel”. These things are wonderful for tension across the back and shoulder blades. They have a groove in the center that makes sure your spine isn’t getting rolled while your massaging. I start with the large wheel and go down. Back cracking is amazing!
Things to do:
1. Make an appointment with your doctor/neurologist
2. Preventative (Topamax, Nurtec, Inderal)
3. Acute treatment (Sumatriptan, Eletriptan, NSAID)
4. Comfort (ice pack and pillow…the others are nice to have around)
God Bless