Posts Tagged ‘chronic migraine symptoms’
Thursday, October 27th, 2011
An amazing connection exists between fibromyalgia and migraine illness- the majority of fibromyalgia patients also suffer from migraine headaches. Moreover, some natural ingredients (like magnesium) are equally beneficial for migraine and fibromyalgia patients.
What is fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia is an autoimmune disease that causes muscular pain, joint aches, and tactile sensitivity. Fibromyalgia patients experience sharp pain while doing things that don’t normally cause pain to others, and without any visible sign of injury or inflammation. Scientists haven’t found an exact cause for fibromyalgia, nor have they discovered a cure, but there are some therapies and natural ingredients that benefit fibromyalgia patients.
10 Golden Food Rules for Chronic Pain Sufferers
Migraines are a comorbid condition of fibromyalgia
People who suffer from chronic migraine symptoms- debilitating head pain, nausea, stomach cramps, migraine aura, and migraine triggers- have a strong chance of also receiving a diagnosis of chronic fibromyalgia. Likewise, a high percentage of fibromyalgia sufferers are likely to get diagnosed migraine attacks. That doesn’t mean that one illness causes the other, only that they often appear side by side in a patient’s medical history.
Migraines and fibromyalgia both respond well to similar medications
Several prescription chronic pain remedies are available as double-duty fibromyalgia-migraine treatments. Drugs such as Cymbalta, Savella, and Lyrica, “officially” prescribed for fibromyalgia symptoms, are also helpful for easing migraines, depression, and anxiety. While these fibromyalgia drugs are not approved by the FDA specifically for migraines, it is a commonly accepted practice for headache experts and neurologists to prescribe them for patients who exhibit symptoms of both fibromyalgia and migraine headaches.
Magnesium deficiency is prevalent among migraineurs and fibro sufferers
Magnesium increases stamina, builds and strengthens joint cartilage, regulates and balances healthy metabolic function, and alleviates tension . For migraineurs or fibro patients seeking natural nutrients for pain, magnesium supplements are the best choice. That is because scientists have noted a high incidence of magnesium deficiency in patients of migraine and fibromyalgia.
Some of the symptoms of magnesium deficiency are:
- Low levels of Adenosine tri-phosphate (ATP), a chemical your body needs for quick bursts of energy, and for all exercises requiring physical exertion. Fibromyalgia and migraine patients alike often experience severe pain after a workout, or even after minimal physical exercise.
- Hyper-stimulation of the nervous system is a common sign of magnesium deficiency, in addition to fibromyalgia and chronic migraines. Migraine patients and fibromyalgia sufferers experience a strong overreaction to outside stimuli such as noise, scents, sounds, weather changes, and air pressure, resulting in excruciating throbbing pain.
- Magnesium deficiency causes an increase in substance P, a chemical that your body makes to help perceive pain signals. The more substance P you have in your system, the more frequently- and intensely- you will experience pain. Sufferers of migraine illness and fibromyalgia have significantly higher levels of substance P than non-chronic pain sufferers.
- People who have digestive problems are likely to suffer from malnourishment, including deficiency in vitamins and minerals. Migraine sufferers often experience nausea, stomach cramping, and the urge to vomit. Fibromyalgia symptoms may include Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), gluten intolerance, and other gastrointestinal issues. Therefore, it’s not surprising that magnesium deficiency would play a strong role in their pain symptoms.
Talk to your headache specialist
If you suffer from migraine illness, and you suspect that you might also have some of the symptoms of fibromyalgia, then you should speak to your physician. A diagnosis of fibromyalgia might lead to finding a successful cure for your chronic pain, either in the form of a prescribed fibromyalgia drug or natural magnesium supplements.
Read more about preventing migraines:
Best Twitter Pages to Follow for Migraine Sufferers- Top 40
Top 25 Fragrance-Free, Migraine-Free Cleansers and Cosmetics
Sources:
Images:
Sharp pain, Pills, Almonds and Tired
Tags: Autoimmune disease, Cause for fibromyalgia, chronic migraine, chronic migraine symptoms, chronic pain, Chronic pain fibromyalgia, Fibromyalgia and migraine, Fibromyalgia drugs, Fibromyalgia-migraine, magnesium deficiency, Magnesium supplements, migraine attacks, migraine aura, migraine headaches, migraine illness, migraine remedies, migraine symptoms, migraine triggers, Migraines magnesium, Neurologists, Symptoms of fibromyalgia, What is fibromyalgia
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Tuesday, June 28th, 2011
Will Cindy McCain be successful in raising awareness and funds for chronic migraine headache research? We hope so. Cindy McCain, wife of Senator John McCain, is one of millions of women who suffer from migraine headaches. Chronic migraine symptoms include severe head pain, nausea, stomach cramping, visual disturbances, and extreme sensitivity to light, sound, and scents.
“Torture.”
A bottle of spilled perfume served as the Kryptonite to her chronic migraines a year back while Cindy was traveling overseas; the overpowering smell nearly knocked her unconscious. Her migraine radar went into maximum overdrive, causing a migraine attack unlike any she had ever experienced. Head throbbing madly, nausea threatening to consume her entire body, Cindy disembarked and returned home.
Cindy speaks up
Since then, Cindy has pledged to do everything in her power to educate American citizens about migraines as a neurological disorder, and to raise funds for migraine treatment. Currently, Congress favors $13 million towards migraine research, a pitiful sum compared to the $20 billion deficit per year accrued through migraine-related lost wages, disability, and medical bills. Migraine Sufferer to World: It’s not just a Headache, People!
Cindy feels your pain- really.
Migraine symptoms may discriminate by sex (women get more migraines than men by 3 to 1), but when it comes to wealth and status, they’re an equal-opportunity destroyer. Unlike popular belief, migraines are not a poor woman’s disease. Related: 6 Migraine Myth-conceptions
Mrs. McCain describes the following symptoms when speaking to the public about her migraines:
- Excruciating head pain comparable to Traumatic Brain Injuries, the medical term for head trauma received by soldiers in heavy combat.
- Ultra-sensitivity to light. Even a moderate light setting can trigger fierce migraine attacks. “Sunglasses are a migraine sufferer’s best friend,” she says.
- Stress-related weight loss. At 5’7”, Cindy once weighed less than 100 pounds.
- Because of migraine stigma, Cindy avoided migraine diagnosis until the age of 40, fearing others would think she was “neurotic.”
- Sleep deprivation led to debilitating migraines that sent her to the emergency room on more than one occasion.
- Migraine symptoms varied for Cindy. She often experienced migraine auras, tinnitus (ear ringing), nausea, and blindness in her left eye, depending on the migraine headache trigger.
- After suffering a stroke in 2004, Cindy stopped taking preventative migraine medications. She now relies on triptans, a form of abortive migraine treatment.
A cure for migraines or die trying
After addressing a crowd in Philadelphia, Cindy hopes to continue her campaign to Capitol Hill. Her mission: to convince Congress to raise funds allocated towards migraine research. Cindy hopes to appeal to them by bringing to their attention the astounding numbers of migraine sufferers, many of whom suffer in silence.
“I’m missing a large part of my life,” she said. “I want to stay active. I want a cure.”
Sources:
Cindy McCain Breaks Her Silence on Migraine ‘Disability’
Migraines: Silent Wounds of War
Cindy McCain’s Secret Struggle with Migraines
Tags: campaign, capitol hill, chronic migraine symptoms, cindy mccain, congress, disability, doctors, fitness, headache, Headaches, health, health research, health studies, healthy lifestyle, Healthy Living, lifestyle, medical research, medical studies, medicine, Migraine, migraine headache trigger, migraine headaches, migraine stigma, migraine treatment, migraine treatments, research, studies, Traumatic Brain Injuries, triggers, well being
Posted in Migraine News | No Comments »
Friday, April 29th, 2011
Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade competes with migraine headaches as well as the 76ers in NBA playoffs.
For Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade, migraine headache pain is a constant companion; as with other migraine sufferers, exposure to bright lights and strikingly white surroundings is a source of excruciating pain for him. And in order to beat the Philadelphia 76ers this season, Dwyane Wade is going to have to spend a lot of time in the spotlight…and glaringly white basketball stadiums.
Says the Miami Heat star about his chronic migraine symptoms, “I have fear for it, not just in the mornings, but all during the day. I have fear of it a lot of times. It’s something that consumes the mind. It’s something that’s unfortunate.”
Wade says he’s been suffering migraine headaches since he was a child. He’s been through rounds of MRIs, prescription migraine headache relief medication and occasionally wears tinted goggles specially designed to deflect the light waves which migraine sufferers find so unbearable.
Some of the symptoms of migraine headaches include nausea, throbbing head pain, light and noise sensitivity, dizziness, vomiting and confusion. Usually, when a migraine sufferer feels a headache coming on, his best tactic is to lay down in a quiet, dark, relaxing environment for several hours with the cell phone turned off, practicing deep breathing and meditation.
Also read: Relieve Your Headaches With Yoga: Try These Moves!
Unfortunately for Dwyane Wade, when his migraines threaten to approach, he is usually on the basketball court, surrounded by bleached white t-shirts and sport sneakers, in a very well-lit arena amidst thousands of screaming fans, hecklers, teammates, sportscasters, and very loud music. Not to mention the opposing team, who are tuned in to his every move, keen on stealing the ball, the game and his reputation at the same time.
Migraines have taken their toll on this Miami Heat player; he has missed practices, performed when he wasn’t at his best and possibly disappointed some fans. Occasionally he has the opportunity to sit in a quiet room between games with the light turned off, his head throbbing impatiently, his stomach churning from migraine nausea, waiting for his symptoms to abate. But those precious moments are few and far between. The worst part, he says, is having nobody to talk to about it.
“There’s nobody really else in my family that I can talk about it because they don’t deal with it,” says Dwyane.
Still, there’s room for optimism. Wade has been fortunate enough to compete in some games between migraine attacks; when he returns home from playoffs he plans to visit his doctor and inquire about new headache relief treatments, and possibly try out some new contact lenses. In time, Dwyane Wade might win his battle against migraines…and take home a trophy at the same time.
Also read:
Is it a Cluster Headache or a Migraine?
4 Headaches that Require Emergency Intervention
Sources:
USA Today, NY Daily News, Chicago Tribune, Livestrong
Image:
Keith Allison
Tags: chronic migraine symptoms, Duane Wade Miami, Duane Wade migraines, Dwyane Wade, Dwyane Wade Miami, Dwyane Wade migraines, headache relief, migraine symptoms
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