Not all chronic headaches were created equal- there are many types of headaches besides migraine headaches, such as sinus headaches, tension headaches, and rare cluster headaches. How many types of headaches are there? Learn more about constant rebound headaches, common migraine triggers, and headache relief remedies.
This is part one, which discusses migraine headaches.
Migraines- Could a headache by any other name be just as severe?
Millions of people suffer from excruciating symptoms of migraines, such as debilitating, severe headaches, extreme nausea and gagging, hypersensitivity to lights, noises, and scents, and unusual visual and olfactory hallucinations. But migraine sufferers aren’t alone in their frequent headache pain; other chronic headache patients experience everyday headaches that don’t classify as “migraine headaches.”
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What causes migraines?
It is unproven exactly what causes migraine attacks, but scientists understand that it has to do with blood vessel contractions, various fluctuations in the brain, and inherited brain defects. With migraine headaches, pain occurs on one side of the head, and is often so agonizing that sufferers are unable to work, drive a car, or do much of anything until the pain subsides, which could take anywhere from a couple of hours…to a couple of days.
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How many types of migraines are there?
There are many kinds of migraine headaches, but most generally fall into two categories- migraines with aura, and migraines without aura. An aura is a phenomenon that occurs minutes before a migraine attacks. It serves as a 15-minute warning of an approaching migraine, but doesn’t allow much time to prepare. Occasionally, an aura may occur 24 hours in advance, but that much rarer.
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What is a migraine aura?
Symptoms of migraine aura include visual hallucinations described as bright fairy lights, zigzag rainbow squiggles, sparkly “fireflies,” crescent-shaped glowing figures, tunnel vision, and voids- dark blind spots on the edge of one’s field of vision, sometimes causing temporary partial blindness. Other signs of a migraine aura are stroke-like in nature- muscular feebleness, sudden garbled speech behavior, loss of consciousness, and numbness or paralysis on one side of the body. It is important to note that migraines with auras don’t always lead to head pain.
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Migraine treatments- prescription and natural remedies
Currently, medications for migraine headaches include a variety of treatment types, sometimes prescribed in combinations. Migraine remedies include triptans, which halt an attack, abortive drugs that prevent migraine attacks, narcotic pain relievers, and anti-nausea medications. However, many of these prescription migraine drugs come with adverse side effects.
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Natural ingredients and exercises for migraines include magnesium, butterbur herbs, riboflavin, acupuncture, aromatherapy, biofeedback, and exercises such as yoga and tai chi. These alternative approaches cause no side effects, and treat the body as a whole.
Read more about migraines and other types of headaches:
Can Anxiety Attacks cause Migraines?
Relieve Your Headaches With Yoga: Try These Moves!
Sources:
5 Types of Headaches- Health.com
Headaches – different types of headaches – WebMD
Migraine: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia
Image credits, from top:
Alex E. Proimos, mislav-m, dream designs, Salvatore Vuono, en:Peter Newell, Ambro