Precautions and medications for those suffering from migraines
A migraine is a condition wherein a person suffers from a severe headache, usually on one side. These headaches are caused due to changes in the neural blood vessels. The number of times a person suffers from a migraine is different for each person. If a person suffers from these headaches approximately 15 days in a month, then it can be called a chronic migraine.
Migraine headaches usually last from 4 to 72 hours, and the severity can vary from person to person.
Precautions
Some common precautions that can help reduce severe pain due to a migraine are using a cold compress on the area that is affected, taking rest on big pillows, resting in a room with dim or no light, sleeping, keeping away from stress, and avoiding migraine-causing stimulants. Those suffering from chronic and severe cases need to club these precautions with the best medication for migraines that they can get.
Best medication for migraines
The treatment for migraine headaches or chronic migraines is usually done through over-the-counter medication such as aspirin, ibuprofen, advil, and naproxen. The side effects of an overdose of these medicines are stomach ulcers and bleeding. People with stomach ulcers and bleeding conditions should avoid the above-described medicines. Tylenol is a safe option for patients with a migraine who have conditions of stomach ulcers and bleeding. However, people with liver disorders or people with drinking habits should not take Tylenol for migraine headaches.
The best medication for a migraine is a combination of medications. For example, an over-the-counter medicine called Excedrin Migraine is a combination of acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine, making it one of the best options available. There is no particular treatment for common or chronic migraine headaches. In the abortive therapy for a chronic migraine, the attack is stopped using some medicines in the form of tablets, nasal sprays, injections etc. Tristans is one abortive medicine for a migraine that can be taken after an attack to reduce the severity. Sumatriptan (Imitrex), Sumatriptan/Naproxen (Treximet), Zolmitriptan (Zomig), Eletriptan (Relpax), Naratriptan (Amerge, Rizatriptan (Maxalt), Frovatriptan (Frova), Almotriptan (Axert) are some of the abortive medicines for a chronic migraine.
The other kind of medication is the preventive medication which can be taken if a person suffers from migraine attack more than once a week. Some of the preventive medication for the chronic migraines include (propranolol[Inderal]), (verapamil), Amitriptyline (Elavil), nortriptyline (Pamelor), Gabapentin (Neurontin), valproic acid (Depakote), topiramate (Topamax), diphenhydramine (Benadryl), and cyproheptadine(Periactin).
There are no particular ways to relieve migraine pain that work for everyone suffering from a common or chronic migraine. One type of medication may work well for one person and may not for another. Trying different medicines and keeping away from migration triggers us the best remedy to avoid migraines.