All posts filed under: migraines

Contributor: Daith Piercings and Acupuncture: Do They Help Migraines?

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Someone who suffers episodic or chronic migraines may be willing to try almost anything to make the pain go away and never come back. When medication or other options are not providing relief, a popular alternative for many people is the complementary medical practice of acupuncture or a treatment called daith piercings. What are these treatments, how are they supposed to rid you of migraine pain and mitigate attacks, and how well do they work? Defining Acupuncture Acupuncture has been used for millennia. Developed in China, the practice has been studied and adopted in Europe and the United States as a complementary treatment for a host of physical and mental issues. Acupuncture is performed by inserting one or more fine needles shallowly into the skin at so-called stimulation points on the body to balance its energies. Practitioners follow a map of regions of the body that shows where to place acupuncture needles to affect the specific issue. For example, needles inserted into the skin of the arm may stimulate the nerves in such a way …

Abdominal Migraines — Did You Know They Were a Thing?

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Hi, kids. I wanted to take a moment to talk about migraines today. Did you know that “migraine” is an all-inclusive term for a host of terrible, nauseating headaches? For instance, my headaches closely resemble migraines, enough that my doctor just calls them by that term. I get headaches a few times a week. I can work with headaches. I can function. I get migraines a couple times a month. Those put me out of commission and land me in the recliner with the heavy meds. The migraines, technically, are post-traumatic stress headaches, which — as I have been so kindly informed by my doctor — fall into the category of “very unpleasant, would like to reschedule, please.” These PTS headaches begin in the base of my head and travel around, vibrating upward along nerves to the top of my head and downward into my shoulders. Fun! The more popular kind of headaches have been listed out below. Diamond Headache Clinic sent me this slideshow of common types of migraine headaches, some of which I didn’t even …

Guest Post: The Social Lives of Spoonies

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Today we have a guest post from the lovely Anna of Migraine Brainstorm. Anna has been a spoonie for three years, suffering from chronic migraines.  However, when she isn’t in pain, she teaches English, crafts, paints, and writes. Check out her work on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram, and contact her by email: anna@migrainebrainstorm.com. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Do you find yourself on the couch most Friday nights? Perhaps conducting deep and lengthy conversations with a pet, or desperately searching for a new quality series on Netflix? Maybe you have cancelled plans to hang out with some ice packs, a heating pad, and a big fat pile of meds? Well, you are not alone! Er… except that you are, probably, literally alone. Chronic pain has the capacity to change every affect every aspect of a person’s life, and Friday nights are no exception. Before my extended run-in with pain, I happily maintained a robust network of friends. From besties to casual acquaintances and everything in between, I cultivated the full social calendar of an extrovert. I would happily invite 30-odd people to a party and …