Monday, February 23, 2009

Could Your Migraine Headache Be Caused By The Weather?

By Donald Saunders

The search for things which might trigger a migraine is a continuing battle for those people hard to stay away from the debilitating pain which follows the onset of a migraine attack. Stress is perhaps the most famous of all migraine headache triggers and those people who suffer from this neurological condition try hard to either avoid stress or to mitigate the effects as much as they can. Other triggers to steer clear of are chocolate, alcohol, nicotine, and nuts.

There is however some folklore which holds that the weather could trigger migraine headaches, so is this indeed the case?

Chronic back pain and also arthritis sufferers recognize that the pain of their condition is greatly affected by changes in the weather and this lends some belief to the view of chronic migraine sufferers that weather can also adversely influence their ability to avoid migraine headaches.

The announcement of a forthcoming pressure system could well herald the arrival of a storm to most people but to the migraine sufferer it frequently spells trouble. The change in the weight of the air affects the ease with which oxygen is breathed and moved around the body through the blood vessels. Capillaries may for example constrict more because of the change in pressure and this could be the very trigger event for a migraine headache. It is worth noting that countering this effect using caffeine is often one of the fastest and best solutions.

The wind is another aspect of the weather that often sets migraine sufferers on edge. Even if the associated pressure changes of windy conditions are minor the mere fact that pollutants which may be triggers for migraine sufferers are flying all around makes this another clear migraine trigger.

In some cases a migraine may be secondary to a different kind of headache like a sinus headache. This might present with difficulty breathing, a fever, and a variety of aches and pains. When added to the burgeoning pain of a migraine the result may be not only severely painful but also debilitating.

If the root cause of the sinus headache is allergens there might be an ensuing infection that the body may try to fight off. During that time it is possible that a migraine will be triggered by the weakened body and its heightened susceptibility to stress.

A change in weather not only announces the possibility of one migraine headache trigger, but it actually serves as the starting point for a host of such trigger events that might result in numerous migraine attacks. Unfortunately, weather triggers cannot be avoided and even staying indoors has only a partial effect when it comes to avoiding a migraine trigger event.

Consequently, it is sensible to use various preventive measures to avoid trigger events. Sometimes this involves the use of medication while at other times you can turn to holistic solutions to avoid migraine triggers. These include relaxation techniques, cardiovascular exercise, stress relief, massage therapy, biofeedback, aromatherapy and also acupuncture.

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