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Migraines Treatment by Southside Chiropractic & Car Injury Clinic

Migraine Treatment Jacksonville FL

What Is a Migraine?

More than just a bad headache, a migraine is a neurological condition with multiple symptoms that may include nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to light or sound, and more. Migraines can affect people of any age and tend to run in families.

What’s the Difference between a Migraine and a Headache?

A typical headache only causes head pain and tends to affect both sides of the head, whereas a migraine often only causes pain on one side of the head and causes other symptoms that can affect your stomach, vision, and more.

Migraine Symptoms

Migraine symptoms are quite varied and may change depending on what stage of migraine you’re in or what type of migraine you’re experiencing. Some migraine symptoms may include:

  • Mood changes
  • Fatigue
  • Neck stiffness
  • Constipation
  • Food cravings
  • Frequent yawning
  • Hyperactivity
  • Increased thirst and urination
  • Vision loss
  • “Pins and needles” feeling in a leg or arm
  • Visual phenomena, such as seeing various shapes, bright spots, or flashes of light
  • Trouble speaking
  • Uncontrollable movements
  • Hearing music or noises
  • Weakness or numbness in the face or one side of the body
  • Pain on one or both sides of your head
  • Sensitivity to light, sound, smell, or touch
  • Lightheadedness or fainting
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Pulsing or throbbing pain
  • Blurred vision
  • Dizziness
  • Weakness
  • Confusion

Migraine Causes and Triggers

While scientists aren’t completely certain what causes migraines, environmental factors and genetics seem to be involved as well as the brain stem, brain chemicals like serotonin, and the trigeminal nerve (a major pain pathway). Things that can trigger migraines include:

  • Fasting or certain foods like salty foods, aged cheeses, and processed foods
  • Drinks like alcohol or caffeinated drinks
  • Medications like vasodilators and oral contraceptives
  • Hormonal changes in women such as during menstruation, pregnancy, and menopause
  • Food additives like monosodium glutamate (MSG) and aspartame
  • Stress
  • Too much or too little sleep or jet lag
  • Changes in the weather or barometric pressure
  • Sensory stimuli like bright lights, loud sounds, or strong smells
  • Physical exertion including sexual activity

Migraine Complications

Unfortunately, migraines and your attempts to treat them can cause complications like:

  • Medication-overuse headaches. Taking headache medications in high doses or more frequently than 10 times a month for 3 months or longer can cause the medication itself to start triggering migraines.
  • Serotonin syndrome is potentially life-threatening and may be caused by combining certain antidepressants with certain migraine medications.
  • Stomach problems like ulcers, pain, and bleeding can be caused by taking too many OTC pain relievers.
  • Status migrainosus causes migraines that last longer than 3 days.
  • Chronic migraine is a migraine that happens at least 15 days each month for at least 3 months.
  • Migrainous infarction is a loss of blood supply to the brain that may be signaled by an aura that lasts longer than an hour.
  • A persistent aura without infarction is an aura that lasts more than a week. It may cause symptoms of a stroke, but there is no bleeding in the brain or tissue damage.

Migraine Treatment

Migraine treatment depends on a variety of factors including what type of migraines you have, how often you have migraines, how severe they are, and how old you are. Treatments for migraines often include a combination of things including:

  • Stress management
  • Avoiding triggers
  • Alternative care like acupuncture, meditation, or biofeedback
  • OTC pain relievers like acetaminophen (Tylenol), ibuprofen (Motrin or Advil), or a combination of acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine (Excedrin)
  • Hormone therapy
  • Prescription medications to reduce nausea or vomiting
  • Daily prescription medication to help prevent migraines
  • Prescription medication to relieve a migraine after symptoms start
  • Chiropractic care

Chiropractic Care For Migraines

Did you know that headaches and migraines are the third most common reason people go to chiropractors? Studies have shown that spinal manipulation from a chiropractor once or twice a week for eight weeks can improve migraine symptoms. In fact, nearly a quarter of people who suffer from migraines experience up to a 90% improvement in their symptoms after receiving regular chiropractic care.

CLICK HERE or call Southside Chiropractic Car Injury Clinic today at 904-497-0823 to schedule a consultation to see if we can help reduce the frequency and intensity of your migraines.

Migraine FAQs

What Are the Symptoms of a Migraine?

Migraine symptoms can be hard to ignore. However, it is worth stating the symptoms, so that you can properly identify a migraine if you ever have one.

Migraines typically have four stages, although not all people experience all four stages. The stages and their symptoms are stated below.

  • Prodrome-These changes usually occur one or two days before the migraine. You may notice cravings, constipation, stiffness of the neck, fluid retention, or mood changes.
  • Aura-These are the symptoms that usually precede the migraine, but they can also occur during the attack. Aura symptoms are stereotypically visual, but there are other physical symptoms as well. You may experience strange visual phenomena like seeing bright spots or light flashes, problems speaking, loss of vision, weakness, or numbness on one side of the body.
  • Attack-This stage is the “actual” migraine. It is characterized by a painful head (often the pain is on one side of your head), sensual sensitivities to light and sound, nausea, vomiting, and pulsing pain. The attack stage usually lasts 4-72 hours.
  • Post-drome-Finally, there is the post-drome stage, which occurs after the attack is finished. This period is most characterized by feelings of confusion and exhaustion.

What Is the Difference between Migraines and Headaches?

You may have noticed that many of the migraine symptoms are familiar to those of a headache. That is because migraines and headaches both cause your head to hurt. However, there are some significant differences between the two.

Migraines are a medical condition that causes changes to your nervous system. They have specific symptoms and can be diagnosed by a medical professional. Most importantly, untreated migraines can be debilitating.

Headaches, on the other hand, are painful but not as serious as migraines. The term headache is often used to describe any pain in your head. They will not create the extra physical symptoms associated with migraines. 

Is There a Cure for Migraines?

Unfortunately, no. There is no cure for migraines. However, the symptoms can be treated. Lifestyle changes can reduce migraine triggers. For example, stress reduction techniques and enough sleep have been shown to reduce the number of migraines a person experiences each month. Your medical provider can also help you determine the best treatments for your migraine symptoms when the attacks happen. 

What Are the Ways to Treat Migraines?

There are many ways to treat the symptoms of a migraine. Lifestyle changes are often recommended. These include the following.

  • Reducing caffeine.
  • Drinking enough water every day.
  • Sleeping for 6-8 hours every night.
  • Daily exercise.
  • Stress management.
  • Eating regular, healthy meals.

Your medical provider may also recommend medications. However, it may take a while to find the medication that works best for you. Visiting a chiropractor is also recommended for treating migraines.

How Do Chiropractors Help Migraines?

Visiting a chiropractor is a great way to reduce the frequency and severity of your migraines. A chiropractor will help you develop a treatment plan that includes regular manipulations, massage, and lifestyle changes.

Chiropractic manipulations have been shown to help migraines because they improve spinal function and reduce stress. As neck and spinal tension are reduced, the number of migraines a person experiences will also reduce. Plus, chiropractic care has been shown to reduce stress, which is an important part of migraine treatment.

For the best migraine care in Jacksonville, FL, contact Southside Chiropractic Car Injury Clinic.

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