Use Herbal Remedies for Headaches

Wednesday, December 30, 2009 by: David Victor, citizen journalist

From: NaturalNews

Headaches are one of the most common ailments people experience. It is estimated that 50 million people seek medical attention for headaches every year in the US alone and over $500,000,000 is spent annually on headache medicine. There are many herbal remedies for headaches that can help you without taking chemical based medicines.

The two most common types of headache are tension headaches which are caused by muscular tension and headaches caused by a constriction of blood vessels supplying blood to the brain. A few of the common causes are stress, poor posture, caffeine, eye strain, low blood sugar, allergies, sinusitis, and tiredness. There are also more severe problems that can cause headaches, but they are far less common. It is estimated that 90% of all headaches are tension headaches.

There are headache remedies from virtually every school of medicine including Chinese Herbalism, Ayurveda and Aromatherapy. Each remedy seeks to help you get rid of the pain using natural ingredients. Many of the remedies below have multiple uses and most are used in more than one school of alternative medicine.

Traditional Chinese Herbalism recommends using ginger for headaches. You can eat a small piece of fresh ginger or make a ginger tea. You can find ginger in most health food stores.

Ayurveda (the traditional system of medicine in India) offers a couple common remedies for headaches. The first is to soak a cloth in warm mustard oil and apply directly to your forehead to relieve the pain. The second remedy is to put coriander seeds in boiling water and inhale the steam created by this mixture. This is often used to relieve sinus related headaches.

If you want to try an aromatic remedy, there are several headache cures from the Aromatherapy school of medicine. For tension headaches, lavender is used to relax away your pain. You can message lavender oil directly into your temples or place a drop or two at the base of your nose. You may also want to try inhaling peppermint oil steam similar to the coriander seed remedy talked about above or take a bath with relaxing scents like chamomile. The idea is to soothe away your pain with pleasant smells.

There are many more herbal remedies for headaches. Herbal teas like peppermint, chamomile, rose hip, and more can soothe away a tension headache. Another common herbal remedy for tension headaches is valerian root. You can take capsule supplements or drink valerian root tea, but beware that it may make you drowsy.

These are just a few of the herbal remedies for headaches you can try. In general, these are so much better for you than popping pills and in most cases much more pleasant. Who wouldn`t want a soothing bath or warm cup of tea?


Resources:
http://www.holisticonline.com/
http://www.holisticchineseherbs.com/
The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Healing Remedies by C. Norman Shealy MD, PhD

MRI Results

I went back to the neurologist today for my follow-up appointment. She told me my MRI results came back good; nothing notably wrong... only a bit of slight arthritis in my neck, which might explain why it often feels stiff for me. Brain looked normal. No sign of why I'm having headaches...

She talked to me about some options for medication for the headaches, primarily Topamax. It's a preventative med for headaches, meaning i would take it on a steady routine to help prevent them, instead of taking them only when headaches occur. It sounds like it might be a good way to go, but she explained a few of the side effects that may occur: tingling of fingertips, inability to focus at times, possible depression...etc. I didn't fill the prescription, because now that I know that nothing is seriously wrong with my head, I'm confident that it will feel more at ease in the coming months without medication, especially when Dian is finally with me.

I'm just going to talk with Dian about it first before deciding anything...

Life In Mono

The blood test from after my neurology appointment said I'm positive for mononucleosis (commonly called "mono"). So I called my primary doctor this morning and made an appointment to get checked out. He said it's a mild case of it since I don't show many of the common symptoms of it, aside from fatigue and headaches. He finds it odd that I've had it before (when I was 17), and have it again now at 29. It's fairly rare for that to happen apparently...

He suggested to get plenty of rest and to not overexert myself for a couple weeks, and that I should start feeling better within two weeks or so. If I'm not feeling back to normal in four weeks, or notice that the headaches are getting worse, I should see him again. Aside from that, it should go away on its own.

He gave me a prescription for my headaches (Butalbital).

In the meantime, I should be hearing soon from Cascade Imaging, who will be scheduling my Brain and Neck MRIs...

Migraine # 3

This morning I had a banana, a couple vanilla cream cookies, and a small handfull of goldfish crackers at work. At about 11:30a, my vision began to appear slightly "wavy" with little bright zig-zag spots, and I began to feel extremely tired. Even more so than usual. The headache began...

By 12:30p, the headache had only gotten worse. At that time, I had been feeling light-headed and slightly nauseous, as well as experiencing some hot flashes. It was already a migraine.

At about 1:00p - during our staff meeting - I decided to go downstairs and check into our facility's Urgent Care center. There, I explained everything to the doctor. She seemed concerned about my fatigue, low testosterone and cholesterol. She also asked me if I spend a lot of time using computers, which of course I do. She suggested I talk more with my regular doctor about my fatigue, etc, and that I might want to consider a head scan. Since I already have an appointment with a nuerologist on Wednesday, I have decided to ask them for one. In the meantime, the UCC doctor shot me in my ass with something to cut down the pain. Then she prescribed me Imitrex for future migraines.

After coming home after the check-up, I took an Imitrex pill, which helped the remaining head pain. Then I napped for a couple hours, and have felt better since.

Headache Diary

Splitting headache this evening:

For lunch, I ate a grilled chicken salad from Dairy Queen. Also had three pieces of sausage with saltines. Drank milk throughout the day.

Headache seemed to get better after taking two aspirin...