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Migraines

Migraines can be extremely painful and even debilitating for many people. Essentially they are extreme headaches and affect over 10 percent of the entire UK population. Women suffer more commonly than men and the symptoms can often be related to hormonal cycles. There are two common types of migraines; the common migraine, ones without an aura, and classical ones that are a migraine with aura. Both can be quite painful and unpleasant but the classical migraine is much more serious and needs to be treated and prevented with far greater caution.

The common migraine coincides with symptoms such as a throbbing headache and other factors such as diarrhoea, loss of appetite and even vomiting in some instances. People who commonly suffer from these migraines may also notice that their bodies becomes very sensitive to light, noise and even smell. In many instances, a sufferer will be forced to confine themselves to a dark and quite room in order to get the rest necessary to get rid of the coinciding pain.

Now in terms of the classical migraine, the headache coincides with visual symptoms such as seeing dotted lines or noticing blind spots. Classical migraines last, on average, about 22 hours and can even wear a person down long after. On average migraines present themselves approximately 13 times every year. There are a number of people that only suffer from migraines a few times a year, and then in other instances there are patients that feel the effects of a migraine on a daily basis.

There are a number of opinions and ideas as to why migraines present themselves, but there is no substantial proof for any one factor. Most scientists believe that chemical imbalances in the body and stress can bring on an increased number of migraines. There are also some other coinciding factors such as fatigue, sleeping too much, ingesting too much alcohol or dairy products, an emotional imbalance or even missing important meals. Hormonal changes in a woman’s body can also be a factor that causes migraines and this can be brought on by contraceptive pills and other daily medications.

While there are a few options when it comes to treatment, the most common is the simple use of painkillers such as aspirin. If the problem persists and becomes very serious, then you are advised to see a pharmacist and get some prescription medication that is much stronger. In the most extreme of cases you may even be prescribed daily medication that can prevent your migraines or reduce the likelihood of them occurring.

If a patient experiences over 4 migraines within a month, than this acute treatment is often the best available option. While preventive medicines can be a great help, you should also have painkillers on hand for when migraines do occur. It is very unlikely that the preventive pills will be able to negate your migraines altogether. While many people suffer from the effects of migraines, each case needs to be dealt with and treated on an individual basis.

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