10 Steps To Help You Deal With A Complex Migraine
If you have ever had the misfortune of suffering from a complex migraine, you know that it is much more than just your average headache. They can also bring with them some other horrible symptoms such as problems with vision, speech and comprehension, movement and hearing. Symptoms can be mild to severe but even the mild ones can be intolerable pain. The following 10 steps will help you if you suffer from a complex migraine.
- Determine if it is indeed this type of migraine that you are suffering from. Complex headaches can also be caused from many other deep-rooted health problems as well as dairy products and other foods. Call and make an appointment to see a neurologist so that you can be properly diagnosed. Be prepared that this extensive testing may take place over an extended period of time.
- Chart your symptoms everyday so that you can provide your physician with enough detailed information to help with a proper diagnosis. Information that you are asked to chart will also help determine any triggering causes of the complex migraine and effective methods of treatment. You may be asked to keep track of foods that you eat, personal hygiene products that you use, how much sleep you got the night before and what you were doing when symptoms first occurred.
- Follow your doctor's orders entirely. Any medication that is prescribed should be taken exactly as recommended. Your doctor may also advise that you participate in specific exercise programs as well as relaxation techniques.
- Find remedies that help you cope with your complex migraine. Some sufferers find that placing an ice or heat pack on their head or neck helps while others need to just lie down in a dark, cool room. Everyone's migraines are different so what works for one person may not work for you so unfortunately, you may need to go through a bit of trial and error to find a solution for yours.
- When symptoms arise try to stay calm. If you panic and stress, you can make it so much worse. Many people feel numbness like that associated with a stroke so it is easy to get scarred but it is important that you remain as calm as possible. Being aware of complex migraine symptoms is helpful such as buzzing in your ears, blurry vision, numbness, unable to speak, etc.
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Research migraines as much as you can. The more that you know and understand your situation, the better you will be at dealing with it.
- Join a support group for migraine sufferers. There are some that are dedicated specifically to people that deal with a complex migraine both regularly and occasionally. Some will also pair people up with a buddy so you always have an emergency contact.
- Explore relaxation techniques thoroughly because the right ones can really help such as meditation, yoga and self-hypnosis. Also, you should know that stress can cause migraines so if you can eliminate the stress from your life, you may also free yourself of your migraines.
- Do not give up finding a cure for yourself. Trial and error can be a pain but there is just not a guaranteed cure that will work for everyone so you will have to try different methods until you find one that is helpful to relieve your symptoms.
- Speak with a psychologist. Believe it or not, they can be extremely helpful. If stress is your trigger, a psychologist can help you deal with and handle the stress in your life properly so that a migraine doesn't disrupt your day.