As Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade's participation in NBA playoff games this week is jeopardized by his struggle with migraine headaches, attention is being drawn to this relatively common health challenge. Dwyane has reportedly suffered from migraines for many years, dating back to his college days at Marquette. Current news reports indicate that he is being treated with oral medication and bed rest to help get through the headaches. Since the migraines make him sensitive to light Wade has been seen wearing colored goggles at Miami Heat games when he is coping with the migraines. With the hopes of his teammates and local Heat fans resting on the shoulders of this all-star player, there is great interest in Miami concerning Wade's finding a solution for these painful migraines.
From a holistic medicine perspective this article will examine what migraines are and how they can be effectively treated. Migraines are three times more common in adult women than men though equally distributed across gender prior to puberty, and usually involve a pulsating pain on one side of the head. The word migraine actually derives from a pair of Greek words meaning "half skull." Accompanying the pain there are often nausea and hypersensitivity to light and/or sound. A significant minority of migraine sufferers (around 20 to 30 percent) experience unusual sensory sensations called "auras" which are a sign or precursor that a migraine is coming on.
The most common triggers are stress, hunger, and fatigue, while studies have shown that the precursor aura coincides with constriction of blood vessels in the brain. According to the Wikipedia article on migraines, "When the constriction of blood vessels in the brain stops and the aura subsides, the blood vessels of the scalp dilate. The walls of these blood vessels become permeable and some fluid leaks out. This leakage is recognized by pain receptors in the blood vessels of surrounding tissue. In response, the body supplies the area with chemicals which cause inflammation. With each heart beat, blood passes through this sensitive area causing a throb of pain." When certain areas of the brain stem are irritated this also sets off a chain reaction that leads to blood vessel constriction and dilation. Researchers have found that the neurotransmitter serotonin seems to frequently play a role in this process.
While conventional medicine typically uses drugs to halt or prevent migraine attacks, one systematic review of studies stated that chiropractic manipulation, physiotherapy, massage and relaxation might be as effective as commonly prescribed medications in the prevention of migraine headaches. Since psychological stress and pressure on the nervous system are seen as contributing factors to the reactions producing migraines, it would make sense that those non-invasive therapies which reduce pressure on the nervous system would be effective. Natural remedies also include the herbs butterbur and feverfew, 5-HTP (a serotonin precursor that comes from the amino acid tryptophan, which is also used as a natural treatment for depression), and magnesium. Acupuncture, acupressure, biofeedback, and magnets have also been used to relieve migraine problems.
According to some naturopathic practitioners, migraines can be triggered by reactions to foods, food additives like MSG and aspartame, TMJ, caffeine, dehydration, and even by the drugs used to treat migraines, in a type of rebound effect. Thus, one way of treating the problem would be to identify and avoid these triggers. Foods like cheese, beer, and wine can trigger migraines in some people because they contain histamines or other chemicals that cause blood vessels to expand. Those who are lacking in an enzyme which breaks down histamine are likely to react adversely. Vitamin B6 has been found to help boost the activity of this enzyme and help alleviate migraines in those cases. Enzyme therapy with the supplement Wobenzyme has been found to be helpful for some migraine sufferers.
Many energy healing practitioners and their patients have found that energy healing methods have effectively relieved migraines. Diane Goldner, author of How People Heal and Infinite Grace, reports that her migraines disappeared once she became an energy healer herself and was able to address the root cause of her condition. Since stress is believed to be a common source of migraines it can be recognized that stress involves the creation of a distortion or imbalance in energy flow. Using methods of balancing energy flow such as acupressure, reiki, massage, craniosacral therapy, chi gong, and yoga, would be ideal ways of balacing energy flow and relieving the pressure that occurs when the energy has been disturbed or overconcentrated in an area. Professional athletes are certainly under pressure, with their athletic performance and personal lives both being scrutinized. Learning how to reduce that pressure and stress could benefit both the health and performance of these athletic performers.
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