Migraine Relief: Ice Ice Baby!

Posted by 5x5 on March 17, 2010 under Geek Talk | 2 Comments to Read

Migraines can leave you feeling like ...

Ah, migraines. If you get them frequently, you have probably come up with a few tricks to help you stay semi-functional throughout the day; otherwise your life would be spent curled up in the fetal position with a pillow over your head to keep the light out.

Migraines like to run a pattern.  Mine start with a dull subtle pain that stays for days and sometimes grows into a more blatant pain that knocks me on my ass. As the migraine progresses:

• Vision wise, the world seems slightly fuzzy.
• A normally, beautiful, sunny day turns into a blinding curse that stabs you behind the eyes and sends you cowering for the shadows, like a vampire.
• Hearing wise, every sound is amplified.
• Food is the thing you eat when you like tasting things twice.

Helpful migraine relief:

• Caffeine. It is also an excellent way to ensure you get re-occuring migraines. (Caffeine and the adenosine receptor: Genetics trumps pharmacology in understanding pharmacology, by Charles Mobbs)
• Sleep.
• Reducing stress. Try some cognitive behavioral techniques like those outlined in “Feel the Way You Want to Feel … No Matter What!” and “The Feel Good Handbook“. These books are not only for people who are stressed or depressed. They teach useful, rational thinking techniques for dealing with life when life happens.
• Brain freeze!  Chug freezer cold milk, ice cream, a Frosty, ice slushy, etc… It does not get rid of the migraine, but it gives great relief. The best way to explain it is, the pain from the “brain freeze” overrides the migraine pain, with a more tolerant and tasty form of pain.

According to Cold Therapy in Migraine Patients: Open-label, Non-controlled, Pilot Study (.pdf), using an ice pack placed on the head might also give relief. Please note, this study did not have a control group, making it possible that participants either experienced a placebo effect or other aspects of the experiment, like resting for 3 hours with a cap on their head, actually gave the relief.

Why does ice appear to work? I have not found a study that spells it out, but correlating what I know about icing injuries and migraines, I would venture to guess the ice reduces the swelling taking pressure off of the nerves that are screaming out in pain.

No matter what your migraine symptoms are, if you are having migraines, it is important to see a doctor.  Arnold would say, “It’s not a tumor.” and move on with his day, but migraines can be your body telling you something is not quite right. Get them checked out.

What  migraine “fixes” do you use to help you get through the day?