How do I find the right remedies for headaches?

Not all headaches are the same. There are 200 different types. Sometimes they are throbbing or pulsating, sometimes more dull and pressing. This mainly depends on the type of headache you suffer from. Although the distinction between headaches and migraines is not easy for all sufferers, it is important because this difference plays a role in treatment. The remedies for headaches are different from the remedies for migraines.

Do we now know what triggers them?

No, the cause is still not known. Psychological factors such as stress, excessive demands, but also tense back and neck muscles can be factors. In recent years, the assessment of migraine triggers has changed. Instead of avoiding long lists of often unsafe triggers, the focus is now on trigger management, i.e. actively coping with the situation. If you try to avoid as many triggers as possible, you are extremely restricted in your everyday life and live in constant fear of the next attack. This is stressful. And stress itself is one of the migraine triggers.

Why is the avoidance strategy viewed critically?

For example, the first signs of an attack are often misinterpreted as migraine triggers. Food cravings, neck pain or sensitivity to light, for example, tend to be early symptoms of an attack. Typical triggers, on the other hand, include the hormonal cycle in women, skipping meals, irregular sleep, stress and alcohol.

How can a migraine diary help?

Everyone should find out what their personal triggers are. A migraine diary can be very useful for this. However, it is important that it is kept with a view to the future. This is because it is a human need to find explanations, and in doing so, connections are constructed that do not exist. Therefore, when a migraine attack occurs, you should not write down what you did before, but rather make a few notes every day and see what happens. If you proceed in this way, you will find that there are far fewer connections than you suspected. And that can take the pressure off having to pay attention to everything and do everything right.

You can't control the weather or hormones either...

Yes, which is another reason why good management is needed rather than the previous strategy of avoiding triggers . You should accept your migraines to a certain extent and know them - the triggers, the typical course, behavioral measures and remedies for migraines. This will help prevent many attacks and make it easier to deal with them.