Relieve Migraine Pain with These Natural Techniques

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution for migraine relief, but there are several natural techniques that can help supplement your current medical therapies and medications.

Apply an Ice Pack or Warm Compress

The underlying causes of migraine aren’t fully understood, but migraine pain often stems from activation of the trigeminovascular system, a network made up of the trigeminal nerve and its associated blood vessels.

The trigeminal nerve is the largest cranial nerve in your head and is responsible for relaying sensations from your face to your brain. Activation of this system triggers the release of chemicals that cause blood vessels in the brain to widen, leading to inflammation and throbbing pain.

Applying cold compresses to your head or shoulders can help relieve migraine pain by encouraging blood vessels to narrow, decreasing inflammation, and slowing the pain signals traveling along your nerves.

Cold compresses should be applied for no longer than 15 minutes at a time. If you’re using an ice pack, place it in a towel to protect your skin from too cold temperatures.

For some people, muscle tension can add to migraine pain. In this case, applying a warm compress to your shoulders may help relax and soothe your muscles and alleviate some of the pain of a migraine attack.

Stress-Relieving Activities

Migraine triggers are circumstances that increase the likelihood you’ll experience a migraine. Stress is the most common trigger of migraine, and managing stress can help reduce how frequently you experience severe headaches and can also reduce the severity of your pain if you’re having a migraine attack.

Ways you can reduce stress during a migraine include:

• Deep breathing exercises
• Progressive muscle relaxation
• Meditation
• Yoga

Massage and Acupressure

Scalp massage with your fingertips during a migraine attack can be soothing. Massaging the muscles of the head boosts circulation and can help release tension, factors that contribute to migraine pain in some people.

Research into which types of massage are most effective is limited, but a systematic review and meta-analysis from 2020 suggests tuina, a type of traditional Chinese massage focusing on acupressure points in the head, may be particularly effective for tension-related headaches.

A tuina practitioner can instruct you on the different movements involved in applying this massage art for migraine. Kneading, pushing, holding, and rolling movements all have a specific therapeutic purpose in tuina.

Taking a Nap if Possible

Migraine symptoms can make you crave sleep. Light and sound sensitivity, as well as pressure in your head, can naturally make you want to close your eyes and embrace a dark, quiet environment.

The relationship between sleep and migraine is complex. Too much or too little sleep can be a migraine trigger, and migraine attacks can negatively affect how well you sleep.

Improving your sleep can reduce the frequency of migraine attacks and their severity if they happen, and during an attack, taking a nap might provide relief.

Rehydrate

Dehydration, when your body doesn’t have enough water to support its function, can contribute to migraine symptoms by impairing circulation, affecting fluid balance in your brain tissue, and creating an imbalance in inflammatory chemicals and waste products.

Drinking water or an electrolyte beverage can help get you back on track, but it may take some time for you to notice the effects, depending on how dehydrated you are. If dehydration is your migraine trigger, rehydrating could help improve your symptoms within a few hours.

Soak Your Feet in a Basin of Hot Water

Some people report migraine relief from soaking their feet in a basin of hot water.

While there are no specific research studies to support this home remedy, the theory behind it suggests that increased circulation in your feet from the heat helps move blood away from your head, relieving pressure and inflammation.