Manage Your

Migraine

The Migraine Diary

Migraine Medications

and Treatments

Migraine is not life threatening, but it can destroy the quality of your life. The first thing that you must recognise is that ultimately, migraine is your own responsibility. Your GP, Pharmacist, Practice nurse, your friends, colleagues and family will all be supportive, but it is up to you to initiate action in managing the condition as best you can. Resist the common temptation to push the whole issue aside as soon as an attack subsides. Instead, work on how you can prevent or curtail the next attack. Start by finding out more about how migraine can be managed. Although there is no ‘cure’ for migraine, it can be effectively managed through a combination of medical treatments and self-help approaches.

Migraine Medications

Migraine medications may be acute or preventative, and patients with frequent or severe headaches may require both approaches. Acute treatment attempts to relieve or stop the progression of an attack or to abort it once it has begun. Preventative treatment is used in an attempt to reduce the frequency and severity of anticipated attacks. However, these drugs are unlikely to prevent attacks altogether and will not cure the underlying cause.
Migraine Medication

Medications

Preventatives
Nerve Block
Onabotulinum Toxin A

Migraine Diary

The Migraine Diary is a simple but effective way of managing your migraine. A migraine diary can help you to establish certain patterns in your attacks. Perhaps you get most of your headaches at weekends or perhaps every time you are presented with deadlines at work or at home. These examples would be quite easy to notice but most people’s headaches are not as easy to predict.

Attacks may only be triggered by a certain combination of trigger factors, say when you miss a meal AND experience stress. Either factor on their own may not be enough to trigger an attack but when combined they do.

Using the migraine diary religiously for a period of time may establish some patterns to your headaches and may enable you to take action to prevent them or better manage them. It can also help you to feel more in control and this in itself can also reduce the frequency of the attacks.

The migraine diary will also demonstrate to your doctor the impact that migraine has upon your life. Whenever you visit your doctor you should bring your migraine diary along as it will help him/her to implement a specific treatment plan for you.

If you would like to order a diary;
Call 01 894 1280 or Email info@migraine.ie

Diary Instructions
Download Diary
Info for GPs

Other Treatments

Neuromodulation
Vitamins
Mindfulness

Complementary

Approaches

Complementary therapies are defined as techniques that are not part of a medical school curriculum. Over the last ten to fifteen years, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of people using complementary techniques to treat migraine as the concept of integrated medicine has become more acceptable.

Many  Irish migraine sufferers have gained at least some relief through therapies such as acupuncture, biofeedback, reflexology, meditation, mindfulness, CBT,  yoga and a plethora of others.

The conventional medical profession has viewed this growth with some scepticism. However, MAI believes that if the individual can get some benefits from using complementary practices, then their use is to be supported for that individual.

Some doctors will have trained in complementary approaches and many more encourage their use. Scientific research continues in complementary medicine for migraine and it is now accepted that certain treatments may have at least some scientific benefits for some people e.g…

  • Biofeedback
  • Physiotherapy
  • Relaxation therapy
  • Behavioural therapy

However, as of yet, most complementary practices have not yet been scientifically studied in enough detail to prove beyond doubt that they are safe, and more importantly effective. Another problem for people in Ireland interested in trying complementary therapies is the lack of regulation of the sector, although plans are in progress to introduce regulations.

All age groups suffer. Children as young as twelve months have been diagnosed. Three times more women than men suffer mainly due to hormonal changes. People who are subject to migraine come in a large variety of shapes, ages, temperaments and personalities. Migraine is hereditary in approximately 60% of cases.

Find out More

The Migraine Association is a
Not for Profit Patient Charity

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Migraine is a

Complex

Neurological

Disorder

That Affects Different Areas of The Brain

To find out more
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