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Do Homemade Headache Treatments Work?

Migraines can be a real pain in the…well, head. If you’ve had one, you’ve suffered from one — first the auras, then the nausea, then sensitivity to light and sound.  During the worst part of a migraine attack, people often have to remove themselves completely from their daily routine.  Not only is it painful, but completely inconvenient, and unfair!  Who wants to cancel a night out because of a raging headache?

If you can spot your migraine from the very outset, maybe these tricks will help DIY your pain away. But, do they work?


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Lovely Lavender

Migraine sufferer Erica Petcher has a crafty tip for all you Makers out there.  Create your own lavender rice packs that you can microwave or freeze depending on your preference.  Apply to your head or neck to help ease that migraine pain with a little bit of aromatherapy. 

Everyday Health echoes the healing powers of lavender: “Not only does lavender smell great — it’s also a useful home remedy for headaches and migraine pain. Lavender oil can be either inhaled or applied topically. Two to four drops for every two to three cups of boiling water are recommended when inhaling lavender-oil vapors as a headache treatment. Unlike many medicinal oils, this home remedy can also be safely applied externally without the need to dilute it.“

Helpful Hint:  Don’t eat it!  You should never take lavender oil orally.

Related Stories on Yahoo Makers: Homemade: How to Make Easy Aromatherapy Oils at Home

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Calming Caffeine?

Perhaps counter-intuitively, caffeine has a calming effect on headaches. This top tip comes courtesy of my mother (a chronic migraine sufferer).  She prescribes a cup of coffee at the earliest onset of a migraine.  And sufferer Mary Ellen Mathews?  She prefers a cooler caffeinated trick — Mountain Dew. If you’re able to take over-the-counter medicines to reduce a headache, these can get a super boost from caffeine.  The Mayo Clinic agrees: “In small amounts, caffeine alone can relieve migraine pain in the early stages or enhance the pain-reducing effects of acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) and aspirin.”

Helpful Hint: Don’t go crazy with the caffeine. If you down a Red Bull, double espresso, and Diet Coke together, you’ll be paying for it later.  Too much caffeine can lead to withdrawal headaches.

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Cold Neck, Hot Feet?

As odd as this one sounds, my mom claims that this trick actually works.  She’s a firm believer in “cold neck, hot feet,” and we all know that mother knows best.

Apparently there is some science behind this silly-sounding theory. Heath Communities suggests: “Submerge the feet in a bucket of very hot water while applying an ice compress to the back of the neck. This actually draws the blood down to the feet away from the head.”  The same is said to be true if you’d rather try “hot hands.”  The theory is similar — you’ll successfully draw blood away from your head, away from the pain, and into your hands.

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Use Your Head

If you feel a migraine setting in, be logical.  Remove yourself from anytriggers and stresses that would upset even a normal headache. Seek a calm environment, turn out the lights, avoid strong odors.

(Photo: Headache Diary Lite)

“Take one app and call me in the morning”

Make your phone your migraine-killing mobile machine.  Healthline’s top choice for apps in this field is Headache Diary Lite.  They claim, “This app will help you keep track of when your headache starts, where it’s located, what medicine you took to help ease the pain, and more.”  Your information is logged in the app to create data that can be downloaded as PDFs.  Take a look at your patterns to see what’s at the root of the migraine and if you can pinpoint a potential trigger.

(Photo: www.newhottopics.com)

Pinch the Pain Away

Migraine sufferers Karen Moreland and Erica Petcher agree on another theory to help ease the pain: pinch it into submission.  Karen suggests squeezing the pressure point between your thumb and forefinger.  And don’t be gentle!  Press it hard for about 60 seconds.  She says, “It hurts at the right spot, but is an almost instant relief of migraines in the neck and temples.”  She notes that it doesn’t helpocular migraines.

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