Prescribed migraine headache medication can get costly to pay for every month: rationing or missing doses resulting in more intense headaches.

Alternative treatments can offset the cost or reduce taking over the counter (OTC), prescribed medication, and complement existing treatments to prevent and treat migraines naturally.

Natural therapies can reduce frequency, symptoms, and even get rid of migraine headaches.

These alternative treatments can offset the cost or reduce the need to take OTC or prescribed medication or complement existing treatments.

Just like home cooking and layering flavors to build up the dramatic effect of a delicious meal, layering alternative treatments can be more beneficial long-term.

What Are The Causes Of Migraine Headaches?

Stress and migraines are closely related. Staring at a computer hunched over for long periods creates tension in the neck and shoulders.

These ailments, combined with the reflection of light back from the computer screen, can trigger chronic neck and shoulder pain with a headache.

As humans, we are meant to move. Ever heard of the saying, “use it or lose it?”

Prolonged sitting or slouching at your desk can lead to muscles sticking and gluing together.

When muscles shorten, they pull on other parts of the body that restrict movement

Do you have difficulty moving your head due to a stiff neck?

The human body is similar to a house or a tree. Imagine the feet as a foundation. The base of the foundation gives support and strength to resist injury or decay.

When the foundation is out of alignment (feet and ankles), imbalances throughout the structure (body) can occur.

In the human body, misalignments caused by muscle imbalances contribute to pain in the head, neck, joints, and back.

Prolonged sitting and sloughing in your car and at your desk pull the pelvis out of alignment, shortening your muscles which then pull on other muscles throughout the body.

Migraines At Work

If you find yourself experiencing migraines at work, turn some of the lights off or change the bulbs. Bright lights are my trigger.

At my last job, when a light bulb would burn out above me, I would ask the building manager to leave it alone and not replace it.

If you work in a cubical farm, making light adjustments may not be an option for you. Anti-fatigue or computer glasses can relieve computer eye strain.

Computer glasses are different from conventional reading glasses. The tinted glasses filter out the blue light from laptops, computers, monitors, television, iPad, and any other screens.

The pair I have I bought online from Gunnar. I often get mistaken for either a librarian or a gamer.

Yoga At Your Desk

Do you maintain good posture while at your desk? Is your laptop or computer positioned correctly? How often do you take breaks to stretch your neck, back, wrists and hands?

Are you scratching your head wondering, “what the heck is she talking about?”

Sitting and slouching overtime contributes to neck, back, and wrist pain. Give your office space a makeover with these office ergonomics guidelines from the Mayo Clinic to live pain-free.

Our muscles need to be stretched. That doesn’t mean stretching until it hurts. Just look at your pets. Cats remain limber because they are constantly stretching. Human beings are the only species that stretch until it hurts.

Gentle stretching for one-minute every day can make a world of difference. Remember, if you don’t use it, you will lose it.

In addition to practicing proper office ergonomics daily, take breaks every hour by doing some yoga stretches at your desk.

Herbs Can Reduce The Frequency Of Migraines

Throbbing pain during a migraine is the result of constriction and dilation of the blood vessels. Used for centuries to treat pain, fever, headaches, and stomach aches, Feverfew is a natural headache reliever.

The herb helps maintain a healthy blood vessel tone. Research has shown Feverfew can reduce frequency, symptoms, and even get rid of migraine headaches.

The brand I use is NOW. This brand contains both Butterbur and Fever Few. For it to work, you have to take it every day.

I started with the recommended dose of one tablet two to three times a day. After a couple of months, combined with weekly acupuncture treatments, I am down to take one pill a day.

In reading the reviews before purchasing, if you stop taking the herb, some users have noted experiencing more intense headaches.

While I didn’t deliberately go out of my way to test this theory, I did forget to take it and experienced a very painful headache the next day.

One way to avoid running out is to subscribe to monthly shipments or when you are close to running out, order another bottle.

Low Magnesium And Headaches

Fatigue, leg cramps, sleep disturbances, and you guessed it headaches and migraines are linked to low levels of magnesium. Did you know that stress contributes to mineral depletion like magnesium?

If you have experienced a bad migraine with auras and had to go to the hospital, medication intravenous therapy (IV) cocktail of Benadryl, Toradol, Magnesium Sulfate, and Reglan is used to treat painful migraines.

Exercise-Induced Migraines

Weightlifting, running, and rowing can trigger exercise-induced migraines. I didn’t understand the exercise and migraine connection until I watched a documentary late one night called, Supergirl on the PBS network about a girl powerlifter weighing 97 pounds who could lift 215 pounds.

Naomi (Nahama) Kutin’s intense training led to chronic migraines, which were later treated with a magnesium supplement. After watching the documentary, I began to understand how my recreational running, high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts, and work-stress was triggering and aggravating my migraine symptoms.

One way to supplement it is by adding a couple of drops of liquid magnesium with trace minerals to water or juice to mask the taste as the taste of magnesium is less desirable.

Over the counter medication and prescribed medications can contribute to rebound migraines and headaches. Taking a liquid magnesium dietary supplement can help prevent, treat and reduce the frequency of migraine headaches.

Adding a B2 supplement can help migraine sufferers to ween themselves off of prescription medication.

Another benefit is taking liquid magnesium with trace mineral helps with foot cramps, dehydration, and electrolyte imbalances.

Non-Drug Treatments For Migraines

Traditional Chinese medicine has been to treat and manage pain. Acupuncture treatments are good for treating conditions like back and neck pain, hormone imbalances, plantar fasciitis and may reduce the number of days, frequency, and intensity of migraines. Treatment sessions involve small needles inserted in the skin.

A TENS (Transcutaneous Electronic Nerve Stimulation) unit is a drug-free device.

The FDA approved device is a useful option for individuals that can’t tolerate migraine prescription medication or are looking for a non-drug holistic treatment for pain relief from neck pain and tension headaches.

Pads are placed at the source of the pain. For migraine headaches, two to four pads are placed on the back of the neck.

The low current electrical stimulation encourages produce endorphins, the body’s natural pain-killing chemicals to suppress pain signals in the brain.

A TENS unit is good for preventing and treating pain throughout the body and treating and preventing migraine headaches.

If you’re searching for a non-narcotic solution to help with pain management or looking to stop taking opioids, this small device is worth a try.

Ice The Pain Away

Ice packs and ice headbands can be a good alternative or complement to OTC medication to help relieve migraine headaches, tension headaches, and sinus headaches.

When I start to feel a headache coming on, I grab an ice pack relief band out of my freezer, wrap it around my head along with laying on an acupressure mat and neck support pillow to relax my body and help relieve neck pain.

Acupressure For Headaches

Aculief is a wearable gadget that targets the LI4 acupressure point to reduce stress, headache and neck pain. Upon feeling a headache coming on, place Acurelief between your thumb and index finger.

If you are taking prescription medication or antibiotics, supplementing magnesium may interact with medication and cause low blood pressure, make sure to consult with a health professional first.