Anyone who has experienced a migraine understands the desire for something, anything to make the pain decrease or vanish. The sharp needles shooting underneath your skin, the dull throbbing in your temples, it all makes for a terrible experience.
Fortunately, there are some natural relief options to minimize or fix your pain altogether.
What Migraines Are
Migraines are more than “just a headache”. They are a severe form of head pain. They can last for hours or sometimes even days. Often, they are painful enough to dramatically interfere with your life, making it nearly impossible to work, run errands, or even think.
Many people try to simply sleep off the headache, but often the pain is too severe to be able to fall asleep.
Natural Migraine Remedies
When you choose a natural migraine remedy, you can avoid dealing with over the counter medications (which can sometimes react with any other medication you are on). This also helps reduce dependency on pharmacies or grocery stores.
Natural remedies can also help target the root cause of migraines with the issue of stress. By preventing stress, you can prevent migraines caused by stress.
One great natural remedy is using essential oil.
Check out the following top essential oils for migraines below.
Peppermint oil is often used to help deal with pain management because it offers a cooling effect due to its containing menthol. It also helps stop muscle contractions, which often cause our heads to feel tight, tense, and in pain during a migraine.
One research study found putting peppermint oil on the skin of participants can help foster pain relief without any negative side effects. Another research study found using peppermint led to less overall sensitivity during a headache. If you are looking for relief during a migraine, peppermint oil is a great go to choice.
You can find Peppermint Oil here.
If you want to try to prevent migraines, lavender oil is a great approach. Often migraines are caused by built up stress. If you can manage your stress better, you can prevent these types of migraines.
Lavender oil is made up of a number of ingredients, including chemical compounds known as esters. These calm and relax our senses, helping us fight stress and anxiety that can lead to migraines. According to a research study, lavender helps calm your nervous system. This is helpful when we get stressed as our body kicks into fight or flight mode. Using lavender oil to help you relax is a great way to reduce stress, especially if you couple it with relaxing activities like yoga, meditation, or deep breathing exercises.
In addition to helping prevent migraines, lavender oil can also help if you end up getting a migraine (such as due to food or caffeine). One research study looked at inhaling lavender essential oils and migraines and concluded it can be an effective and healthy tactic to use.
If you only pick up one essential oil to deal with headaches, lavender oil is a great bet! You can find it here.
Basil oil is another great choice if you want to prevent migraines by preventing or better dealing with stress. Basil oil contains adaptogens, which are powerful warriors against the negative effects of stress. These balance our hormones and help balance out the negative effects of stress onto our body. When you start to feel stressed, you can reach for basil essential oils to help fight back against it.
You can find Basil oil here.
When we think of eucalyptus, many people imagine adorable koalas. But this natural superstar does more than feed these charming creatures. Eucalyptus is packed full of powerful potential.
Like peppermint, eucalyptus essential oil provides a wonderful cooling sensation. It can help reduce mental fog (which usually is quite present during a migraine. One research study found inhaling eucalyptus oil helps reduce pain in patients, making it a great tool in attacking a migraine.
You can find Eucalyptus Oil here.
Rosemary oil can help when you need to use your brain during a migraine, since it helps improve your mental clarity and concentration. If you absolutely have to work during a migraine, using rosemary oil can help you push through the pain until you can collapse at home.
Rosemary oil also is a good preventative tool. One study found smelling rosemary helps reduce cortisol levels (which is what is released during stress). Rosemary oil can also help with pain relief, as one study found it can help reduce tension and headaches.
You can find Rosemary Oil here.
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