6 Ways to Help Prevent Migraines

If you are tired of having migraines all the time, check this 6 ways to avoid migraines and how I managed to get rid off them.

A migraine is a real, medical condition that involves a genetic sensitivity of your brain and nerves. Researches believe that each migraine attack consists of a series of events. These include:

* Nerves Stimulation in your brain,

* The inflammation and swelling of the blood vessels on the surface of your brain,

* And a change in the way your brain processes pain.

You can help prevent migraines with healthy lifestyle habits. Maintain consistent eating, sleeping and exercise schedules. It's also important that you learn, and then avoid, your migraine triggers.

Identifying and then avoiding the triggers is the best thing you can do. See at the bottom for a complete list of triggers.

Exercise reduces tension, a common migraine trigger. Make sure to warm up slowly. Intense physical activity can cause headaches.

If you want to begin doing exercise and don't know where to begin, I will suggest doing some planks.

As soon as you get up in the morning take 5 minutes to do planks. If you prefer use a yoga mat for comfort.

Then get a timer. Set the timer to 30 seconds to hold the plank position and 1 minute to rest. Do 3 to 5 sets of these and your are done.

Continue every morning for a week and increase each pose time to a minute and decrease the rest time to 30 seconds. After 4 weeks if you feel you are comfortable or your body ask for more, increase each pose time for 30 seconds when ever you feel like it until you are doing 3 minutes each pose.

I like to do 3 sets of 3 minutes each every morning or every afternoon.

Stress can cause or aggravate migraines. Try meditation, biofeedback, or join a support group.

You could try anything you love to do to relax. Some people love to just listening to music while others like to draw, paint, sew, cook. Find your passion and take time to focus on you and what you like.

Getting the sleep you need(7 to 8 hours a night for most adults), and eating a well-balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables can ward off migraines.

I would say is not that important how many hours you sleep as how deep was your sleep. You could been at bed 8 hours and waking restless or sleep 6 hours and wake up energetic.

Everyone is different. You have to find what works for you. What your body needs. In my case I sleep usually 4 to 6 hours and wake up refresh, alert and full of energy but to accomplish this I have to go to bed on an empty stomach and lemon juice being the last thing I drank.

I used to eat cereal with milk every night before going to bed. It helped me to fall sleep faster and kept me completely sleep during the whole night, but I would wake up drowsy, tired, angry and with stuffy nose.

If you feel any of these, I would suggest to give it a try. Eat your last meal 2 hours before going to bed every day. Drink only water and lemon juice during those to hours before bed.

Smoking can cause headaches or make them worse.

If you can't quit completely those items containing caffeine, then substitute them with those labeled as caffeine free. Such as caffeine free soda and caffeine free coffee.

Eliminating both you are less likely to get cancer.

I never smoked but I was addicted to soda. I was drinking about a six pack of soda a day. Still love it and it is very hard to see my friends and family drinking it but I just don't drink it or buy it anymore.

I let my kids drink it in special occasions. At a school baseball game celebration, at grandma's on Thanks Giving Day and days like that. It is not longer at our dinner table.

If you are a woman and estrogen triggers or worsens you headaches. Talk to your doctor about avoiding or reducing those medication containing estrogen, such as birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy.

These are some of the food that can trigger your migraine. Sometimes could be a combination of both or suddenly stopping one of them like caffeine.

• Aged cheese
• Alcoholic beverages, especially red wine
• Artificial sweeteners
• Food additives such as nitrates, found in hot dogs, bologna and salami
• Caffeine
• Fermented, pickled or marinate foods
• Chocolate
• Cultured dairy products
• Seasoned salt
• Citrus fruits
• Certain vegetables, such as avocados, pea pods, lima beans and onions
• Beans
• Nuts and Peanut butter
• Raisins
• Yeast containing foods, such as breads and doughnuts

• Tobacco smoke
• Bright or fluorescent lights
• Sunlight
• Intense physical activity (including sexual)
• Chemical smells
• Strong or unusual odors
• Loud noise
• Stress
• Missing meals
• Menstrual Period
• Fatigue
• Changes in weather or altitude
• Sleep disturbances
• Hormonal changes

* An intense throbbing headache.

* Pain on one or both sides of your head.

* Nausea or vomiting

* Visual disturbances, such as blind spots or blurry vision.

* Visual sensibility to light.

* Pain made worse by physical activity

* Lightheadedness and dizziness

* Stuffy nose

* Fluid retention

* Numbness

1- Pain relieving medications. Helps to relieve pain once it's started. Taken at the first sign of a migraine.

2- Preventive medications. Daily medicines to help reduce the frequency of migraines.

Talk to your doctor about what medication is better for you.

In my personal experience I had migraines in two different occasions. One of them Is not coming back (caffeine), the other one I control it with what I eat (PH levels).

1- Stopping caffeine at once.

2- PH levels not at best.

I'm gonna try explaining experiences of two different things that triggered my migraine and hopefully will help you.

Back in 2003 I went for a routine mammogram. The doctor found fibroids in my breast. They explained they are not cancerous but it could become cancerous if I continue drinking caffeine. Studies indicate that caffeine is not a substance that could give you cancer but if you have Fibrocystic Breast caffeine can increase the risk of getting cancer in your breast.

I got so worry. I quit drinking soda all at once. After 24 hours my headaches began.

All symptoms rose to the occasion:

• Nausea
• Light Sensitiveness
• Pain in one Side of the Head
• Pain Behind one Eye
• Sinus pressure
• Dizziness

To make a long story short. I spent 2 long years with migraines not knowing they were triggered by the caffeine withdrawal in my body.

And the long term damage I got from caffeine is that my nerve system is out of control. I even have a ring in my head that never goes away. I'm not sure if it is because of this but I haven't gone to get it check yet. I will blog about it after I do.

The body is made naturally to keep a certain level of acidity and alkalinity.

Different parts of the body keeps a different level.

For example the blood usual PH balance is 7.35 to 7.45. This can be affected by what you eat, lung malfunction, diarrhea, vomiting, urinary track infection and others. The stomach has a usual PH balance of 3.05. This helps to break down the food.

I have always love to eat cereal with milk. Since I was a little girl has been my favorite. It made me feel full, energetic and strong. Because of this I used to drink milk with every single food I ate, if I can.

I don't drink milk any more and take some other dairy product once in a while.

The constant drinking of milk I had changed my stomach PH Balance dramatically. To the point that gave me a very bad sinus for decades. The incredible amount of mucus I carried around would hardly allowed me to breath. The nose was so itchy and swollen all the time. My eyes used to get very watery and itchy at moments that I would have to go to stop what ever I was doing until they calmed down.

Today I free of sinus, excess mucus and migraine caused by PH imbalance.

I had sinus problems for decades since I was a little girl. My mother even had my tonsils removed because the frequent infections I would get back in the day.

After years of suffering migraine and other symptoms I did some research online and decided to try different things until finally found one that worked for me.

I began drinking 1 Tbsp of Apple-cider Vinegar in 6oz of water every morning. It was the first thing I used to drink every morning as soon as I got of the bed. I waited about 30 minutes before taking my breakfast. I did this for 3 months.

I cut every single item containing dairy out of my diet. I stopped drinking milk with every meal. I changed milk for lemonade. I cut a few lemons boil them in water, divided in mason jars and refrigerate.

After 6 months I decided to try again drinking milk and other dairy products to see if my sinus came back and it did. If I eat or drink any dairy before bed, I for sure get stuffy nose and extra mucus but because I drink the lemon juice during the day or before bed time it will clear out by the next morning.

What I do know is that I only eat dairy occasionally. Some cheese over spaghetti or a small cup of ice cream. If you need me to say a number I would say I eat cheese twice a month and ice cream once or twice a month. If my math is okay, that would give me an intake of dairy products 4 times a month. No bad comparing to about 40 to 60 times a month since I used to drink milk every day twice a day and cheese every other day.

I completely stopped eating milk with cereal before going to bed. Now I squeeze half a lemon in 6oz of water and sip on it until I go to bed. I do this usually 2 or 3 hours before bed time.

If you going to try this and the drastic change makes your stomach feel to acid, eat 1/2 a cup of cooked rice.

That is what I did to brake out free of dairy products. No more migraine triggered by dairy and a better stomach PH balance. I hope this helps.