Everybody experiences headaches at some point of their life. There are times when this pain gets so bad that some people have to be hospitalized. This pain, which is also known as a migraine headache, can linger for one day to one week. Typically, a migraine causes pain on one side of the head. While some individuals find relief from pain with the use of painkillers, others experience no benefit at all.
Although there is currently no known cure for migraine, we can definitely reduce the frequency of migraine attack by avoiding migraine triggers. A variety of factors, including stress, noise, light, pollution, and sensitivity to certain foods can trigger migraine headache. Here, we will discuss one of the migraine trigger, which is stress.
In order to alleviate stress, some doctors may recommend antidepressants and sleeping pills which generally includes benzodiazepines, antihistamines, serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, etc. Short-term use of these pills are acceptable but taking it for more than four weeks may result in multiple side effects such as memory loss, decreased alertness, weight gain, dizziness, gastric complaints and lots of other health issues. In addition if you decide to stop using it later, you will find it impossible to sleep without it and your stress level will rise. There are proven evidences from multiple studies that there can be acute withdrawal phenomena when antidepressants are discontinued including suicidal tendencies https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6637660/
And the most important thing is that these drugs are not solving your problem but in a way it keeps you intoxicated, and as long as you are intoxicated you will not have any stress or depression. That is why one should avoid taking these type of drugs or medicines and instead look for some stress relieving therapies like yoga therapy, dance therapy, aroma therapy, music therapy, massage therapy etc. You can also take the help of psychiatrist to learn different techniques to manage stress or depression.
And even if you don’t want to visit a psychiatrist you can easily manage your stress by making some positive changes in your diet and lifestyle. Here I am going to share with you some tips which will help you in reducing stress.
1. While stress is a common occurrence for everyone, some people handle it well while others remain worried for days. If you are among those who can’t handle your stress, then you definitely need to take care of yourself. To begin with, you must change the way that you think. It means you have to realize that you have a horrible illness called stress that you need to overcome.
2. Follow a specific routine - You need to establish a routine that you can follow for a long time. There should be a specific time for you to eat, drink, sleep, wake up, and perform all other activities. In this way you'll be also able to manage your time easily which will further reduce your stress.
3. In the event of a storm, what would you do? It goes without saying that as soon as the storm hits, you will find a place to hide. Therefore, leaving the stressful environment as soon as you can is the first step in solving the problem. The first thing you should do in a stressful situation is to protect yourself by remaining silent or by leaving the place. For example, when someone is arguing with you or say something you disagree with, no need to respond right away. You can respond him/her later when you're happy and calm. By doing this, you'll protect yourself from the detrimental effect of stress hormone – Cortisol.
4. Deep breathing - Breathing deeply is among the most effective methods for lowering stress. Deep breathing can help you to relax within 20 minutes.
5. Live in present - Thinking about the past or the future is one of the major cause of stress. This is where you have to realize that no matter how much you think about the past, you can never change it. So give up thinking about it. Today determines your tomorrow. So, stop thinking about past or future and do your best today.
6. Indulge in your hobbies - Activities such as singing, dancing, painting, drawing, writing poetry, reading, and art projects can all contribute to your happiness and are not a waste of time.. You must spend at least half an hour to one hour in these kind of activities. You won't even need meditation if you engage yourself in any of these activities of your choice.
7. Increase your mental strength - We are under stress because we are mentally weak. Our mental strength begins to grow very quickly if we think positive and read good books or holy books. You can read biography or teachings of great people like swami Ramakrishna, swami Vivekananda or holy books like Ramayana, Srimadbhagwad gita or Srimad bhagwatmahapuran, Guruvaani etc.
8. Talk to your loved ones - Our body releases stress hormones, also known as cortisol, when we are under stress. You must take action to help release happy hormone or love hormone such as serotonin, dopamine, endorphins and oxytocin, in order to lessen the effect of cortisol. For example you can spend time with your loved ones or your best friend. Stroking your pet is also a good idea. Our body also produces Oxytocin (love hormone) when your body or feet are massaged.
9. Sit in sunlight when you are stressed- Exposure to sunlight for at least 30 minutes increases the release of happy hormone in our brain called serotonin. Serotonin is known to elevate mood and promote feelings of calmness and concentration
Hence, by following these nine tips you can easily reduce your symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression even without taking any medication. You won't experience migraine attacks when your stress level is lower. In the next section we will discuss about diet to manage migraine attack.
