A Natural Approach to Curing Headaches
Headaches have haunted me my whole life. While annoying, whenever I have dug a little deeper and followed the breadcrumbs, headaches have always been important warning signs from my body.
In my teens and twenties, I routinely treated my headaches with maximum strength over the counter pain killers. Once I started learning the serious consequences of taking these drugs, I sought more natural solutions. I’ve tried treating my headaches naturally over the past 20 years and have learned a lot about my body and health through the process.
For example, when I eliminated gluten from my diet in my early 30’s, my headaches went away completely. I don’t have celiacs, but clearly I have a negative response to gluten, and since limiting my intake, other issues that I didn’t realize were related went away (like, really stinky feet). When it comes to headaches, gluten is a common trigger. In fact, according to one study, a gluten free diet eliminated migraines in 89% of participants.
More recently, well into my 40’s, my headaches have returned with more frequency and intensity. In the past several months I have nearly eliminated them with simple adjustments of diet and supplements targeting hormonal balance.
What causes headaches?
Many different things can trigger headaches, from posture to sleep to stress to diet to hormonal fluctuations. Taking a pain reliever will mask the pain, but it won’t help you get to the cause. Why do you have a headache?
Common causes:
neck or back strain
certain food
changes in sleep
posture
stress
fatigue
hormonal fluctuations
jaw or eye problems
When someone complains of a headache, I put my detective cap on. With just a little inquiry we can often identify a deeper imbalance or root cause. Once we know the cause, we can address it and eliminate the symptom more holistically, rather than temporarily masking it.
Treatment
Because headaches can occur for such a myriad of reasons, you want to pay attention and drill down to the details. It’s recommended to keep a headache journal, but whether or not you are organized like that, start paying attention to circumstances and connecting the dots (date, time, what you’ve eaten in past 24 hrs, how you’ve slept, your alcohol intake, the phase of your cycle and any other changes that have happened, such as travel or teeth grinding, etc).
In my case, I had a hunch there was a correlation between fluctuating hormones and more frequent, intense headaches, given that menstrual migraines are more common with high, fluctuating estrogen and relatively low progesterone, such as during perimenopause (between the ages of 40 and 55 — that’s me!).
By tracking several episodes of headache, I discovered that once again these were serving as a warning siren for me about something more significant going on. It’s my body’s way of getting my attention.
As a health coach, I’m trained to connect the dots and treat holistically. My training helped me narrow down my approach to a natural hormonal cream, a popular supplement, and specific dietary tweaks, and I have nearly eliminated my headaches. Not only that, but by enlisting these changes I have been able to address some other symptoms that I thought were unrelated.
Top Tips to Reduce and Prevent Headaches
Spend 5 minutes every day releasing tension from jaw, neck and shoulders.
Take a magnesium supplement. Magnesium can reduce the frequency and severity of migraines.
Eat for hormonal health. Women should support their estrogen levels by eating specific foods that help create and regulate it. Our hormones like healthy fats - like olive oil, avocado, nuts and seeds, especially flax seeds and sesame seeds. Fibrous fruits and veggies especially cruciferous veggies are superstars at helping our livers metabolize estrogen in an efficient and healthy way, and quality proteins like eggs, fish and meat.
Improve your sleep habits. Practice great sleep hygiene to ensure yourself 7-9 hours of quality sleep. This vital, yet often neglected component of every person’s overall health and well-being, is important because it enables the body to repair and regenerate.
Reduce alcohol. When we drink alcohol, our liver - which normally manages hundreds of tasks - can’t do anything other than process the alcohol. Therefore, the other processes come to a standstill, like metabolizing estrogen.
True nutrition is not one-size-fits-all
To get more customized, precise results, I highly recommend working with a health professional trained in nutrition (like me!) to help you hone in on your unique needs and create meal plans that address your specific issues. Start with a meal plan or schedule a free Chemistry Call to learn more about coaching.