Facial Reflex Therapy: Restoring Energy and Easing Headache Tension Naturally 💆‍♂️💆‍♀️

Headache - Migraine

To a greater or lesser extent, people develop a tolerance to pain. In fact, in many cases of chronic ailments, we become accustomed to living with it, including headaches.

This causes limitations in our daily lives and diminishes our ability to enjoy life.

From a simple headache to the disabling migraine, there is a range of diverse pains in different areas of the head, and each person experiences it differently.

Diagnosing the true origins of discomfort is a time-consuming process.

A slight discomfort in the head, scalp, or neck is a symptom that alters our mood. Locating the intensity of pain and the areas where it occurs helps to discover and understand its origins.

Lifestyle, stress, diet type and habits, lack of physical activity, or medication consumption are possible causes that frequently trigger headaches.

The most common type of headache is tension-type headache.

It is caused by muscle tension in the shoulders, neck, scalp, and jaw. Body postures during work, walking, or resting are also triggering factors.

Anxiety, stress, depression, or some trauma in the head and/or neck area can also contribute.

It usually appears on both sides of the head. It may start at the back of the head and extend forward. The sensation is similar to a tight elastic band, like a dull or pressing pain, accompanied by stiffness in the shoulders, neck, and jaw.

Migraine headache or migraine involves intense and disabling pain, and other symptoms such as changes in vision, sensitivity to noise or light, and nausea are usually present.

It's a stabbing pain, throbbing or pulsating, which tends to start on one side of the head before encompassing both sides.

It is very common for those suffering from migraines to have a feeling of an 'aura.' This alteration can manifest as flashes of light, blind spots, changes in vision, or tingling in the hand or face.

There are rebound headaches that keep recurring day after day, even at the same times. One of the main causes could be the habitual consumption of strong painkillers. The withdrawal state, when disappearing from the bloodstream, triggers a new headache.

Other types of headaches can be:

Cluster headache: acute and extreme pain that occurs several times a day for months and then disappears for periods ranging from weeks to months. They last less than an hour and occur at the same times.

Sinus headache: causes pain in the front of the head and face. It is due to inflammation of the paranasal sinuses, behind the cheeks, nose, eyes, and forehead. Getting out of bed upon waking in the morning or tilting the body forward can worsen the pain.

Temporal arteritis is a disorder in which the artery irrigating part of the head, temples, and neck becomes inflamed.

Colds, flu, fever, or premenstrual syndrome are other origins of headaches.

Causes of more serious pain can be:

Subarachnoid hemorrhage, bleeding in the area between the brain and the thin tissue covering it.

Very high blood pressure.

Brain infections such as meningitis or encephalitis, abscess, brain tumor.

Hydrocephalus, accumulation of fluid inside the skull leading to brain swelling.

Pseudotumor cerebri, increased pressure inside the skull mimicking a tumor.

Carbon monoxide poisoning.

Sleep apnea, causing lack of oxygen during sleep.

Dysfunctions in blood vessels and cerebral bleeding that could cause arteriovenous malformations (AVMs), cerebral aneurysm, or stroke.

MIGRAINE

Migraine is a neurological condition characterized by recurrent headaches. They present with different intensity, frequency, and duration. Commonly, the pain is located on one side of the head and is often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.

There are two main types of migraines:

Classic or migraine with aura: 'Aura' is said to be present when, before an intense headache attack, the person experiences visual perceptions such as bright flashes, sparks, zigzag lines, and even temporary loss of vision, among other possible sensory symptoms. These sensations, which can last between 10 minutes and an hour approximately, occur before the headache starts, hence they are called premonitory symptoms of the migraine.

Common or without aura: this type of migraine is similar to the previous one, but it differs because among the premonitory symptoms, there is no aura. This is the most frequent form of migraine.

There are theories to explain migraine, although there is no conclusive scientific evidence. It is believed that headaches manifest when the arteries supplying the brain constrict and then dilate, causing pain (vascular theory).

However, some suggest that the thickness of blood vessels increases due to other changes in the nervous system, and neurotransmitters (chemical messengers in the brain) are considered to play a fundamental role as triggers for migraine.

Generally, headache attacks disappear within 24 hours, but they can last up to three days. When the pain attacks do not occur, the patient feels well, without any discomfort or symptoms; they feel their head 'clear.'

The frequency of headaches varies among different people, and even the same patient may experience times of frequent attacks and periods when they occur sporadically. A person may suffer more than one crisis per week and then go several months or even years without headaches.

Migraine usually occurs for the first time in adolescence. It generally affects people between 20 and 45 years old.

It is more common in women than in men, which is explained by hormonal changes. Generally, those with a family history suffer from it.

The medical criterion used to determine migraine includes having had at least five attacks, suffering a headache that lasts between 4 and 72 hours; the pain is unilateral (on one side of the head) or pulsating, and the intensity makes it impossible to carry out any task, worsening with movement.

Prevention and Treatment

Many factors can trigger migraine attacks: diet, sleep, stress, menstruation in women. That is why it is recommended for migraine sufferers to pay special attention or even keep a diary to identify what triggers the pain. In some cases, this can help reduce the quantity or frequency of attacks.

Some people who suffer migraines frequently get used to taking painkillers preventively. This is not advisable because these same painkillers, due to their chronic use, can trigger migraines, besides having other side effects.

It should be the doctor who determines the treatment to follow, taking into account each particular case, the side effects of certain drugs in prolonged treatments, and the response that each patient shows to the medication.

Observations on treatments.

Taking medicine more than 3 days a week can cause rebound headaches. These are headaches that keep reoccurring due to excessive use of the painkiller.

Taking too much acetaminophen can harm the liver.

Too much ibuprofen or aspirin can irritate the stomach or kidneys.

The proposal of the Facial Reflex Therapy Method is a session of natural techniques to relax and relieve pain tension, while promoting energetic movement in areas that could be causing dysfunction or whose energy is altered due to consumed medication.

Sources: Argentine Association of Headaches, National Headache Foundation, National Library of Medicine of the United States, American Academy of Neurology / http://www.hospitalaustral.edu.ar/enfermedades/migrana/

Becker WJ. Acute migraine treatment in adults. Headache. 2015;55:778-793. PMID: 258

Article by Ernesto Reich