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Few things are as pervasive, disruptive, or unpleasant as migraine attacks. Migraines can last anywhere from a few hours to several days, and it's estimated at least 12% of U.S. adults suffer from migraines. To help you reduce your frequency of migraines, we asked our migraine specialist in Dallas to share some advice.

When a migraine attack hits you, it's hard to focus on anything else. That intense throbbing head pain can be severe, debilitating, will interfere with your daily activities, and may last for hours or even days. Finding relief from a migraine can be challenging, so we've rounded up a handful of effective options for your migraine treatment in Dallas.

Understanding Migraine Headaches

But before we dive in, we should note that migraines are different for everyone. It's estimated that almost 38 million Americans get migraines and each migraine attack can be very different from the next (WebMD).

In fact, there are many unique subtypes of migraines that come with varying symptoms and other differences. Here are a few common types of these severe headaches:

• Chronic migraines - These are frequent migraines that occur 15 or more days a month for more than 3 months.
• Hemiplegic migraines - The aura that comes with this migraine pain leads to temporary weakness on one side of the body.
• Abdominal migraines - These affect your stomach instead of your head.
• Vestibular migraines - A head pain that also causes vertigo sensations.

Of course, the symptoms of migraines are generally consistent across most experiences (e.g., sensitivity to light, severe pain, etc.). Still, just because one treatment works well for one person, that doesn't always mean it will work well for you.

Which Migraine Treatment in Dallas Is Right for You?

Migraine treatments are classified into two separate categories: (1) acute and (2) preventative.

Acute treatments for migraines work to alleviate symptoms during an attack. These are typically pain medications that you get over-the-counter (OTC) or through a prescription.

The most common migraine medications for acute treatment include triptans and ergotamines. However, these can have unpleasant side effects like nausea, dizziness, and may also negatively interact with other drugs.

Preventative treatments, on the other hand, help reduce the chance of a migraine headache happening at all. Let's dive deeper into those preventative measures to help you find the right one for your intense headaches.

Preventative Medications

Your doctor may prescribe you some migraine medication to help lessen the frequency and severity of your tension headaches. These prescriptions are usually meant to be taken daily and are commonly used for other conditions. These medications may include:

• Beta-blockers, commonly used for high blood pressure (e.g., atenolol, nadolol, propranolol, etc.)
• Calcium channel blockers (e.g., nimodipine, verapamil, etc.)
• Antidepressant medications (e.g., imipramine, fluoxetine, sertraline, etc.)

Like the acute treatment drugs, these prescription meds may come with troubling side effects. These may include weight gain, low blood pressure, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, insomnia, and more.

Acupuncture

If you'd prefer a drug-free treatment option, consider giving acupuncture a try. In this ancient Chinese practice, tiny needles are inserted into specific areas of the body. The belief is that those needles help keep the energy flow in your body balanced.

Acupuncture has been found to be effective for pain relief, reducing stress, improving the system, and enhancing mental clarity. And emerging research has shown that acupuncture may help prevent migraines too.

A systematic review of 22 clinical trials found that the frequency of migraine headaches dropped by 50% or more in up to 59% of the participants receiving acupuncture. Furthermore, it showed that this effect can persist for more than 6 months.

So, acupuncture could be a good treatment to try for your tension headaches.

Hormone Therapy

If your migraines seem to occur in relation to your menstrual cycle, then give hormone therapy a try.

The hormones estrogen and progesterone play key roles in regulating your menstrual cycle. However, they can also affect headache-related chemicals in the brain. Your estrogen levels will dip during your cycle, which may contribute to your headaches and the intensity of your migraine.

You can gain better control over these hormonal fluctuations with lifestyle changes and preventative medications. Other hormone therapy options are available as well.

Neurofeedback

One of the best ways to treat migraines is by focusing on the root cause of the problem: your brain. And neurofeedback therapy can help with that.

Neurofeedback is a non-invasive, drug-free brain training program that uses real-time feedback to help your brain learn how to better respond to migraine triggers and stressors.

Neurofeedback uses a positive reward system and operant conditioning to develop new pathways in your brain. The therapy ultimately helps improve brain function and neurological imbalances. It also helps alleviate migraine symptoms and reduces the frequency of attacks.

In addition, there are virtually no side effects for neurofeedback and there's plenty of research backing up its efficacy. If you're looking for an all-natural, holistic, and drug-free approach to treating migraines in Dallas, give neurofeedback a try.

Get Neurofeedback for Your Migraine Treatment in Dallas

If you're looking for a preventive treatment that works for migraines, you've come to the right place.

At Braincode Centers, we are proud practitioners of neurofeedback therapy. Our headache specialists understand how frustrating migraine attacks can be, especially if they occur daily. We'll create a personalized treatment plan for your pain relief needs that will leverage neurofeedback and other techniques to alleviate your migraines for good.

Contact Braincode Centers today to learn more about this innovative migraine treatment in Dallas.