Do you suffer from migraines? Does it affect your ability to go about your day-to-day life? Considering it's a common issue, it’s hard to believe more people don’t know about the potential migraine treatments available. If painkillers just aren’t cutting it, and you’re still suffering from them regularly, you may want to look at alternative solutions, such as chiropractic care. Read on to find out more about how a visit to the chiropractor can help ease your migraines.

What is a migraine?

Any migraine sufferer will tell you that migraines are so much worse than “bad headaches”. They don’t just come with the pain of an intense headache, they’re also accompanied by other symptoms that affect someone's ability to go about their day too. Some of these include:

• Nausea
• Sensitivity to light and sounds
• Loss of appetite
• Worn out/lethargic and exhausted after

What most people don’t know is that there are two main types of migraines. These are:

• Migraine with aura - an aura is a visual disturbance of flashing and zig-zag lights and usually comes before the headache. It can also be associated with tingling and numbness in the hands, arms or face.
• Migraine without aura – most sufferers won't experience the aura, so a headache is typically the first sign.

What causes migraines?

Although the causes are yet to be fully understood, there are numerous genetic and environmental factors that play a role in migraines. These include:

• Hormonal changes in women
• Caffeine
• Stress
• Alcohol
• Sensory stimuli
• Physical exertion
• Weather changes
• Medication
• Food

How is chiropractic care a form of migraine treatment?

Migraine headaches are still a very active area of research, however, a lot of medical professionals believe they involve issues related to nerve signals and blood flow. This is where a chiropractor comes in.

They can use a series of spinal adjustments to impact the way the nerves send signals through to the brain. Spinal manipulation may also impact the blood flow through the central nervous system, which helps to treat and prevent migraines.

Chiropractic care could be the solution to your migraine issues and is definitely something to consider with a medical professional. If you’re a sufferer of migraines and need an alternative to medications, contact Melville Wellness Centre today for more information about chiropractic treatments.