Overview
Migraine is a neurological condition, not simply a bad headache. Attacks typically last from four hours to three days and are often disabling enough to stop ordinary activity.
Some people experience an aura beforehand — visual disturbance, tingling or speech difficulty — and many notice a prodrome of mood change, yawning or food craving a day ahead.
Symptoms
Throbbing or pulsating pain, frequently on one side of the head
Worse from movement, light, sound and smell
Nausea, sometimes vomiting
Visual aura: flickering lights, blind spots or zigzag lines
Exhaustion and difficulty concentrating for a day or more afterwards
Causes
Migraine involves changes in nerve signalling and blood flow in the brain, with a strong inherited component.
Attacks are usually set off by triggers rather than arising at random: missed meals, poor or excessive sleep, hormonal shifts around menstruation, dehydration, bright light, strong smells, alcohol, and the let-down after a period of stress.
Risk factors
Family history of migraine
More common in women, particularly between adolescence and menopause
Hormonal fluctuation around menstruation, pregnancy or menopause
Irregular sleep or meal patterns
High sustained stress, or the relaxation that follows it
The homoeopathic approach
The homoeopathic approach looks past the headache to the person who gets it.
Case taking records the side and character of the pain, the exact timing and periodicity, what brings relief — pressure, dark, cold, lying still — and the state of mind. A history of grief, suppressed emotion or a specific life event around the onset is often decisive in choosing the remedy.
Treatment is constitutional and judged over months rather than attacks: the measures that matter are how often attacks come, how long they last, and how much acute medication is still needed.
Commonly indicated remedies
Natrum Muriaticum, Belladonna, Spigelia, Sanguinaria, Glonoinum and Iris Versicolor appear frequently in migraine practice, but the indicated remedy is decided case by case.
These are illustrative, not a prescription. Homoeopathy is individualised — the right remedy depends on your particular case, and self-medication can suppress symptoms rather than resolve them. Please be prescribed for.
Self-care
Keep a simple diary of attacks with sleep, meals and cycle noted alongside
Eat and sleep at regular times, including at weekends
Drink enough water through the day
Rest in a dark, quiet room at the first sign of an attack
Treat early rather than waiting to see whether it passes
When to see a doctor
Seek emergency care for a sudden severe headache reaching full intensity within seconds, a headache with fever and a stiff neck, weakness or numbness down one side, confusion, or a headache after a head injury.
See a doctor if your usual pattern changes, if attacks become more frequent, or if a first migraine begins after the age of fifty.
This page is general information about the condition, not medical advice for your case. It is not a substitute for consulting a qualified practitioner.