Anybody that has experienced a migraine headache (and even those that have watched someone else experience one) knows how devastatingly painful they can be. During a migraine headache, blood vessels in the head go through a cycle of extreme constriction followed by rapid dilation. These blood vessels become inflamed due to imbalances in brain chemicals called neurotransmitters. There are many possible causes for neurotransmitter imbalance, but one of the most common is adrenal fatigue. Therefore, if we can address and relieve adrenal fatigue, we can often reduce the frequency and duration of migraines.
Relieve Adrenal Fatigue – Relieve Migraines: Relax and Reduce Stress
Your adrenals are tiny organs the sit on top of your kidneys and are often referred to as the “fight-or-flight” organs because they help us deal with stress. They do so by creating and secreting certain hormones (including cortisol, adrenaline and DHEA) and neurotransmitters (including norepinephrine and epinephrine) that prepare us to either deal with a stress head on (“fight”) or get out of a situation that is threatening to us (“flight”). However, these hormones and neurotransmitters can cause abrupt changes in other neurotransmitters (especially serotonin) that can set the stage for migraine headaches.
Serotonin imbalances are a key underlying trigger for migraine headaches and stress is one of the major causes of serotonin imbalances. Therefore, anything that we can do to help relieve the impact that stress has on us can dramatically decrease the frequency and duration of migraine headaches. Establishing a regular stress management routine that helps you reduce stress and relax throughout the day is an easy and effective way to relieve adrenal fatigue and migraines.
Reduce Stress and Relieve Migraines
There are a large number of useful stress management techniques that can help relieve adrenal fatigue and reduce migraine headaches, and there is no “one-way” that works for everyone. However, two of the most effective stress management techniques that have been shown to reduce stress and relieve migraines are regular exercise and practicing daily stress reduction.
Research shows that exercising 30 minutes five days per week can increase serotonin production by as much as 37%. In addition to helping reduce the frequency and intensity of migraine headaches, regular exercise can also help you relax, improve sleep, reduce anxiety and depression and improve circulation.
Practicing some sort of daily stress reduction can also be a big help. Research has shown that a large number of stress reduction techniques can help relieve adrenal fatigue and reduce the incidence and severity of migraines, including meditation, deep breathing, martial arts, and journaling as well as counseling. The key is to find a routine that you enjoy and that you can incorporate into your daily lifestyle. Many people find the combination of deep breathing, journaling and mediation allows them the flexibility to find a way to incorporate stress management into any spare time they have throughout the day without adding “one-more-thing” to an already overbooked schedule. Experiment with various stress reduction techniques and find the combination that works best for you.
Relax and Reduce Stress and Relieve Your Migraines
Once a migraine headache hits, there is often little that you can do to relieve the pain other than ride-it-out. The key to the successful elimination of migraines is to address the underlying imbalances that cause them to occur. Adrenal fatigue due to chronic stress is usually one of those triggers; therefore, relieving adrenal fatigue through daily stress reduction and relaxation can be a valuable part of any program to relieve migraines. Combined with amino acid therapy, daily stress reduction and regular exercise can dramatically reduce and often eliminate migraine headaches.
