Eye Migraine Help

Sometimes changes in a person's nervous system cause splitting headaches called migraines. These migraines sometimes debilitate people enough that they cannot function normally. Some migraines affect the eyes by causing auras or temporary vision loss. In the past these migraines were classified separately and were called ocular migraines. Now doctors realize that visual disturbances are common occurrences in general migraines. Patients find help in reducing headache pain with eye disturbances by following regular treatments for migraines.

Keep Records

• Keeping records and journaling helps doctors help you as they work with you to combat migraine pain. Write down specifics such as what you ate, when you ate, what activities you were involved in before the migraine, how it felt as it came on and how long it lasted. Recognizing a pattern in your activities and diet in relation to migraines could help you ward them off.

Natural Remedies

• Migraine sufferers could find help through holistic practices such as homeopathy, acupuncture and massage. Some herbs and diet supplements also prevent migraines or reduce their severity and duration. Feverfew is an herb used throughout the centuries to combat migraines, although studies are not conclusive as to its effectiveness. A supplement for 5-HTP (5-Hydroxytryptophan), a body compound used to make serotonin and melatonin, shows signs of reducing migraine frequency and even preventing them. Magnesium, found in seeds, green, leafy vegetables, whole grains and nuts as well as in nutritional supplements, shows promise for combating migraines. Extract from butterbur, a shrub-like plant from parts of North America, Europe and Asia, helps people with migraines by preventing them. Scientists also find that vitamins B2 and D reduce severity and duration of migraines.

Prescription Medication

• There are some prescription medications a doctor might prescribe a migraine sufferer to help with the pain. These drugs come in oral forms, injections and nasal spray forms. Doctors helping patients with prescription medications will determine a treatment plan that might range from acetaminophen tablets to a sumatriptan injection to a dihydroergotamine nasal spray, or they might help the patient combat migraines with a heavier drug such as morphine or demerol. A patient must take these drugs immediately upon migraine onset to help alleviate the pain and duration of the migraine. Daily use might build an immunity to the medication, causing it to to be ineffective, or it might even cause more migraines once a patient stops taking the medication.

Hospitalization

• Victims of severe migraines sometimes get treated through an intravenous lidocaine treatment. This type of treatment might extend over a long period, sometimes surpassing a week. It helps patients by breaking the migraine cycle in their brains and offering pain relief.