HEADACHE TREATMENT REPORT
NEW TECHNIQUES FOR THE CURE AND CONTROL OF MIGRAINE,
STRESS, TENSION, COMMON AND 'HANGOVER' TYPE HEADACHES
Hundreds of Millions of people throughout the world suffer
from headaches. Some have occasional mild headaches only a
few times a year. Others have extremely painful headaches
that make them incapable of functioning normally at home or
at work. Some have headaches that are so bad that they
have committed suicide to escape the pain.
One thing is certain. The medical profession has done
little to cure or control headaches. Although meeting with
limited success, a wide variety of treatments from doctors
and headache clinics have been relatively ineffective as
well as quite expensive.
Doctors tend to disregard treatments that are simple and
inexpensive, particularly if they don't require
prescriptions or doctor visits. The treatments outlined in
this report are simple, effective and inexpensive. They do
not require a doctor's approval or a prescription.
VASCULAR HEADACHES
In order to understand why the treatments work, it is
important to know what causes the headaches.
Recently it has been discovered that regardless of the type
of headache, whether it be migraine, tension, or other, the
actual pain that is felt comes from 'expansion' of the
blood vessels or arteries in the brain. IN VIRTUALLY ALL
HEADACHES, THE PAIN IS CAUSED BY EXPANSION OF ARTERIES AND
BLOOD VESSELS. Things having to do with the arteries and
vessels are called 'vascular', hence the term Vascular
Headaches. Nearly all headaches, including migraines,
tension headaches and hangovers are vascular headaches.
There can be many things that will cause the vessels to
expand, and not all of the relationships are understood.
The 'type' of headache that is experienced depends on what
caused the expansion and where the particular vessels are
located.
No matter what the cause, if you can PREVENT THE EXPANSION
OF THE BLOOD VESSELS YOU WILL REDUCE OR ELIMINATE THE PAIN.
Once the blood vessels have expanded it is difficult to
reduce them again, so the most effective treatments are
those that prevent the expansion to begin with.
The following sections will examine hadaches and discuss
their treatment. The differences of treatment for
different types of headaches will be explained as well as
the similarities. Please read the explanation for each
one, even for those headaches that do not apply to you.
The discussion will help you to understand your own type of
headache as well.
HANGOVERS
The hangover headache which is experienced the next morning
after drinking alcohol has been the object of many 'cures'
of varying effectiveness. Let's examine why drinking
causes a headache in the first place.
Very simply, alcohol and related chemicals in the blood
will cause the blood vessels to expand if left in contact
with the walls of the blood vessels for extended periods of
time. This in turn produces the pain which is felt the
next morning upon awakening. As the day goes by the
vessels gradually return to their proper size and the
headache gradually disappears.
WHY DO YOU ONLY GET A HANGOVER AFTER YOU HAVE GONE TO
SLEEP? The answer lies mostly in the fact that you sleep
lying down.
When blood flows through the body, it is pumped from the
heart to the various parts by the pressure of the
heartbeat. However, once it has been 'used' by the body it
must find another way to return to the heart. From the
lower parts of the body, movement and contraction of the
muscles forces the blood back to the heart through valves
in the blood vessels. From the head, the blood drains back
down by gravity.
WHEN YOU ARE LYING DOWN, THE BLOOD FROM THE BRAIN DOES NOT
DRAIN BACK TO THE HEART AS QUICKLY. In fact, the blood
will sit there and 'pool up' for long periods of time in
contact with the blood vessels. Any chemicals such as
alcohol or its by-products will have a long time to affect
the vessels, thus creating the expansion that results in
the pain of the headache.
TREATMENT #1: SLEEP SITTING UP
When you have been drinking and you want to prevent a
hangover, part of the treatment is to sleep sitting up so
that the blood that is pumped to the brain will flow back
out of the brain without having as much time to affect the
blood vessels. A recliner chair, or even the front seat of
a car will work. It is important to keep your neck fairly
straight - do not let your head fall to one side or forward
or backward. As we will see later, sleeping with the head
at unusual angles can actually cause a headache.
You will find that after moderate drinking which would
normally produce a headache, if you sleep sitting up you
will not have a headache when you awaken in the morning.
This will not cure other hangover symptoms such as nausea
or dry mouth, but it will diminish or eliminate the
headache. It can be even more effective if used with:
TREATMENT #2: ASPIRIN BEFORE THE HEADACHE
Aspirin is not very effective at curing a headache that has
gotten a good start, but it can be very good at preventing
headaches that you know are coming.
Take two regular aspirins with AT LEAST A FULL GLASS OF
WATER before going to sleep. You will wake up without a
headache (or at worst just a small fraction of the headache
you would normally expect). This is especially effective
when used in conjunction with 'sleeping sitting up'.
How does aspirin work? Aspirin has many effects on the
blood. The exact mechanism is still unknown. In small
doses, about 1/4 to 1/2 tablet, it can reduce the clotting
factor. At larger doses, this effect can disappear. In
doses of about two adult size tablets it can prevent the
expanding of the blood vessels if taken in advance or at
about the time the expansion actually starts.
Aspirin can cause bleeding in the stomach. Drinking a lot
of water with it helps to reduce the bleeding there.
Taking aspirin with food is ok - it will not reduce the
effectiveness.
One of the effects of drinking is to dehydrate the body.
Part of the water in your system is used to flush out the
alcohol. The water you drink with the aspirin will help to
replenish what is missing, which helps to reduce the
hangover.
The combination of taking 2 aspirin with a lot of water
before going to sleep, and sleeping in an upright position
so the blood flows back out of the head will eliminate all
but the very worst hangover type headaches.
MIGRAINE AND OTHER FREQUENT HEADACHES
If you have frequent headaches which are not caused by any
physical abnormality such as tumor or stroke, there are a
few things that can be done to control them. You may find
that only one of the following may be enough to control the
headaches, or you may want to do all of them.
No one knows what causes migraine or other headaches. We
do know that the triggering mechanism ultimately results in
the expansion of the blood vessels. Some of the factors
can be: allergies, chemicals in the air, certain foods,
wind from certain areas (particularly certain mountain
winds), weather changes, temperature changes, altitude
changes, reaction to cold or flu viruses, sinus infections,
and more.
No matter what the cause, if we can make it more difficult
for the arteries and blood vessels to expand, we can reduce
or eliminate the pain. Luckily there is a common product
that will contract the blood vessels. Caffeine.
TREATMENT #1: CAFFEINE PILLS TWICE A DAY
THIS IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE TREATMENT IN THIS REPORT.
For years doctors have suggested taking caffeine with
aspirin as a cure for a headache. This was thought to
speed up the effect of the aspirin. However, doctors have
overlooked the use of caffeine as a regular preventative
for headaches by itself.
If a caffeine pill is taken with breakfast, then another is
taken about 12 hours later, your body will be protected
against those factors that tend to expand the blood
vessels. It will now take much more of whatever is causing
the expansion before anything happens at all, and even then
the resulting pain will be much less. This can be
effective in reducing the number of headaches by 75 to 90
percent.
Caffeine is the ingredient in NoDoz tablets. Other
companies also make a similar product. Most drug and grocery stores carry
caffeine pills in 200 mg doses. Caffeine can be purchased online
(search for "white cross" and "caffeine") in 100 mg strength.
If your body weight is below 150 lbs, 50mg in the
morning and the same at night will be sufficient. Over 150 lbs
and you may need more.
Caffeine (somewhere around 100 mg) is found in a
cup of coffee or in a soft drink such as one of the popular
cola drinks. However, DRINKING COFFEE OR SOFT DRINKS WILL
NOT PRODUCE THE SAME RESULTS. The caffeine must be taken
in the form of the pills.
Will your body develop a tolerance? No. We have found
that if you stick with the dosage and do not increase it,
the effectiveness is maintained. There is no need to
increase the dosage as time goes by.
Once you start using the caffeine, you will find that if
you miss one of your daily pills it is likely to result in
a headache. The effect of the caffeine is approximately 18
hours past the time you take the pill. You will find that
if you miss a pill, you may start to get a headache about
18 hours later, not right away as would be expected. This
may occur EVEN IF YOU TAKE THE NEXT PILL 12 HOURS AFTER
MISSING THE FIRST ONE.
Once you get in the habit of taking the caffeine you will
rarely forget to take a pill when due, and you will have a
new freedom from your headaches. Most people have no
trouble sleeping as a result of the caffeine either.
TREATMENT #2: ELEVATE THE HEAD WHEN SLEEPING
For similar reasons to those above in the hangover example,
if you sleep with your head at the same level as your
heart, you have a greater tendency to headaches. If your
headaches are frequent and painful, you may want to
experiment with sleeping in a recliner chair or getting a
bed that adjusts like a hospital bed. It is not necessary
to sleep in a fully upright position, but even a 45 degree
angle is quite helpful.
If you get a headache, RESIST THE IMPULSE TO LIE DOWN FLAT.
Lying down allows the blood pressure to build in your head,
which can make the headache worse. Better to relax in a
recliner without going fully back. You will avoid a lot of
pain this way.
TREATMENT #3: THE NECK IS THE KEY
Many headaches start at the neck. Tension and stress
headaches start there. The muscles in the neck get tense.
This starts an unknown mechanism which results in the
expansion of the blood vessels, leading in a tension
headache. It is possible that the pressure exerted by the
tense muscles changes the alignment of the spinal cord in
the neck, which has many nerves running through it.
Pressure changes on those nerves might result in changes in
the blood vessels, since those nerves control many of the
functions of the body.
Keep the neck cool. Wearing sweaters or jackets can
sometimes cause headaches by overheating the neck.
Keep the neck open. Clothes that fit tight around the neck
can lead to expanding the blood vessels and causing a
headache.
Chiropractors can help. Some people find that regular
visits to a good chiropractor can keep the spine in good
alignment. This can reduce the number of headaches because
it eliminates one of the triggers of the expanding blood
vessels.
However many people cannot afford the $25 to $50 per visit.
What can you do for yourself? Much of the mis-alignment
comes when you are sleeping. If you can keep the neck from
being turned at an angle when sleeping you will be keeping
the alignment correct. If you are sleeping in a recliner,
you don't want to use a pillow. If you are sleeping in a
bed you don't want to sleep on your stomach, since that
requires you to turn your head to one side or the other to
breathe. If you sleep on your back, you don't want to use
a pillow, since that thrusts the spinal cord up at an
unusual angle. If you sleep on your side you may want to
use two pillows to keep the head high enough to keep the
spine in a straight line.
TREATMENT #4: NO EXERTION ON SENSITIVE DAYS
Some days you can do anything without worrying about a
headache. On other days something has made your body more
prone to blood vessel expansion and you must be more
careful. On those days you do not want to do any hard
physical activity.
That means nothing that would cause your heartbeat to
increase, or make you red in the face, or strain your
muscles. Any of those would tend to increase the pressure
in the blood vessels in your head, leading to headache
pain. Sometimes even momentary exertion can lead to an
irreversible headache.
TREATMENT #5: ASPIRIN CAN HELP
If you are one of those people who can tell when a headache
is trying to get started, taking two aspirin at that time
can often prevent the headache. THE ASPIRIN MUST BE TAKEN
IN ADVANCE OF THE FULL HEADACHE OR IT WON'T BE EFFECTIVE.
The mistake most people make is not to take the aspirin
until the headache is strong. By then the blood vessels
have already expanded and it is difficult to reverse the
action.
CONCLUSION
These may seem like very simple solutions, but they REALLY
WORK! If you understand this report and try out the
solutions, you will be freeing yourself from a lot of pain.
Sometimes in trying to find the complex solutions, medicine
overlooks the obvious. For decades, knowledgeable people
were writing books about the benefits of high fiber diets
while the medical profession was denying their findings.
Today the medical profession and the American Government
both promote high fiber diets. There are many other
examples as well.
The treatments outlined above are a result of recent
findings in the medical community, but they are applied in
a way that would not normally be considered by them.
Please try them out. You will be happy with the results.
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