Knowing how to find immediate relief when migraine symptoms hit can take some trial and error, but strategic caffeine use, stimulus avoidance, and hydration are all options that may help.
Migraine headaches are intense headaches that typically affect one side of your head. They’re known for their throbbing, pulsating pain and additional symptoms like nausea, fatigue, and sensory sensitivity.
When you’re experiencing a migraine attack, finding relief can be challenging. Long-term medications for migraine typically work to reduce their frequency, and those that might help during a migraine episode often have to be timed correctly to make an impact.
Because medications won’t always prevent a migraine attack, finding effective home remedies for immediate relief can be important to your quality of life.
Caffeine use for migraine can be a double-edged sword —
According to a
The research also notes that most studies support using caffeine therapeutically for immediate migraine relief, with the most success seen when used in combination with other pain medications.
Why does it help?
Caffeine is a natural central nervous system stimulant that can help relieve migraine pain through several mechanisms. It promotes vasoconstriction, the narrowing of blood vessels, which may reduce vascular pressure and inflammation in the brain, causing migraine pain.
Caffeine can also enhance the absorption of other medications, improving the effectiveness of certain pain relievers. Due to its ability to block the effects of the neurotransmitter adenosine, caffeine may reduce pain perception during a migraine attack.
How much should you take?
How much caffeine it takes to improve a migraine may vary. Research suggests low doses between
If you’re looking to get your caffeine in through a food or beverage, keeping your caffeine at a therapeutic level could be tricky. On average, an 8-ounce cup of coffee contains between
Another option is to have some caffeinated electrolyte tablets on hand. According to the American Migraine Foundation, many people living with migraine are also in need of electrolytes, essential minerals that promote fluid regulation throughout the body.
While different electrolyte tablet brands offer varying caffeine doses, many popular options start around a 30 mg per tablet dose.
If using electrolyte tablets, be sure to take them with plenty of water.
How soon will it help?
Caffeine taken orally is absorbed by the body quickly and reaches peak bioavailability (usability by the body) within
When you live with migraine, you understand the appeal of a quiet, dark atmosphere. In fact, when a migraine attack hits, it’s almost as if your body is encouraging you to seek out this exact environment.
Don’t fight the impulse. Moving to a dark, quiet room can help ease your head pain and the other sensory challenges that come with migraine, like light sensitivity and sound intolerance.
Why does it help?
Removing yourself from a stimulating environment helps migraine pain because it eliminates overstimulation.
During a migraine episode, hyperactive nerves can create sensitivity to sensory input that wouldn’t otherwise bother you. Lights suddenly feel too bright, sounds are too loud, and for some people, even physical touch becomes unpleasant.
By escaping these stimuli, you can reduce the intensity of your migraine symptoms.
How can you accomplish it?
It’s not always easy to find respite in a dark, quiet place, especially if a migraine hits when you’re not at home.
Having some simple items on hand can help when other options aren’t available. Consider having some earplugs or noise-canceling headphones with you, for example, or an eye mask to use in the break room at work.
Even a hat with a brim can take the edge off overhead lights or a sunny day. When an eye mask isn’t practical, consider popping on some sunglasses while you get from one place to the next.
How soon will it help?
There’s no way to know just how quickly changing your environment will help migraine symptoms, but if sensory stimuli are making your migraine worse, pain should start to improve soon after those stimuli are gone.
Not everyone feels up to moving around during a migraine attack, and that’s OK. If you can manage some activity, however, yoga might provide migraine relief.
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Why does it help?
Yoga’s influence on migraine in complex and comes from a combination of mental, physical, and physiological benefits that promote wellness. It’s a mind-body art that can help reduce psychological stress, a potential trigger of migraine, and can also relieve physical tension throughout the body.
Yoga supports proper circulation and vascular health, which may reduce migraine-related inflammation and increase your resilience to future migraine attacks. As your mind and body relax and destress, yoga can improve sleep quality, which may also help prevent migraine recurrence.
Yoga can increase your circulation and encourage the release of feel-good hormones that counteract the pain of a migraine attack.
How can you practice it?
You can learn basic yoga from the comfort of your own home through video and online tutorials. Start slow. Even though yoga isn’t an intense cardiovascular activity, its advanced movements are demanding and require a certain level of strength and flexibility.
The basics can get you started, and most yoga instructors will have a progressive instructional series to follow. When you don’t have a headache, you can seek out in-person classes where you can receive individualized feedback and enjoy the social support of others in the yoga community.
If you currently have migraine pain and want to give yoga a try, consider learning more about these basic movements:
- Downward Facing Dog
- Child’s Pose
- Bridge Pose
How soon will it help?
How long you practice yoga during a migraine episode is entirely up to you. If you’re just starting out, your sessions may only be for 10 or 15 minutes, for example, while more advanced sessions can be
Don’t push yourself. Stick to simple movements and only continue for as long as you’re comfortable. Engaging in a too-intense workout could make your migraine symptoms worse.
Positive effects from yoga can be noticed even during shorter, simpler sessions of
Applying a cold or warm compress to your head is soothing for many people during a migraine attack.
Which one you choose is a personal preference. You might enjoy the feeling of a hot towel across your eyes, for example, while others might prefer a cold compress on the side of the head to dull migraine pain.
Why does it help?
The processes involved in migraine are multifaceted, but activation of your trigeminovascular system is thought to play a significant role. This system includes your trigeminal nerve, the
During a migraine, the trigeminovascular system becomes hypersensitive and inflamed. Blood vessels widen (vasodilatation), contributing to the pressure and pulsating pain of a migraine headache.
Applying cold, specifically, can help by encouraging blood vessels to shrink, reducing blood flow and pressure while also slowing the pain signals transmitted to the brain.
Unlike cold compresses, applying heat to another area of the head, like the face, can boost vasodilatation in that region, increasing circulation and moving blood away from the migraine area. Heat is also soothing and can help relax tense muscles, such as in the shoulders or neck, that might add to migraine discomfort.
How can you apply it?
The American Migraine Foundation recommends limiting cold packs to 15-minute periods or less for migraine pain. Warm compresses can typically be applied for longer periods of time as long as you remain comfortable and the heat is not high enough to damage your skin.
You can use ice packs wrapped in a towel (to protect your skin), cold water compresses, heating pads, microwavable rice packs, or hot water compresses.
How soon will it help?
Like most options for immediate migraine relief, the effectiveness of hot and cold therapy will vary for each person.
One randomized controlled trial from 2021, looking at medication-induced migraine attacks in cardiac patients, found two 25-minute sessions of hot or cold therapy, spaced 1 hour apart, were effective for managing migraine pain.
Dehydration
Why does it help?
When you’re dehydrated, your body doesn’t have enough water to support its functions. This fluid imbalance has body-wide effects and can contribute to migraine pain by affecting circulation, creating a fluid imbalance in your brain tissue, and altering the level of chemicals and waste products in your bloodstream.
By rehydrating, your body returns to homeostasis, its state of balance and optimal function. Your circulation improves, and inflammatory chemicals and waste in the brain can be cleared out, helping to reduce migraine pain.
How should you rehydrate?
Water alone can be enough to restore hydration, but many people also need electrolytes. Electrolytes are minerals essential to fluid use and balance in the body. They help transport water to all cells and tissues.
While drinking a glass of water is a great place to start, the American Migraine Foundation recommends getting at least eight 8-ounce glasses in a day and including electrolyte restoration products like sports drinks, pediatric solutions, or concentrated supplements like gels, gummies, or capsules.
If you take a concentrated electrolyte supplement, drink plenty of water along with it.
And if you’re taking caffeine for your headache as well, be extra aware of your water intake. Caffeine may help migraine pain, but it can also encourage water loss
How soon will it help?
Your body can start to use water soon after you ingest it, but if you’re significantly dehydrated, it may take a
Immediate migraine relief is possible using home remedies, but every person’s migraine experience is unique. What works for you might not work for someone else, and sometimes home remedies won’t help migraine pain.
If you’re experiencing a migraine attack, gentle yoga, hydration, and stimulus reduction are all examples of go-to rescue options that work for many people. Before adding any home remedy to your routine, speak with your doctor to ensure it’s the right choice for you.