One of the keys to getting rid of a headache is preventing it. Fortunately there are many things we can do to avoid it. Since the way you sleep, the food you eat, the way you exercise and even how you organize yourself during your vacation, can help you prevent a headache or on the contrary trigger a crisis. Take note of these small changes in your daily habits and you will see how your headache begins to be part of your past.
1. Good sleep prevents pain
- Keeping a fixed sleep schedule takes you away from pain. "The migraine brain does not like changes," says Dr. Pozo Rosich, coordinator of the Headache Study Group of the Spanish Neurology Society. Therefore, it is important to keep a fixed time to go to sleep and to get up.
- The ideal is to sleep between 7 and 8 hours a day. Sleeping too little or too much can lead to a crisis. In fact, many headaches occur on the weekend, when we take the opportunity to get up later.
- On holiday. "If instead of getting up at 7 in the morning you are going to do it at 9 because you are on vacation, do it progressively," according to Pozo Rosich. Delay the alarm clock every day 15-20 minutes. If instead of a month you have a few days of vacation, keep more or less your usual schedule.
- How to sleep better. Make sure that the temperature of your room is comfortable, that there is no light and that there is no noise. If you travel in the summer, take a face mask and noise earplugs with you.
- The ideal pillow. Forget about pillows that are too high or hard, which can cause tension in the neck, which is at the origin of many headaches. It is also important that you have a good mattress to rest better.
- Are you clenching your teeth? If you clench your jaws a lot while you sleep, this bruxism can lead to a headache. Go to the dentist to have a discharge splint made.
- Do you have apnea? If you stop breathing for a few seconds when you sleep, it worsens the quality of your sleep, in addition to affecting your heart. Ask your doctor how to treat it.
2. Avoiding stress is the best antidote
- More relaxation. Stress is a frequent trigger for migraine headaches and many patients report that upset or anger could trigger a headache attack. A study from the St. Louis University School of Medicine (USA) found that, in addition, prolonging the anger increases the risk of suffering a headache. To relax or release tension, do sports, yoga, meditation, etc., and limit coffee and other stimulants (tea, chocolate …).
- Prioritize concerns. It is possible for a person with migraine to suffer more attacks in stressful situations, but the same happens if they worry excessively about trivial issues. This suggests that people who tend to worry too much about whatever reason may be at higher risk for headaches.
- Biofeedback. The American Academy of Neurology endorses this technique as one of the best to prevent headaches by controlling nervousness. It consists of recording the physical signals of the body in the face of stress using specific devices and then learning strategies to self-regulate when these symptoms are recognized.
3. Playing sports prevents crises
- Moderate and habitual. For exercise to help prevent seizures, the ideal is to practice it regularly - at least 20 minutes 2 or 3 times a week - and with a medium intensity. This benefits the muscles, preventing contractures, and helps keep tension at bay by generating endorphins, which are natural pain relievers.
- Be careful with overexertion. A very intense activity, especially if the person is not very trained, on the contrary, can cause pain.
- Hydrate yourself Carry a bottle of water with you when training since the loss of water and electrolytes through sweat can be the source of headaches when exercising. Take note of these tricks to drink more water without realizing it.
4. Diet against headaches
It is important to follow regular meal times and not go more than three or four hours without eating. And, although there is no diet against pain, there are certain people who "should avoid those foods that individually can trigger a crisis," says Dr. Lara. That is, do not avoid all the foods that can generate it, but only the one or those that cause it to you. The most common suspects are:
- Histamine Red wine, cava, dairy, seafood, fish, cheese, aubergine.
- Tyramine Walnuts, chicken liver, chocolate, herring, yogurt, soy.
- Phenolic compounds. Coffee, tea, chocolate.
- Additives Soft drinks, sauces, cold cuts, instant soups, ice cream.
- Glutamate. French fries, sausages, sauces, stock broth.
- Colorants E-102, E-110, E-123 and E-124 (yellow, orange and red).
Advice:
- Dra. Pozo Rosich, coordinator of the Headache Study Group of the Spanish Neurology Society.
- Dr. Manuel Lara, from the Headache Unit of the La Paz University Hospital in Madrid.
