Homeopathic Medicine in headaches and migraines can certainly be of great help because it presents a wide range of valid remedies that can be used, both for the treatment in the acute phase of the cephalic pathology, and as a preventive therapy of painful attacks in the chronic phases of pathology.
Homeopathic therapy, unlike traditional allopathic therapy, has the advantage of customizing the treatments to be administered to patients suffering from headache, based on numerous parameters: type of pain, intensity and duration of painful crises, any associated symptoms, but above all he will choose the homeopathic remedy taking into account the “constitution of the patient”, to find the drug that best reflects the characteristics of the subject to be treated.
There are various types of headaches that afflict millions of people in the world and among these it is above all women who are called into question, more than men. The “headache” is in fact a pathology that mainly affects the female sex, often presenting itself cyclically with the course of menstruation and in any case in relation to hormonal functionality ( menopausal headaches ) or in situations of work and sentimental stress.
The classification of headaches provides for the identification of primary or essential forms when the pain of the headache does not find real causes and secondary forms in which the headache is the accompanying symptom of other pathologies such as ocular infections or sinuses, pathologies of the head, neuralgia or vascular disorders, etc. Let’s briefly see some types.
Migraine
Migraine is defined as headache in which intense and throbbing pain affects one side of the head , is usually accompanied by other symptoms such as: nausea, vomiting, aversion to light and noise, dizziness and sometimes mental confusion.
The type of migraine with a visual or sensory aura, i.e. in which there are symptoms preceding the pain type of migraine, is characteristic of primary essential headache (10% of headaches); in the remaining 60-70% of cases, the headache presents itself as migraine without aura, that is, with more nuanced accompanying symptoms such as mood disorders, gastrointestinal symptoms, water retention, etc .; in these cases the painful crisis can last several days.
Muscle-tension headache
The term muscle-tension headache, on the other hand, defines a particular type of headache in which the pain, not intense, burdensome, is perceived as a weight or as a tight band around the head. It is the most common type of headache, in fact it concerns about 30-50% of patients suffering from headache, with a prevalence for women; it manifests itself by contracture of the muscles of the neck and face, with a pain that radiates to the nape and cervical region.
Cluster headache
Finally, the term cluster headache refers to a particular type of headache, which mainly affects the male sex, in which violent pain affects half of the skull (migraine), involving the eye and the eyelid of the affected side. Painful crises occur with attacks that are close in time, even several times a day, at the same time and are long lasting (over 30 minutes). They are often associated with red and watery eyes, nasal obstruction, sweating and a state of intense agitation. The most common triggers of this headache appear to be alcohol and prolonged stress.
Vertebrobasilar migraine
Another type of headache is vertebrobasilar migraine characterized by throbbing pain in the occipital area accompanied by vomiting, blurred vision, which is sometimes followed by loss of consciousness. This type of headache has been found in young women in conjunction with the menstrual cycle and appears to be caused by hormonal and endocrine changes in blood circulation.
Homeopathic medicine in headaches and migraines
Homeopathy can certainly be of great help because it has a wide range of valid remedies that can be used, both for the treatment in the acute phase of the head disease, and as preventive therapy of painful attacks in the chronic phases of the disease.
Homeopathic therapy, unlike traditional allopathic therapy, has the advantage of customizing the treatments to be administered to patients suffering from headache, based on numerous parameters: type of pain, intensity and duration of painful crises, any associated symptoms, but above all he will choose the homeopathic remedy taking into account the ” constitution of the patient “, to find the drug that most reflects the characteristics of the subject to be treated, that is the ” simillinum” of Hahnemaniana memoria, which is the real fulcrum of the homeopathic therapeutic approach to illnesses.
The main homeopathic remedies used in headache painful pathologies are many and can be divided for simplification into three large groups:
- Vasomotor forms
- Muscle-Tensive Forms
- Periodic Forms
Vasomotor forms
The first and most used remedy is Atropa belladonna or Belladonna , recommended in all acute inflammatory and febrile forms, found in cluster headaches and migraines with right side. The typical pain is occipital, radiating to the forehead and right eye, sharp, stabbing and throbbing, with a red face, dilated pupils, head and face hot due to vasomotor flushes.
Belladonna is also used in typical headaches resulting from heat stroke. The patient appears restless and short-tempered. The throbbing headache characteristically worsens with light, noise and movement, improves with rest.
Even Aconite remedy of sudden changes in temperature the typical ” cold blast” , has pre-eminent action on headaches violent and intolerable cluster with throbbing temples. The pain is acute, stinging accompanied by photophobia, dizziness, widespread paraesthesia, with agitation and anxiety up to panic. The head is burning with lively thirst. The headache occurs mainly at night and is often the consequence of a dry cold.
Bryonia alba follows, a remedy typically used in adynamic febrile syndromes , it is indicated for frontal headaches worsened by the slightest movement (characteristic of the remedy) , even of the eyeballs. The pain is acute, excruciating, often fever accompanied by intense thirst and dryness of the mucous membranes coexist. The improvement is evident with rest, pressure and sweating.
Gelsemium is another important remedy for congestive headaches and migraines. Typical use of the remedy is for occipital headache that radiates to the muscles of the neck and shoulders and pain in the eyeballs and also for ophthalmological migraines preceded by visual disturbances (diplopia). The patient appears prostrate and apathetic, the face congested, purple, accompanied by a feeling of heaviness in the head, the extremities are cold. Pain often follows affective or emotional shocks. Symptoms worsen with heat, emotions and bad news, improve with profuse urination and sweating.
Glonoinum or Nitroglycerin or Trinitrine [C3H5 (NO3) 3] typical remedy for congestive headaches after sunstroke or hypertension. Distinctive feature of the drug is the violent onset of circulatory symptoms. The pain is violent, throbbing accompanied by tachycardia and palpitations, with a sensation of “bursting head“; gets worse with heat, noise and sudden movements, gets better in the open air. The subject appears nervous, hypertensive, sometimes disoriented or confused, sudden dizziness or loss of consciousness may be added.
Kalium phosphoricum or potassium phosphate (K2HPO4) another very active remedy on painful head diseases, is used successfully in occipital and nuchal headaches accompanied by a sense of dizziness. The subject is extremely sensitive to noise and contact (hyperesthesia); the pain is intense and is made worse by cold, movement and improved with eating and companionship. It is particularly suitable for young people after intellectual fatigue or sexual excesses.
Another remedy of proven efficacy is Ignatia amara or “St Ignatius Bean”, often prescribed in states of affective shock , can also find the right use in headaches resulting from emotional trauma, grief, fear, sorrow or frustration. Intense pain is described as “nail driven into the head” in the parietal or occipital region. Headache is characteristically triggered by strong odors, it improves markedly with distraction and heat. The person is often depressed, has a changing mood, sighs and cries easily. Finally we can include Nux vomica key remedy for morning headache and migraine accompanied by dizziness and nausea .
This is the typical “headache” that appears after overeating, abuse of alcohol, tobacco, coffee or lack of sleep. These are usually hypersensitive, nervous, impatient and angry, hyperactive subjects suffering from digestive disorders and constipation. The pain is felt as heaviness or like a nail, concentrated in particular on the forehead and eyes. Symptoms worsen with light and noise, cold or drafts, and improve after a short sleep and often with heat.
Muscle-tensive forms
The typical remedy for this type of form is Actea racemosa or Cimicifuga recemosa which finds its indication for occipital headache radiated to the eyes. The pain is represented by a sense of contusion, heaviness in the head, improved in the open air. This type of headache is often linked to muscle spasms resulting from postural errors ( postural back pain), in the presence of pain in the side or “false angor“, or in women with pituitary-ovarian dysfunctions, or hyperestrogenemias .
Dulcamara is another remedy widely used in headaches triggered by intense and humid cold (unlike Aconitum ). The remedy is an important medicine that presents characteristics at the same time of the Sicotic reactive model (chronicity of manifestations, sensitivity to cold ..) and of the psoric reactive model (alternation of pathological manifestations). Acute neuralgic pain is accompanied by general coldness that worsens with humidity, rain, fog and definitely improves with heat.
Another remedy of the group is Staphysagria or Delphinium staphysagria used in headaches with dizziness, often accompanied by memory loss. The symptoms are characterized by violent pains in the head, worsened by contact and improved by walking in circles. The subject affected by this type of headache presents a psycho-physical hypersensitivity, a feeling of exhaustion in the morning, widespread and migrated itching, odontalgia and hyperesthesia in contact with the genital areas. Characteristically, the subjects who suffer from this type of headache present anger, indignation and displeasure, which often result in repression of feelings and somatization of symptoms.
Periodic forms
They are headaches that occur with a fixed term eg. daily, weekly, monthly etc. Arsenicum album is the most suitable remedy for these forms of chronically occurring headaches, with a burning character (typical of the medicine); the pain is localized in the supraciliary area and is improved by cold applications. The patient is anxious, restless, hypochondriac and with obsessive ideas. Iris versicolor is preferentially used in periodic ophthalmic headaches and migraines with blurred vision or other visual changes. Headache pain is accompanied by nausea and acid vomiting.
The characteristics of the medicine associate it with the symptoms of the gastric system: heartburn, belching, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and diarrhea. For the weekly periodicity of the symptoms, the remedy is indicated in association with Sulfur (main remedy of the Psoric reactive model), its complement, for the chronicity of the manifestations. Due to its characteristic as a remedy for recurrent pathologies, it is particularly indicated in the “weekend headache“.
