NICE report on painkillers causing headaches

Not so NICE report on headaches and painkillers!

Following the report on 19^th Sept 2012 regarding headaches caused by overuse of painkillers, if you are a headache sufferer then here are five drug free ways to help yourself you might want to look at.

How to help you deal with headaches, in 5 drug free steps

1) Hydration: make sure you drink plenty of water, especially if your headaches tend to start in the mornings.  You may be dehydrated from having had no fluids through the night.

2) Food intolerance: certain foods could be the cause of your headaches. The most common culprits are chocolate, oranges and some additives. This is a sensitivity or intolerance to the food not an allergy. If you have cut out certain foods like tea or coffee, you may find you are getting headaches as a withdrawal symptom. This does not mean you should go back to having more, on the contrary it means that you were having too much.  You might want to cut back and reduce the amounts more slowly than cutting out completely. Also make sure you drink plenty of water to flush the toxins out of your system. 

3) Posture: If you spend most of your time looking at a screen/ keyboard, or driving, your head is probably forward from your shoulders.  This is because the muscles at the front to f your neck and shoulders (pectorals) are constantly pulling tight which puts a strain on your muscles at the back of your neck and shoulder, which are being over stretched and often become tender or even painful. In time this gives rise to round shoulders and dowagers hump.

a) Using a sit-fit to sit on while at the desk will help keep your spine more aligned, practice sitting tall, yet importantly, without strain. You can do this by breathing in fully then keeping the feeling of lightness and openness when you breath out, rather than letting the shoulders drop forward.

b) To reduce the amount of leaning your head forward you need to do at the computer, learn to touch type or use dragon naturally speaking if you cannot touch type.

c) To compensate for the curvature of the spine, lie on your back, on a bed or mat on the floor, use a Mind body ball half inflated under you shoulders and just allow your hang to the side and your head back do this al little every day.  Build up from one minute to five minutes for each session.

4) Sleep: Get enough sleep and avoid going to bed late and waking up late. Your sleep before midnight is more restorative. Make sure you are comfortable and that you relax before falling asleep. You may want to consider testing orthopaedic pillows.

 

5) Balance:  this sounds cliché but it is vital.

a) Aim to have a healthy work life balance and also take time to look after yourself as well as everyone else in your life.  You need to be your top priority as without you being well, where does that leave everyone else that is relying on you. You might want to take time to go for a walk or do some exercise, have a massage or meditate. If you find looking after you difficult then you may want to enlist the help of a mentor or coach the help you with this.

b) Movement: throughout the day your neck and shoulders don’t usually get to move much so make sure you take your neck to it’s full range of movement each day. You can also use a Mind Body ball to improve your range of movement. Contact me if you would like to be emailed an exercise sheet relating to this.

c) Hormones: If you find your headaches are cyclical then it could be a hormonal issue. You may find acupuncture or homeopathy can help you with this. Make sure you deal with the issues that are stressing you as stress will increase the effect the changes in hormones levels are having on you, you will be more prone to PMT/PMS in times of stress than when you feel relaxed.

d) Activity:  balance levels of intense activity, physical as well as mental, with quiet restful moments (even watching TV is not necessarily relaxing). For example if you sit at a desk most of your day then if you can cycle to work or park further away so you get a bit of a walk before sitting,  go for a walk at lunch time, take the stairs. Avoid doing exercise 1hour before going to bed.

If you haven't done so since starting to read this, I suggest you get up and go and have a drink of water. You will have then followed 2 of these suggestions in 1 go!