Managing Pain - Part 2
Headaches & Muscle Tension
Headaches and muscle tension are so common in our go go go world. There are some common triggers, and a few good options to relieve them
Learning what your common headache triggers are can help you stop them before they start <3.
Triggers –
Blood sugar crash – A blood sugar crash can have a variety of symptoms (tired, shaky, hangry, etc), and a headache is a common one.
Dehydration – Many of us are chronically dehydrated and your cells need to be hydrated to work properly.
Too much caffeine or caffeine withdrawal – oh caffeine, an energy double-edged sword. Too much or too little can trigger a doozy of a headache, so pay attention to your caffeine tolerance level…especially on extra stressful days. You don’t want a caffeine-triggered headache to add to your stress.
Hormones – women’s hormones fluctuate throughout the month and these changes can trigger a headache. Keep track of your headaches to see if they are triggered by your changing hormones.
Muscle tension – tight muscles in your neck or jaw can trigger a headache, so take a moment and move your neck around – is it tight? How are your shoulders?
Headache relievers
Drink some water –
If you feel a headache coming on, drink 2 full glasses of water. Add a pinch of salt to help you rehydrated faster.
If drinking water helps, be a bit more diligent each day so your body doesn’t have to trigger a headache to remind you to drink :).
Eat something –
Sometimes a meal or a snack can relieve a headache pretty fast and easily. It can take up to 30 mins after eating for your blood sugar rebound so be patient. A piece of fruit is one of the best and fastest ways to bump your blood sugar up quickly.
Add some magnesium –
Magnesium is one of the most common deficiencies, and we burn through extra magnesium anytime we’re under stress…so adding some extra magnesium can help with all stress-related headaches. It also relaxes tight muscles, so it really helps muscle tension too.
Add 300mg of magnesium 1 – 2x per day with food. Topical magnesium (like Epsom Gel) is amazing at relieving muscle tension quickly. Apply it liberally to sore tight muscles :)
Peppermint essential oil –
Peppermint oil is my go-to headache helper. Dab it along your browline and along the back of your neck. It helps to vanish stubborn headaches and helps with clear and creative thinking. A mug of peppermint tea would also be helpful, especially if you breathe in the minty loveliness as it steeps :).
If you have any questions, jump to our private Facebook Group or the Ask Lisa page :)