Spoons & Stitches

So this time last year I posted about using various herbs and foods to prevent migraines . As a quick recap, I turned to herbs because my migraines do not respond well to any of the traditional migraine treatments. I have tried the triptans, such as Imitrex and the like, and they do not consistently help. The side-effects from Maxalt were overwhelming and Relpax is just too expensive.  Feverfew was quite helpful in cutting down on my migraines and I mentioned this to my neurology specialist at my next appointment. What he told me was that it was a great way to start, but that he would actually recommend Butterbur for even better prevention. I did some research and it sounds quite promising! In fact, the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) has found that it helps with migraine prevention and hay fever treatment! Unfortunately, all of my sources also state that those who are sensitive to ragweed are not good candidates to use it, so that counts me out....

Back in April I posted about trying a new therapy for my migraines . Most preventative medications that are prescribed do not work for me or I cannot take them due to my low blood pressure. So in April I started taking a daily dose of feverfew as a preventative. Since that time I have gone from three day long migraines on a weekly basis to only two shorter migraines. One of those I was able to identify a new trigger--the chicken hot dogs we had for dinner. I haven't eaten hot dogs in over a year and it made sense due to the nitrite/nitrate issue involved. The other blindsided me. All in all, I've decided that this therapy is working pretty well. Now I'm researching ways to easy the physical pain. My most common issue is bad knee pain. I am started physical therapy this week, but in the meantime I'd like to lower the inflammation. After a few hours of research this weekend, I've decided to try pineapple for it's bromelain content . It's an enjoyable therapy...