Hot or Cold - Choosing the Correct type of Headache Compress

We all have them and at any time they can silently creep up and ruin a perfectly good day or they can hit us like a freight train in the face going full force while blasting its air horn all in our ear canals. Some are avoidable, some mild, some severe, and some are so intense that you are down right miserable.

They are Headaches and Migraines, your body's warning mechanism that something in your system is out of balance and it wants you to know that ignoring it won't help.

A headache is pretty much defined as a pain in the upper neck or head. A migraine is defined as a recurrent throbbing headache that typically affects only one side of the head and is likely to cause nausea and visual impairment such as double vision or extreme light sensitivity.

Medical research has shown that abnormal signals between your brain, blood vessels, and nerves could be the cause for headaches and migraines. The nerves and blood vessels in your brain begin to send a signal to constrict the vessels then dilate, as for why it's still unknown. That reaction appears to trigger your immune system, which in turn causes inflammation, the inflammation then causes pressure in your head which is then perceived as pain by you. Fun no?

Now headaches and migraines are often treatable with over the counter (OTC) medications although migraine suffers may require prescription strength med's depending on the frequency and severity. Now not everyone believes in reaching for the pill bottle and many others do not have the means to either afford or obtain the medications they need to treat their pain.

But there is a method of subduing and even getting rid of the pain without the needs for any type of pharmaceutical assistance.

Using nothing more than either a cold or heated cloth placed in the correct areas it can actually provide quite a bit of relief from the pain, but do you know if you need a hot cloth or a cold one?

The answer is a resounding - depends.

It depends because you first have to determine where the pain may be originating or what trigger caused it in the first place.

You see individuals who suffer from migraines or mixed headaches may find that the cold compress will suit them the best and here's why...

How a cold compress work:

A cold compress work by constricting (tightening) your blood vessels and provides a numbing effect to the local area. As the cold compress constricts these blood vessels it will begin to calm the inflammation which should in turn reduce the build up of pressure lessening your headache.

Where as individuals who suffer from pain in the jaw, neck, shoulder's will find that a warm compress may suit them best because...

How a warm compress works:

A warm compress does the opposite and actually dilates (Opens up) the blood vessels allowing for more blood flow. A warm compress will also soothe and relax tense or tight muscles and heat provides an overall relaxing sensation in the body easing stress.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Heat will open up blood vessels allowing for more blood flow and if you are already dealing with severe inflammation this will just increase the pressure making your situation even worse!

another method you may want to try is alternating both hot and cold compresses and this is why...

The Contrast Compress works by:

Many suffers of headaches have found that using contrasting compresses of hot and cold tend to alleviate their pain faster than using a singular method. This method of using contrasting temperatures comes from hydrotherapy in which you draw the blood away from the head and into the limbs by creating a pump with the alternate temperatures. You will have to experiment with this method to determine if it is right for you.

Headaches and migraines can be quite persistent and down right agonizing but there are a few simple methods you can take to help limit their frequencies.

• Drink plenty of water
• Eat healthier
• Cut back on nuts and products containing nuts
• Limit your caffeine intake (This one is the hardest for me)
• Do light stretches every now and then
• Exercise

and the biggest one of them all - Relax! Let yourself forgive and forget, learn to take things in stride. Staying relaxed is like what an umbrella is to rain, the stress just rolls right off and you.

I invite all of you to share with me the home remedies you use to deal with your headaches or migraines down below in the comments section.

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