Migraine is a frustrating
condition for its sufferers. It’s costly in terms of
pain, money, and pharmacological use need. Drugs remain
the “gold standard” of care. Patients often ask their
migraine healthcare providers for non-pharamacological alternatives.
Auburn migraine sufferers want options!
Dr. Le's Chiropractic & Wellness, L.L.C. suggests that exercise may be one
such useful alternative.
EXERCISE FOR CHRONIC PAIN
Migraine is, for most Auburn migraine sufferers,
a chronic pain condition. It’s not usually a one and done condition. Chronic pain disrupts
the nervous system and the specific pain-generating
issue. Researchers described evidence that exercise helps a
variety of chronic pain conditions including migraine directly and indirectly
with a goal of changing the cycle of pain,
sedentariness, and worsening disability. These
changes don’t emerge overnight. They come with
long-term, consistent, individualized exercise bringing about improvement in pain and function. (1) Dr. Le's Chiropractic & Wellness, L.L.C. tells
our Auburn chiropractic patients with all sorts of
conditions that it is slow and steady commitment that gets the result.
EXERCISE FOR MIGRAINE BEING STUDIED
Researchers and migraine sufferers alike hold out hope for an easy, inexpensive approach to migraine care. For
example, a recent comparison project of
neck-specific exercise versus sham ultrasound to reduce
the frequency and intensity of migraine attacks. (2) A new meta-analysis
in Headache reported that aerobic exercise for migraine patients
dropped the number of migraine days. (3) These are valuable
outcomes for Auburn migraine treatment.
EXERCISE BENEFITS: Overall and Migraine Specific
Auburn chiropractic patients are often
urged to exercise. Exercise seems like a endorsed
panacea for everything from back pain to migraine to depression to neck pain
and so much more. Why? It works. Exercise suppresses inflammation
via reduction of inflammatory modulators (many cytokines) and stress hormones
(growth hormone and cortisol). Exercise positively influences
the microvascular system that possibly influences
a certain type of cortical spreading depression. Specific
to migraine, exercise helped migraine self-efficacy by allowing
the migraine sufferer to have a sense of control which reduced
migraine burden. How much exercise produces this type of effect?
“Sufficiently rigorous aerobic exercise” brought about statistically
significant reduction in migraine frequency, intensity and
duration. That’s appreciated by Auburn
migraine sufferers! Naturally, higher intensity exercise seems
to allow more benefit. Pharmacological drugs like topiramate were
reported to be superior to exercise, but including
exercise into its use was implied as being beneficial. Migraine sufferers
who also have neck pain or tension headache are reported to benefit from exercise. Low impact is valuable
if high impact exercise is not possible. (4) Dr. Le's Chiropractic & Wellness, L.L.C. agrees
with the researchers’ bottom-line: exercise is a reasonable
evidence-based recommendation for migraine prevention.
CONTACT Dr. Le's Chiropractic & Wellness, L.L.C.
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. David Kulla on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes
how he followed The
Cox®
Technic System of Spinal Pain Management for his patient with
migraine which included Cox® Technic spinal manipulation
as well as exercise for welcomed relief by his patient.