What is a Migraine?
There is an actual Migraine Research Foundation and they conclude, among other things, migraines are "extremely incapacitating collection of neurological symptoms that usually includes a severe throbbing recurring pain on one side of the head."
What causes a Migraine?
Medical Journals often suggest migraines can be caused by
- Emotional triggers such as Stress, depression, anxiety, excitement, and shock can trigger a migraine.
- Physical causes: Tiredness and insufficient sleep, shoulder or neck tension, poor posture, and physical overexertion have all been linked to migraines.
- Low blood sugar and jet lag can also act as triggers.
What Is Botox?
Botox is a neurotoxin, a poison made by bacteria called Clostridium botulinums. It can cause a deadly reaction called botulism if you eat it in spoiled food because it blocks signals from your nerves and paralyzes your muscles.
But it's safe because the toxin isn't digested in your stomach and the dose is much smaller amount than you'd get in spoiled food.
Doctors found that shots of Botox can help smooth wrinkles because it relaxes muscles in the face. It also helps people who have tics and spasms because of a nerve disease like cerebral palsy.
When people who had migraine headaches used Botox to treat their wrinkles, they told their doctors that their headaches were better. So doctors began to study it as a migraine pain treatment.
- That was taken from WebMD
How does Botox help?
Botox helps by blocking neurotransmitters that carry pain signals. Basically, it shuts up those annoying pain receptors before the screaming banshees reach your ear...weird metaphor, right? When they don't reach the nerve endings, well, they don't hurt as bad!
According to WebMD, "In another study, nearly half the people who took two rounds of Botox shots reported that the number of days they had a headache each month was cut in half. After five rounds of treatment, that increased to about 70% of the people."
Will It Work For Me?
Well, do you have...
- History of migraine headaches (15 or more days of the month)
- 8 of which are migraines
- Headaches 14 or fewer days/month
- Have cluster headaches?
More About Botox
Read more about the mechanisms of action of Botox in our other article The Science of Botox
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