A Guide
Have you ever had a terrible headache? Perhaps it has been a few hours since you ate, or you have had a long day at work and notice your head pain on the way home.
Well, scale it up by about 1000, and you have a migraine!
Contrary to popular belief and its depiction on TV, migraines are not just really bad headaches. That is only one of the most common symptoms. In actuality, they are defined by neurologists and doctors as a neurological condition that affects the entire body and has a solid genetic component. If one of your parents suffers from migraines, you are more likely to suffer from them too. Yikes!
Luckily, there are many options available relating to pharmaceuticals that can help to prevent and manage migraines, with the most common option being sumatriptan. Taken as soon as you notice the first symptoms, sumatriptan can prevent a migraine headache from developing, as well as lessen other symptoms. Great!
How does it work? How do you know at which stage of the migraine to take it? Here is a short guide to migraines and this medication.
What Is A Migraine?
First, it is important to have a correct definition of what a migraine is and what it feels like.
As stated earlier, a common symptom of a migraine is a headache, but it is far from the only one. A migraine is broken down into three stages: the aura, the migraine, and the postdrome. The aura may feel like dizziness or spinning, or you may even have a visual disturbance, such as flashing lights or a loss of part of your vision. It is during the aura (if you have auras) that you should take sumatriptan, which you can purchase at chemistclick.co.uk.
The migraine itself involves the blood vessels in the brain dilating, hence the headache. It can also cause symptoms such as abdominal pain, vomiting, sensitivity to light, sounds, smells, and even drooling.
The postdrome occurs after the main symptoms and headache have subsided, but can cause you to feel tired and depressed and to have ‘brain fog’ for a few days after the migraine has happened.
Migraine Triggers
Now, onto migraine triggers!
These vary from person to person, but there are some common trends that clinicians have observed. Stress, lack of sleep, or depression itself can heighten the chances of you developing a migraine if you are prone to them due to the neurochemical imbalance that comes along with this mental illness. There are some foods, such as cheese, eggs, and salted meat, that can increase the chances of you having a migraine. Alcohol can also be a trigger, as can antidepressants. A link has been found between the prevalence of migraines and that time of the month, as hormonal migraines are incredibly commonplace. You can also have a genetic predisposition to migraines too.
Your neurologist or doctor will usually advise you to identify your triggers and to avoid them while also typically prescribing sumatriptan to prevent the headache from occurring.
How Does Sumatriptan Work?
Sumatriptan is one of the best medications available to prevent or lessen the impact of migraines, but why? Well, research has found that triptans are ideal for constricting the blood vessels that have widened during a migraine, thus reducing the awful pressure headache that many people experience when they have a migraine.
This medication has another function, though. As mentioned before, depression as a condition can go hand in hand with migraines due in part to a lack of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is a known anti-inflammatory. Sumatriptan increases the presence of serotonin in the brain to help reduce inflammation and shorten the length of the migraine.
It will usually take sumatriptan around 30-60 minutes to work, so it is important to take this medication as soon as you notice that you are starting to have a migraine attack via the aura. If you do not have auras at the start of your migraines, talk to your family medicine doctor or neurologist about the best way to take this medication.
Sumatriptan Side Effects
There are some side effects of sumatriptan to watch out for, though, and to report to a medical team if they concern you.
The most common symptoms include dizziness, nausea, being physically sick, and feeling flushed. Other people have reported tingling sensations in their limbs, accompanied by a bitter taste in their mouths. Be aware that if you are taking sumatriptan along with medications for mental illnesses, such as antidepressants, you will need to be particularly cautious of symptoms that can indicate serotonin syndrome, which is caused when there is too much serotonin in the brain.
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