Like any of the other emergency conditions, temporal arteritis is too dangerous to waste time trying complementary therapies. Any delay in giving steroids to someone suffering from temporal arteritis may result in permanent blindness. If you suspect that you are suffering from this condition, consult your doctor, or the emergency services immediately.
Following the illness, you may benefit from some complementary therapies, to reduce the fear of recurrence, and the stress involved in any frightening illness, and to stimulate your body’s ability to heal itself, and read well to the medical treatment you are receiving.
Acupuncture, acupressure and reflexology, will reduce the headaches that accompany stress, anxiety and fear. All offer relaxation therapies.
Rejuvenating aromatherapy treatments would include massage, baths or vapourisation with: sandalwood, frankincense, jasmine, rose, lavender and neroli. There are also oils which will deal specifically with your symptoms, whether they are persistent headaches, depression, lack of energy or general pain. Consult a registered practitioner for a customised programme.
A good vitamin and mineral supplement will help restore a weakened system, and royal jelly is a good all round nutrient source.
See the section on strokes, for more ideas about dealing with post illness symptoms
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‘Ihere is no alternative to proper hospital care for those who have had a head injury severe enough either to knock them unconscious, or give any of the symptoms described earlier. If you’ve been knocked out, you will need twenty-four hours’ observation. On the other hand, minor degrees of head injury and superficial bruising can be successfully treated with all sorts of therapies.
Acupuncture can help when there is local muscle spasm, and soft-tissue injury. It is especially effective for pain, and can he helpful for bones that are slow to heal.
After an accident, Bach flower remedies can be applied to pulse points, and again, a good herbal treatment for shock is an infusion of balm, camomile, peppermint and skullcap, which can be sipped, or applied as a compress to the head area. Arnica can he taken while awaiting medical attention.
Biofeedback and kinesiology can be useful in the recuperative stages of injury, as can therapies like colour therapy (to help with persistent headaches), flotation therapy, relaxation and psychotherapy. ‘Ihe latter can be especially good, since anxiety can play a pan in injury-related headaches. Reflexology to treat the head and neck area could be helpful; therapists say this revitalises the body SO that it can better heal itself. It should also relieve some of Ihe pain and tension. Osteopathy and cranial osteopathy may help, after the initial injury has begun to settle down.
Comfrey root (in small doses) can be taken internally to encourage bone healing in the case of fracture. (‘Ihe old name for comfrey is knitbone’.) Valerian tea combined with skullcap may help with spasm-caused headaches. Bumps and bruises can be swabbed with witch hazel, which will prevent swelling. A poultice of mustard seed stimulates circulation and relieves muscular and skeletal pain. Anti-inflammatory herbs include comfrey, marigold and yarrow. Apply as a compress.
An aromatherapist could suggest lavender, marjoram and thyme to sooth aching and promote healing. Essential oil of fennel will ease muscular pain. Rose in the hath can help headaches, and try essential oil of lemon on the bandage to arrest bleeding. Ant-inflammatory oils include bergamot, marigold (calendula), lavender and myrrh. Black pepper is rubefacient and can be used in massage alter beating has begun. Analgesic oils are bergamot, camomile and lavender.
‘Ihe homoeopathic remedies of nut sulph, china and camomile can be taken after a head injury, and bryonia can relieve discomfort, along with arnica, hypericum and Symphytum. But do see a registered homoeopath who will assess your particular needs.
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Abdominal migraine
Abdominal migraine is migraine that is perceived in the abdomen. It has exactly the same time span as common migraine, but never has any visual symptoms, or any other aura symptoms, such as paralysis. It isn’t due to blood vessel instability, but may well be due to disordered movement and spasm of the muscles in the gut. The symptoms are abdominal pain, vomiting, sometimes with giddiness, and a dislike of bright lights. Disturbances of mood are common. There may be irritability and yawning, and a loss of energy and drive. Some children also experience a ‘peculiar feeling’ which they can’t quite explain. In later life they may associate it with other migrainous symptoms which have only then become obvious – for example, the development of an aura.
Abdominal migraine often disappears by about the age of twelve, and it is not certain whether or not it progresses to common or classical migraine.
Menstrual migraine
Menstrual migraine is defined as a migraine which occurs at the beginning of the period – either on the first two days of the period, or the day before the period starts. It seems to be linked to a drop in oestrogen levels within the body and responds to treatment with hormone replacement therapy (HRT). About one in ten women with migraine experience menstrual migraine.
Other, less frequent, variants of migraine include the following:
Basilar migraine
Basilar migraine occurs mainly in young women, and is often associated with the time of the period. It occurs as a result of disturbances at a low level of the brain, involving a much more generalised upset in the brain’s functioning. Rather than having an aura which affects only part of the body or part of the visual field, in basilar migraine the visual aura can involve the whole field of view. There can be ringing in the ears, dizziness, transient deafness, double vision, weakness on both sides of the body, uncoordination and clumsy speech. There can also be drowsiness which lasts for a number of hours or, briefly, unconsciousness. Although these symptoms are very dramatic they are fully reversible.
Migraine equivalent
This is when the typical aura of migraine is not associated with any headache. Familial hemiplegic migraine
This is a rare form of migraine which is followed by weakness on one side of the body which can last up to a week; some close members of the family often exhibit the same problem. This is the only type of migraine that we believe to be fully hereditary. The tendency to have migraine does run in families, but in a much less specific way than in familial hemiplegic migraine, which may be handed down directly from parent to child.
Ophthalmoplegic migraine
In ophthalmoplegic migraine there is weakness of the muscles that control the movements of the eyes. Double vision is likely to occur, as is a drooping eyelid and a widened pupil.
We’re not sure whether ophthalmoplegic migraine is true migraine at all. For a start, the headaches last a lot longer – often a week or more – than in other types of migraine.
Retinal migraine
In retinal migraine there is either complete blindness in one eye or alternatively a large patch missing from the visual field of one eye. (This is different from the blank spots in classical migraine, in which the blank areas occur in both eyes together.) As there are a number of other diseases that cause blind spots to develop in a single eye, further investigation may be needed to rule out other causes, such as clots in the eye itself.
Migraine with prolonged aura
Sometimes the aura can extend for up to a week. In cases like this there may actually be no headache at all! Although this can be true migraine, it can also indicate other neurological problems and full investigation is usually needed. Some doctors think that migraine with prolonged aura isn’t true migraine at all.
Migraine with sudden aura
Technically this is called migraine with an acute onset aura. Here the migraine develops fully within five minutes of the aura starting. Again, this is rare, and it is important to make sure that there isn’t something else underlying it.
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Children who are coming down with any one of the childhood diseases are usually pale, listless, tired and irritable. Recognising these signs, and increasing fluids and making sure the child is well-rested, will decrease the severity of the illness. Homoeopathy is effective at all stages of the illness, and is perfectly safe for children. Individual consultation will be necessary, but some of the suggested remedies are: morbillinium for measles, Phytolacca for mumps, pertussin, aconite and bryonia for whooping cough, and rhus tox, sulphur and belladonna for German measles.
Herbal remedies abound for both the treatment of the illness and for dealing with the temperature and headaches that are the symptoms of the illness. Yarrow as a tea can be taken in measles, as well as poke root. Echinacea tablets or tincture may help clear rashes, and catmint (catnip) can be infused to bring down fever, Poke root in tincture or tablet form are helpful for mumps, as well as taking senna for fever, and freshly chopped ginger as a poultice on the skin.
German measles might respond to chicory and cherry plum Bach flower remedies, and for whooping cough you might try coltsfoot, elecampane, and black root. Wild cherry can help the cough itself
Children who are suffering from fever can be gently sponged with a few drops of camomile or bergamot oils in tepid water; alternatively, use tea tree and eucalyptus dropped on a hanky and lied to the end of the bed or cot. Hornbeam, chicory and holly Bach flower remedies might help, and acupuncture can bring down fever.
There are many alternative therapies for febrile convulsions. In terms of prevention, anything that prevents a fever from climbing is helpful, like belladonna or mere sol. Use Rescue remedy in a crisis.
The relief of adult infection and fever is somewhat similar, but there are plenty more options. Aromatherapy is useful in many cases. Basil, chamomile rose and tea tree will induce sweating, while eucalyptus, lemongrass, tea tree and rosemary can bring down fever. You could massage your temples and the back of your neck with camomile in a base oil, and baths of any of the above oils should help. Try a tepid bath when suffering fever. Cooling oils are bergamot and lavender, and oils used in viral infections include tea tree, eucalyptus and bergamot.
Camomile, eucalyptus, rosemary and thyme can be mixed or taken separately as a tea, to relieve fever. Where there is infection of the urinary tract, diuretic herbal teas might help. Try pine, parsley or celery. Chlorophyll tablets and barley water can ease out infection. Drink plenty of water and camomile tea, when suffering infection of any kind, and try eating fresh garlic.
The same homoeopathic remedies for children will bring down high temperatures in adults, and specific illnesses will require specific doses and dilutions. The symptoms of malaria, for example, can be eased with china, china sulph and arsenicum, though othodox medical advice must he taken as well. (It was while trying to find a cure for malaria, and observing the effects of quinine, that Samuel Hahnemann discovered the principles of homoeopathic medicine.)
The clinical nutritionist would recommend black cohash, devil’s claw and quinine for malaria, ‘there is some evidence that other viruses can be controlled by increased intake of zinc and Vitamin C. Extracts of licorice and St John’s wort may have anti-viral properties. Acupuncture, acupressure and Bach flower remedies may all help deal with the pain of headaches caused by infection, and help ease other symptoms. Some claim to go to the root of the pain, and deal with the diseases themselves, by stimulating the body’s own resources. See what works for you.
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Anything that knots up the muscles in the neck or head has the potential to cause a tension headache. Obviously, stress is a potent factor, but neck injuries, poor posture, eye strain, congenital defects and using the neck in awkward positions are all important causes.
For many people, stress causes them to stiffen and hunch up their shoulders, although why this should happen is curious because it doesn’t seem to form any particularly useful function. Try this little test yourself: observe where your shoulders are in relationship to your head and the rest of your body. Now shrug your shoulders as hard as you can, holding it for a couple of seconds. Now let go, dropping your shoulders down suddenly. Notice how much further your shoulders drop than before – which means that at the start you were already holding your shoulders tense!
Stress isn’t the only cause of headaches due to muscle spasm. Anything that causes injury or irritation to the bones, ligaments and joints of the neck is likely to cause muscle spasm in the area as a secondary effect. Arthritis of the neck, a whiplash accident, or any exercise which involves holding the neck bent back is likely to irritate the neck joints and send the surrounding neck muscles into spasm.
What are these unpleasant exercises that bend the neck backwards? Painting the ceiling, for a start; working with your hands above your head; and swimming, assuming that you’re one of the many that can only swim breaststroke, by keeping your head up out of the water all the time!
Holding your head backwards in this way for any length of time tends to irritate the joints in the back of the neck. Because of the reflex reaction, whereby irritated joints cause the muscles around them to go into spasm, painful, irritated joints cause the muscles nearby to go into painful knots; this rams the joints together even further, which hurts even more, which causes the muscles to go into even greater spasms, which rams the joints together… and.so on.
Holding yourself tense for any reason is likely to exacerbate tension headaches, because artificially raising the tension in certain muscles tends to increase the tension in all your muscles. For example: try threading a needle and notice how tense all sorts of other muscles have become. After a period of finicky work the level of muscle tension can rise in all sorts of muscles – especially those in the neck.
Another potent cause of tense muscles is tightly screwing up your eyes – either in harsh sunlight, or because you should really be wearing glasses. It tenses the muscles in the face, and if continued for long periods, will give you a headache.
Bad positioning of the neck and head is another major cause of problems. Chief among the activities that cause this is using a computer which hasn’t been set up at the right level, the correct distance away. II is all too easy to sit in slightly the wrong position, with the monitor placed so that your head is either bent far too far forward or too far back, with your back sagging and your chin jutting forward as you peer at the screen; or else typing away like mad and not moving your head from left to right for hours at a time. Wrong positioning like this, with fixing of the posture, is almost guaranteed to produce neck ache and subsequent headaches.
just as the joint – pain/muscle – spasm reflex can cause self-perpetuating muscle spasm and headache, so a tension headache lends to self-perpetuate. Tension headaches hurt So what do you do? That’s right, you hold your head as still as possible, so the muscles in the neck stay in spasm; now they’re voluntarily being asked to contract as well.
When you next get a tension headache, notice the position of your shoulders; almost certainly they’ll be tense and raised. Now, consciously relax them. Let them drop down. Leave them like this, go back to what you were doing, and, in two minutes, you’ll find they’ve risen of their own accord, back to where they were originally. No wonder tension headaches can be difficult to get rid of – it’s that self-perpetuation again.
However, every cloud has a silver lining: this nature of tension headaches actually makes them very vulnerable to attack, because if you can break the pain/spasm/pain cycle, the vicious circle unwinds very quickly. Reduce the pain and you don’t need to hold your head quite so still. Reduce the need to contract the neck muscles and the headache lessens, which means the muscle spasm reduces … Once a tension headache starts to go, it usually goes very quickly indeed, and doesn’t come back; at least, not for some time.
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