I Tried This Natural Remedy For My Menstrual Migraines—And it Worked – Cora

How period migraines are traditionally treated.

Once a month, I could look forward to losing an afternoon or even a full day to my period migraine. And even though my doctor told me that being on the Pill would lessen the severity of the migraines, that wasn’t the case. In fact, sometimes they would worsen while I was using the Pill. 

It would have been great if my doctor had told me that each woman’s body is different and that the levels of estrogen within birth control pills vary. So while a woman like me might find that being on the Pill made my menstrual migraines worse, another woman might find that they helped her migraines diminish. 

The lesson: listen to and know your own body and what works for you. 

A visit to a traditional western doctor about your menstrual migraines may result in one of these three approaches: 

1. An immediate dosage of triptan (a medication used to treat migraines) in combination with an anti-inflammatory like ibuprofen; or you can inject triptan with a needle or a needle-free syringe (which works faster than swallowing a pill but sounds horrifying); or you can use a nasal inhaler. This option, although less terrifying than injection and faster than a pill, is still not fast enough if you are nauseated and vomiting as a result of your migraine. 
2. A preventative approach of taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), triptans, hormones, or magnesium a week before and after your period. 
3. Or a long-term treatment in which you are treated with hormones via the Pill or vaginal ring. 

Not a fan of prescription meds, injections, or any of the remedies mentioned and seeing that over-the-counter painkillers did nothing for the pain I was in,  I wondered about natural alternatives for bringing my hormones back into balance and, hopefully, getting rid of my migraines. 

After reading up on herbal remedies, I came across two herbs that were said to be particularly beneficial for women: Black Cohosh and Angelica.