Herbal Migraine Remedies – Herbs To Relieve Your Headaches

I had my first migraine headache when I was in the third grade. Now we know that migraines are common, even in young children.

What I remember is having a nauseated stomach and being unable to move my head due to the pain. My mother kept the room dark for me as just the slightest bit of light caused agony. I missed school for three days.

Another childhood memory that I recall, was arguing with my parents over Sunday breakfast. Though I loved sausage, especially when my father cooked it up special on Sundays, I refused to eat it or bacon. In addition, I refused to drink milk. I insisted that milk and breakfast meats gave me headaches. Indeed, I was on to something. Processed meats, chocolate, milk, cheeses and red wine commonly induce migraine headaches.

As I grew older, migraines were frequently incapacitating, especially during menses. I needed to find relief and had turned to over the counter remedies, such as aspirin and ibuprofen, frequently. As a result, I developed gastritis.

About this time, some effective pharmaceuticals were being promoted for migraine relief. I was tempted, but wondered if I could prevent the migraines from occurring and decrease their intensity should they occur by using natural remedies. It turned out that herbal help was available.

Feverfew – Migraine Relief in a Little Flower

I had read that the herb feverfew was useful for treating migraines so I decided to plant some in my herb garden. I figured that even if feverfew flowers did not relieve my headaches that they were still a lovely addition to my herb garden. Feverfew flowers are tiny daisy shaped flowers which grow on a mass of low growing curiously shaped dark green leaves.

The initial way that I used feverfew, and to my way of thinking still the best way, was simply to nibble on a few leaves a few times each day. Feverfew has a bitter flavor and not everyone desires or can keep an herb garden, so the next best thing is to make or purchase a tincture of feverfew.

Many experts recommend using a tincture which is standardized to 0.2% parthenolide. Parthenolide is simply one of the healing compounds found in feverfew. Start by taking twenty five to one hundred twenty five milligrams daily of the standardized leaf and flower extract. Increase the amount gradually as needed. For acute migraines, you may need up to two grams daily while the headache is present.

Freeze dried leaf preparations are excellent as well. Take fifty to one hundred milligrams daily of the freeze dried product.

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