Understanding the differences between Migraines and Headaches, and how to treat them both.
We have many patients who come to us with what they are calling migraine headaches. Often, we find that they are having headaches, but not what we would call migraines. Sometimes we need to understand the difference between types of headaches and causes of those headaches. Listen to our podcast as we discuss what you need to know to understand what is going on in your head and your body.
Peri-Menopausal Migraine Headache:
- Onset of Headaches in 40’s and 50’s
- One-sided headache (typical)
- Visual lights and flashes (the Aura)
- Nausea
- Sensitivity to light
- Can be so severe that ER treatment is necessary
- Severity can dictate what you do for a living and even if you can hold a job!
Migraine Headaches are diagnosed by symptom’s and there are many triggers
- Fatigue
- Allergies
- Poor sleep
- A tension headache
- Sinus infection
- Hypoglycemia (not eating)
- Pregnancy
- Ovulation
- Menopause
- Rapid decrease of hormones before a period
- Lack of testosterone
What Migraine Headaches are NOT
- NOT associated with neck pain or muscle spasms
- Not associated with sinus pains
Migraines that occur from childhood throughout your life:
- Rarely are related to fluctuations in hormones
- More likely to be associated with allergies and other environmental elements
- Hypoglycemia
- Can be controlled with lifestyle changes and traditional medication
Migraines associated with the Menstrual Cycle
- Usually occur at ovulation and right before or during a period
- Are related to the severity in the drop of Estradiol during these events
- Are fairly predictable
- Treatment usually includes suppressing cycles with low dose birth control pills
- Emergency therapy with Imitrex, Midrin, or another migraine medicine is often effective
Migraines Associated with Aging (new headaches between age 35-55)
- Are usually associated with a lack of testosterone
- Associated with removal of the ovaries (stops ovarian production of Testosterone)
- Are often cluster headaches
- Become more frequent and severe throughout 40’s
- Resistant to medical rescue therapy
- Easily abolished with the replenishing of testosterone with BioBalance testosterone pellets
Two Types of Migraine Headache
Menstrual Migraines
- From drop in estradiol before a period
- Occur right before or during a period
- Constant birth control makes it better
- Pregnancy alleviates these headaches
- Alleviated by menopause
Testosterone Deficiency
- Worsens after age 35
- Worsens with age
- Continues after menopause
- Occurs with or without periods
- Progressively gets worse with time
- Triggered by stress and foods
Pre-Pellet Treatment work-up for Migraine Headaches
- Evaluation by a neurologist
- Rule out brain tumors and vascular lesions
- Rule out dietary triggers and hypoglycemia
- Rule out allergy triggers
- Brain MRI
- Hormone levels
Traditional Medicine aims to stop the symptom. BioBalance Testosterone therapy aims at the substance that your body is missing to create balance and replenish what is missing, not just treat a symptom.
Why Bio-Identical Testosterone Pellets Work for Testosterone Deficiency Migraine Headaches
- New studies have shown these headaches to be caused by a lack of testosterone in the brain
- Testosterone is a neurotransmitter modulator that smoothens out the brain hormones (other neurotransmitters)
- Testosterone modulates estrogen to control large variations of estradiol levels in the brain.
- Testosterone increases REM sleep and increases Melatonin, which prevents headaches before they begin
- Testosterone pellets literally halt migraines in most of our peri-menopausal and post-menopausal patients.
Why not any kind of Testosterone?
- For headaches, testosterone must be administered sub-dermally with Bio-Balance Health Pellets
- Oral Testosterone makes migraines worse!
- Oral testosterone is transformed as it passes through the liver (first pass effect)
- Metabolites of oral testosterone are estrone, di-hydrotestosterone, and androstenedione
These bi-products of oral testosterone do not have the same effect as testosterone given sub-dermally. To get rid of migraines the testosterone must be non-oral and not a patch.
This Health cast was written and presented by Dr. Kathy Maupin, M.D., Bio-identical Hormone Replacement Expert and Author, with Brett Newcomb, MA., LPC., Family Counselor, Presenter and Author. www.BioBalanceHealth.com.
