Now, as we know no about how migraine happens according to Ayurveda, we can look at the Ayurvedic treatment of migraine.
This migraine self-healing protocol is derived from following classical Ayurvedic text – Charak Samhita, Ashtang Hridya, Bhaishajya Ratnavali, and Yogaratnakara. The treatment methods like nasal drops, ear drops, etc. have been used in the Indian traditional healthcare regimen for many centuries. They are safe and tested. However, I do not have a scientific data-based support this claim right now. Therefore, kindly use this information after consulting your physician.
Ayurveda considers prakrati or body type as one of the fundamental factors for any treatment. Your body is unique, and it may have individual requirements. This treatment provides suitable options for various body types. However, most of the practices are safe and effective for all. The medicines suggested are classical preparations and have a significant effect on all prakrati.
Ayurvedic migraine treatment is a two-pronged as it works on two dimensions mental and physical. Ideally, the migraine treatment must start with counseling and mindfulness training. However, I won’t expect you to meditate when you are reeling with pain. So let’s start with the easiest, practical, and effective procedures that you can follow at home. I assume that after a few weeks, you would in a better position to handle a post on Ayurvedic manas chikitsa (mind treatment) for migraine. Meanwhile, you might like to check some posts on mindfulness.
So, let’s kick-start the migraine self-healing protocol. I will cover the following parts in each blog with sufficient details.
- General Detox
- Diet Change
- Lifestyle Change
- Ayurvedic Nasal Drops
- Ayurvedic Ear Drops
- Ayurvedic Smoking
- Ayurvedic Head Massage
- Ayurvedic Mouth Filling
- Neti Kriya
- Ayurvedic Mini-Panchkarma
- Ayurvedic general medicines and home remedies
Now food is the basic input that decides the output in the form of health or disease. And migraine needs a careful selection of foodstuff.
First of all, it is crucial to know what not to eat –
Please more details in these links –
Toxic food according to Ayurveda
Food not to be eaten regularly
Food to be eaten in small quantities
And what to eat –
Best Food according to Ayurveda
All the above recommendations work for migraine patients as well as for healthy people. However, I would like to stress the idea of “Satmya.” You are the best judge of what suits you and what does not. Listen to your body, and it will help you to make the best choices.
Migraine Special Diet
With the above indications, let’s dive deep into a diet that will help you to balance your dosha. Vata dosha vitiation is the fundamental cause of migraines and all similar disorders. Therefore, a comprehensive treatment of migraines is based on achieving a vata balance. And vata balancing diet is the first step towards an effective and permanent migraine relief.
Week 1 – Basic Detox
I assume that you have reasonable stamina to follow the essential detox. Also, I assume that you are not suffering from severe lifestyle disorders like diabetes, Hypertension, etc. In case of any severe disease, kindly consult for a personalized regimen.
The most crucial sutra for a migraine patient is to eat only when hungry (unless you are extremely weak).
Option 1
Basic Fruit Detox –
Fruit detox is applicable for summer, and spring only. It is best for the obese, people suffering from compulsive eating disorders, excessive hunger, anorexia, and depression.
One of the best food for migraine patients is fruits (plant products that can be consumed raw, without any cooking). Try to stay on fruits for this week, if possible. You can boil, bake, fry, or simply eat them raw. Local, seasonal, and organic fruits are the best for consumption. In case you are not able to get fresh fruits; you can also try dry fruits like raisins, dates, cashew, almond, dried berries, etc.
Recommended fruits (naturally ripened and organic) – mango, spondias, banana, coconut water, fresh coconut, watermelon, melon, cucumber, elephant Apple, jujube, emblica, pomegranate, apple, pears etc
All the foods must be consumed; you must ensure that the food that you eat s adequately ripened. Consumption of raw fruits can aggravate the migraine problem. Also, do not make them into juices, shakes, etc. Eat them along with their fiber content for the best results. Avoid making milk shakes. Keep your diet strictly limited to fruits.
The use of Almonds is very beneficial for migraine patients. You must soak the elements overnight, peel their coat in the morning and eat with Rock Candy for the best benefit. You can also similarly use walnut and raisins.
Alternatives to Fresh Fruits: Some people have kapha problems like cold, stuffy nose, congestion, etc. if they consume fruits at night or early morning. However, this is abnormal metabolism, and one should try to correct the same. But before you fix it, the alternatives for dinner are – warm milk (A2 organic milk, preferably), dry fruits, boiled potatoes/sweet potatoes/beetroots, tapioca, carrots, etc. Also, these options might be useful to people who have meager availability of edible fruits.
Fruits to avoid – raw (unripe) or artificially ripened fruits, non-seasonal, exotic fruits, inorganic fruits, Artocarpus lacucha, (also known as monkey fruit, or Monkey Jack or barhar), water caltrop, grapes,and tamarind
Fruit Detox Routine
Day 1 – Normal breakfast and lunch, change in dinner
Day 2 – Change breakfast and dinner, Normal Lunch
Day 3 – Change all three meals
Day 4 – Only fruit/boiled vegetable meals
Day 5 – Only fruit/boiled vegetable meals
Day 6 – Normal Lunch, Fruit-based breakfast and dinner
Day 7 – Normal Lunch, breakfast, fruit-based dinner
I would suggest that you follow this detox once a week after the first week, throughout the migraine treatment protocol.
Option 2:
Basic Ghee Detox
Ghee is Indian Clarified butter than helps to normalize all the body functions. It is THE BEST GENERAL SOLUTION for migraine pain in Ayurveda. It is especially applicable for winter and autumn. However, it can be safely used in all seasons and body types. Ghee detox is best for weak, underweight, recuperating(from physical trauma), people with low stamina, and high hunger.
Ghee: Ghee is Deepan, pachan(appetizer, digestive) in nature. It helps to balance all three dosha in the body. Ghee is one of the best anti-toxin in Ayurveda. Ghee detox will ensure that that dryness in your intestine and overall body is reduced, and your nerves are less hyper excited.
Consumption of ghee at esp. at night time helps to balance Prana vayu, a subtype of vata dosha, which is primarily involved in migraines. For more information on how the timing of a medicine affects performance, please visit How to use Ayurvedic Supplements
Ghee Detox Routine
Day 1 – Normal breakfast and lunch, 10-20 ml Ghee in dinner
Day 2 – 20-40 ml Ghee in breakfast/dinner, Normal Lunch
Day 3 – Change all three meals (20-50 ml depending on the hunger, e.g you might be hungrier in winter than in summer)
Day 4 – Only Ghee meals
Day 5 – Only Ghee meals
Day 6 – Normal Lunch, Ghee-based breakfast and dinner
Day 7 – Normal Lunch, breakfast, Ghee-based dinner
Ghee intake is such a reliable and powerful procedure that it can eliminate migraine in the long run, without any other effort or medication.
People with obesity can also practice this method. However, they must ensure to eat only when truly hungry and consume only 1-2 tsp of ghee at a time. Consider this Ghee detox as a mini keto diet that will help to rejuvenate your body.
Later, as you heal, you can also use Ghee for cooking purposes.
Please ensure that it is A2 organic ghee for the best results. If not, then go for whatever ghee is available. Salted Indian butter available online also produces reasonable cleansing effects.
You can also consume good quality medicated ghee or Ayurvedic oils. Some good options are Baladi thailam, Mahanarayan tail, Brahmi ghrita, kalyanaka ghrita, Ashwagandhadi ghrita, puran ghrita et cetera. However, consult your physician before trying any of these.
These two detoxes can help to make a good foundation for further treatment. However, please make sure that you choose the detox according to the season, and your body condition. Also, it is important to avoid eating anything else during this detox. If you find it very tough, keep the lunch intact and change breakfast and dinner for 30 days to achieve the same result.
Also, you can choose to go for fruit detox and then try ghee detox as well. However, ghee detox is superior to fruit detox.
It is vital to ensure that you have the right amount of appetizers and digestive herbs to digest and absorb the oily food/Ghee recommended in migraine treatment. Also, mild yoga exercises will help the lubrication from Ghee to spread throughout the body and relieve dryness.
Some good classical digestives are –
- Hinguvadi/Hinguashtaka churna (powder/tablet form)
- Dadimashtaka Churna
- 1/2 tsp Ajwain (carom seeds) with a pinch of black salt (esp. for bloating)
- 1 tsp roasted cumin seeds powder + 1/2 tsp ajwain seeds (whole and raw) + 1 pinch of black salt, rock salt, roasted asafoetida each
There is a possibility that you neither like fruits or ghee. But fear not, there are so many ways to detox the body, depending on your health conditions. Kindly contact for more details.
In my next blog, I will specify on the kind of general diet you should follow to prevent migraine aggravation.
Hope this information helps all people in need!
Om Shanti Shanti Shanti
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