Cold Stone Therapy for Migraines
During a migraine, the blood vessels in your brain are dilated and inflamed which can cause a lot of pain. You can learn more about this on our Migraine Basics page. This dilation is what causes the tell-tell “knocking” of migraine pain. There are several massage therapies available to help during a severe headache or to reduce the number of migraines that you suffer from. Cold stone therapy for migraines may help you reduce inflammation and remove pain during your migraine episodes, and the best part is that these therapies can be done in the comfort of your own home.
Most therapists recommend a one-two-three punch of:
- Aromatherapy
- Massage Therapy
- Then, a follow up of cold stone therapy for migraines
All three therapies should be used on the day your migraine starts – they can be preventative therapies, but are more effective as abortive therapies when used immediately, or on the same day that your headache begins. You can use these stones in conjunction with other migraine treatments as well – in particular, any of the ingestible herbal remedies for migraines can work to help relief your pain.
Cold stone therapy addresses the vascular side of your migraine, and the core goal of this type of therapy is to reduce an overabundance of blood flow by placing cold stones on and around the neck, brain, and skull. This often can reduce the pounding that you feel in your brain, and is generally marble (or synthetic marble) and can provide relief within just a few minutes. As an added perk, cold stone therapy can be alternated with hot stone therapy for added relief of severe headaches.
Additionally, some massage therapists can perform cold stone therapy for migraines if you would prefer to go out for the migraine treatment.
Options for Cold Stone Therapy for Migraines
If you’d like to try cold stone therapy for migraines at home, we recommend two different sets, both are available from Amazon.
[…] There are several theories about why applying ice packs for headaches work to relieve pain. When you use an ice pack, the blood vessels in the area that you placed the cold pack constricts. Cold reduces pain and swelling. Applying ice numbs nerves and hence pain. Activity in the cold cells slows down when ice is used. All of these actions can result in headache relief. Another way to use cold therapy for your migraines is to look at the various cold stone therapy for migraines. […]