Approximately 13 percent of adults in the United States suffer from migraine headaches. If you’re part of this group and are also a parent, you know how hard it can be to care for your children while also struggling with such intense pain.
Listed below are six tips that will help you manage your pain and stay on top of your parenting game when a migraine hits.
1. Know Your Triggers
Everyone has different migraine triggers, from poor sleep to certain types of food. Even changes in the barometric pressure can trigger migraines for some people.
Some triggers aren’t totally avoidable — like it or not, you can’t change the weather — but keeping track of your pain and what’s going on when it strikes can help you identify triggers and learn to avoid or cope with them better.
For example, if you find that barometric pressure does trigger your pain, you can keep track of the weather and, when storms are coming, you’ll be able to take some medicine and hopefully prevent a migraine.
2. Keep Medicine on Hand
There’s no one form of medicine that works best for migraines, unfortunately.
For some people, taking an over-the-counter painkiller like ibuprofen works if they can catch a migraine early. Other people benefit from drugs called triptans, which affect the nerve endings and blood vessels.
There are also preventive medications that you can take to help keep migraines from making an appearance at all. Keep in mind that these medications often come with side effects and are typically only prescribed to people who struggle with multiple migraines per week.
You’ll have to do some experimenting to find out what works best for you. Once you’ve found a medication that works, keep some in your medicine cabinet at all times.
3. Make a Migraine Kit
Keep a small case or box with you that can serve as a migraine kit. You might want to make multiple kits and keep one at home, in your car, and at your office so you’re always prepared.
Some things you might want to keep in your migraine kit include:
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A water bottle
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Medication
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Natural remedies like peppermint oil or some ginger candy
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Flexible ice packs for use in various parts of the body that can be placed on the forehead or neck
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Quiet activities to keep your kids busy while you rest — puzzles, coloring books, craft kits, etc.
4. Talk to Your Kids
As a parent, it’s tempting to try and hide your pain from your children so you don’t scare them. However, it’s important to keep your kids in the loop so that they understand what’s going on when you’re struck with a migraine.
On a day when you’re feeling healthy, sit down with your partner and kids and explain that you suffer from migraine headaches. Calmly explain how you feel when you have a migraine and let your kids know you need them to do when one occurs.
Show them where you keep your migraine kit so that they can grab it for you while you lie down, and let them know that it’s important for them to play quietly so you can rest and recover.
5. Plan Meals Ahead of Time
Knowing that dinner is ready to go can take a lot of stress away from you when you’re dealing with a migraine.
Having meals prepared for the week makes a big difference. Make sure your kids know where dinner is located in the fridge or freezer and, if they’re old enough, teach them how to heat the food up themselves so that they don’t have to wait for you to feel up to making dinner.
You can also have some takeout menus highlighted and displayed on the fridge so kids can order dinner when you don’t feel well enough to cook.
6. Have a Support System in Place
Finally, make sure you have a network of people you can call to help you out when a migraine hits. Whether you need people to pick your kids up from school or come babysit young children while you rest, it’s important to have people who can give you the support you need.
Be sure to show the people in your network your gratitude when they do step in to help out. A thank-you note or a special dinner or dessert (delivered when you’re feeling better, of course) will let them know that you appreciate their help.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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