Understanding Your Migraines is a comprehensive and authoritative resource for people who suffer from migraine headaches, as well as for their families and their caretakers. Drs. Levin and Ward bring their vast experience studying and treating migraine to this book in a clear, practical and easily understandable volume which covers all of the aspects of migraine that plague individuals and their families. Numerous examples of real people with migraine help illustrate the options available for finding relief for this highly disabling worldwide health problem.

Health & SICKNESS -- Consumer Health . In the United States, eighteen percent of women, six percent of men, and four percent of children suffer from migraine headaches. All races are affected, although, for reasons which are unknown, whites are more likely than African Americans to be afflicted with the condition, and Asian Americans are least often migraine sufferers. Migraine is an inherited condition-many families can trace it back for generations-and it has enormous economic and social consequences, both to individual sufferers, and to the society as a whole. The cost to the U.S. society alone is in excess of $13 billion per year in lost productivity and in health care. Understanding Migraine and Other Headaches provides up-to-date information on the causes and diagnoses, as well as current preventive measures, effective treatments, and surgical procedures. The book gives an overview of every major type of headache, including the debilitating, nausea-inducing forms of migraine, episodic tension-type headaches (the most common form), chronic daily headaches, and more obscure head-aches such as trigeminal neuralgia and cluster headaches. This book is intended for those who are burdened by headaches as well as for their families, coworkers, employers, and friends. As such, it is written in a lucid and simple style that is accessible both to lay readers and medical professionals. In the last two decades, revolutionary new migraine-specific medications have been developed. This book undertakes a comprehensive look at medications for acute as needed treatment of headaches and for preventing the onset of an attack. It offers guidelines for assessing headache pain, the level and type of medication needed, possible side effects, and drug effectiveness. Stewart J. Tepper is director of the New England Center for Headaches in Stamford, Connecticut.

"English," wrote Virginia Woolf, "which can express the thoughts of Hamlet and the tragedy of Lear, has no words for the shiver and the headache. . . . let a sufferer try to describe a pain in his head to a doctor and language at once runs dry." Despite Woolf's astute observation and the apparent dearth of writings on such subjects, editor Kathleen O'Shea has managed to gather a wide selection of helpful excerpts, chapters, poetry, and even a short play in this anthology--all with a view toward increasing our understanding and ending the stigma attached to migraines and migraine sufferers. Unlike clinical materials, this anthology addresses the feelings and symptoms that the writers have experienced, sometimes daily. These pieces speak freely about the loneliness and helplessness one feels when a migraine comes on. The sufferer faces nausea, pain, sensitivity to light, and having the veracity of all these symptoms doubted by others. O'Shea, a professor of literature and a migraine sufferer herself, also includes an original essay of her own reflections. Offered as an alternative not only to medical writing but also to self-help books and internet blogs, So Much More Than a Headache addresses a real omission in the available works on migraine, provides a resource for those who may have underestimated the depth and range of writing on this subject, and challenges the cultural bias that dismisses migraine as "just a headache."

Draws on the latest scientific findings to identify the unique characteristics, chemical makeups, and structural differences of migraine-prone brains, offering insight into the role of the central nervous system while outlining a comprehensive program to reduce the frequency and intensity of headaches. Reprint.

Providing details of the pros and cons of common prescription medications, this text explains Dr. Mauskop's patient-tested, seven-step programme for migraine relief. It includes tips on avoiding migraine triggers in food, the home & the environment.

The up-to-the-minute guide to understanding and treating migraines for all migraine sufferers and their families Across America, twenty-eight million people suffer from migraines, costing the nation millions of dollars in lost work and school days, medication, and countless visits to doctors and hospitals. At the world-renowned Diamond Headache Clinic in Chicago, Dr. Seymour Diamond has spent more than thirty years helping thousands of headache sufferers conquer their debilitating pain. At last, the resources of that institution are available in a book. Dr. Diamond's Conquering Your Migraine is a comprehensive guide to the identification and treatment of all types of migraine, including pediatric headache, hormonal migraine, and coexisting migraine and tension-type headache. This book includes: The most up-to-date research on the cause of migraine, including if and how it will affect treatment How to identify the danger signs of migraine Identifying and treating migraine when it is linked to depression Why more than 70 percent of migraine sufferers are women and what their particular circumstances mean for treatment How the miracle drugs of the twenty-first century can stop your migraine attack The latest in non-drug and self-help treatments, including relaxation therapy, biofeedback, and preventative therapies If you or someone close to you suffers from migraine, Dr. Diamond's Your Migraine is the lifeline you need to help free you from pain.

Arguing that an appropriate medication has the best potential for relieving a headache, a guide to headache treatment discusses different types of pain, and conventional and alternative options for prevention or treatment.