Seasonal flare-ups can have you feeling like the outside world is a dangerous place, especially when you’ve got allergies and migraines.
You may not see the relation but the two definitely play off of each other to make your life just a little harder. Luckily that relation means that if we can fix one of those problems, the other goes away too.
Cause and effect
Your allergies wreak havoc on your whole body so it isn’t shocking to find out that they have something to do with the migraines you’ve been having. Doctors and researchers haven’t been able pinpoint exactly what triggers the migraine but they do have it narrowed down to a few possibilities.
Besides histamine (your body’s reaction to allergens), food and rhinitis, all possible theories share one thing in common: the sinuses. If you feel like it’s all too complicated to take to your doctor then worry no more. They’ve got a type of doctor out there that deals specifically with allergies and migraines.
Two birds with one stone
Scientists definitely agree that allergies, and especially the release of histamine cause migraines because of their proximity to the trigeminal nerve in the nose. Inflamed sinuses can certainly compound the pressure and before you know it your head is a war zone again.
Ear nose and throat doctors however possess an effective solution to all that. Now, this isn’t your garden-variety antihistamine or decongestant, no. It’s a way to make your body immune to what makes it allergic in the first place. No allergies, no headache.
Immunotherapy shots function by incrementally exposing you to tiny doses of what causes your allergic reactions. If you’re serious about ending both allergies and migraines, you should probably check for sensitivity to other allergens you may not know about. A great way to do this is to have your ENT perform a skin test.
Once you find out, you can begin to immunize yourself against the environment or whatever else sets off your allergies. If you saw the word shots, there’s a chance the idea of a needle turned you off. Worry not, they thought of that, too.
Venturing out into the world
For those that are okay with never seeing a syringe in their life again, ENTs can provide something called SLIT – sublingual immunotherapy. Identical in principle to the shots, the differences here are more about application.
With sublingual immunotherapy all that’s needed is a drop under the tongue. The bonus here is that you can do this from the comfort of your own home.
Home isn’t where you should be staying though. You may feel grounded by your oppressive migraine and terrible allergies but now you know there is a way out.
Relief Can Start Today
The world is too good a place to ignore just because you’ve somehow managed to get used to your allergies and migraines.
At Houston Sinus & Allergy, we see a variety of allergy issues that result in headaches, as well as other stressful or painful situations, and we know how to provide long term relief.
If you’re experiencing difficulty in smelling or nasal breathing, Book an assessment with us, and let us help you breathe normally again.