Migraine and Headache Awareness Month Blog Challenge # 3

The Hunger Games: "Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor." What healthy habits have you adopted to put the odds of better migraine and headache disorders management in your favor?

I try to do some fairly easy things in hopes of reducing my migraine frequency. Sometimes it works, sometimes not so much. The "healthy habits" I've incorporated into my daily living include eating healthier, not skipping meals and not letting emotional pitfalls bring me down. By consciously doing these things, it helps me feel like I am an active participant in my migraine management plan rather than letting migraine control me.

We didn't have much processed food in my house while growing up. There were no ready to make boxes of macaroni and cheese, stuffing, and certainly no chips or snack foods. My mother would occasionally bake cookies, and she did buy them from time to time. But those were for my brother and sister - I could indulge in all the apples, skim milk and carrots I wanted. Snacking between meals was not encouraged, but cleaning your plate was.

Promoting healthy eating options and limiting processed foods and snacks has always been part of how we live. However, my children are not fans, and frequently remind me - "there's nothing good to eat in here." Of course there are plenty of things for them to eat, just not the chips, cookies, and crackers they want. In order to maintain this healthy eating plan, it takes time, patience and planning. We all know it's much easier to grab a handful of chips than it is to make sure there are fruits and vegetables cut up and ready to eat in the refrigerator. Eating healthier also helps me avoid one of my strongest migraine triggers - skipping a meal. If I skip a meal or go too long between meals, a migraine will surely ensue. By eating five or six smaller meals throughout the day, instead of the standard three larger ones, I can help avoid a migraine, thereby being empowered, not powerless when it comes to my migraines.  

My emotional pitfalls and negative self talk have been around as long as I can remember. I've taken a stand against this. I no longer dwell on negative self talk that often leads to a downward emotional pitfall. As soon as the tiniest bits of negative thinking enter my mind, I immediately envision a stop sign to stop the negativity. A big, read STOP SIGN appears in my mind and says NO to negative self talk. This in turn helps fight off some of my depression. It doesn't stop a migraine from coming, but helps with my overall health.

Thanks for reading and happy migraine and headache disorder awareness month,

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June, Migraine and Headache Awareness Month, is dedicated to Unmasking the Mystery of Chronic Headache Disorders. The Migraine and Headache Awareness Month Blog Challenge is issued by FightingHeadacheDisorders.com