Self Help

Physicians try to avoid the use of medications as much as possible in treating children with migraine. This is because medications can have unpredictable effects on body systems that are still developing. In fact, headache drugs often have exaggerated side effects in children because of their smaller size and lower body weight.

This is why it is best to start treatment with nothing stronger than aspirin or acetaminophen for pain relief (suppository and liquid forms are available for small children) and by teaching them behavioral pain management techniques such as biofeedback and muscle relaxation.

Recent studies suggest that both techniques work equally well in children with chronic headaches. Because they have not yet developed a pain behavior pattern, children are very receptive to learning new “biophysical” techniques to relieve or block their headaches. And because they are not habituated to pain-killing drugs, they can actually use the biofeedback and relaxation techniques more fully and effectively than adults.

Biofeedback training is simply a way of learning how to control certain functions of the body by thought and will. Through biofeedback, for example, children can learn to slow their heart rates or lower their blood pressure.

Avoiding headache triggers is another important part of teaching children how to prevent headaches and migraines. The triggers for children’s migraine and tension headache are the same ones that set off adult head pain. But every person is different. That means each child has his or her own set of triggers that first have to be identified before they can be avoided.

In order to do this, it is a good idea to review possible headache triggers, such as disrupted sleep, environmental factors such as secondhand smoke, unusual stress, or certain types of foods, after every attack.

For most children, just like for many adults, sleep is the best solution once a headache actually strikes. It is important to stop children’s headaches as soon as possible to prevent the headaches from becoming a lifelong problem. Discovering the headache trigger is vital. In this way, parents usually play a crucial role in controlling their child’s headache problem.

If these simple approaches do not provide relief, your health care provider may want to very cautiously try some medication used to treat adult headaches. Like adults, children who get three or more serious headaches a month are usually eligible for preventive therapy.

There are some medications that are usually not prescribed for children unless the migraines are severe and persistent, as they have unpleasant side effects and must be used very carefully with young children.