| The Migraine Attack |
The changes from a balanced nervous system to one destined for an attack of migraine often unfolds in a predictable manner. Nature's antidote to the migraine process is sleep: shutting down sensory awareness of the nervous system. In general, during an attack of migraine, people desire a dark quiet room where they can be left alone until the storm passes. The resolution of migraine involves rebalancing the brain chemistry. Serotonin seems to be at the center of this readjustment. Serotonin levels in the brain drop during an attack of migraine. Conversely, resolution of migraine occurs when levels of this important brain chemical return to normal. Because serotonin is involved in many communication systems within the brain, if doctors attempt to treat migraine directly with serotonin, unwanted symptoms occur. Chemists have devised an artificial form of serotonin that can temporarily replace real serotonin in certain areas of the nervous system. These medications not only relieve headache pain in a large number of migraine sufferers, but also return most to normal levels of function within a short time. This has set a new standard of therapy for acute migraine. Successful treatment of an acute migraine attack is the cornerstone of effective migraine management, but it is only the beginning of managing the nervous system of the person with migraine.Therapeutic Phases of Migraine
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