Migraines

Symptoms
Migraines are throbbing headaches, generally localized to one side of the head. There is no definitive cause of migraines but some have identifiable triggers such as allergies, light, or stress. Migraines typically recurr and can last for hours or even days.

One might also experience: light, sound, and even touch sensitivity, visual disturbances, pulsing or throbbing pain in the head, nausea and vomiting, and lightheadedness.

Benefits
When over-the-counter medications don’t ease the symptoms associated with migraines, cannabis is being widely used to treat nausea, vomiting, and pain. Therefore it can be used to ease symptoms, or if timed appropriately, cannabis can even keep migraines from starting.

Treatment
Treatment is most effective through inhalation of cannabis. This can be done with a vaporizing pen or by smoking flower. The fast acting effects of inhalation provide almost immediate relief as well as an easy way to gauge dosage. Limited studies have found that edibles provided little relief due to their slow-acting effects. However, a combination of products could be used; using a vaporizer can provide almost immediate relief and then edibles or tinctures could prolong the relief and aid with sleep. Strains that contain myrcene can actually enhance the effects of THC and could provide more pain relief than similarly strong strains without myrcene.

For those who suffer from stress-induced migraines, CBD is used to treat a wide variety of ailments including stress, anxiety, and depression, which could decrease migraine frequency. Daily dosage of CBD coupled with emergency use of THC when a migraine strikes is a good option.

If pain is localized, applying a topical THC salve could reduce the localized pain, if superficial enough.