Migraine during pregnancy and postpartum: What you need to know

The article is expertly consulted by Master, Doctor Huynh An Thien - Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine, Vinmec International Hospital Da Nang.

Migraines during pregnancy and postpartum are related to changes in hormone levels in a woman's body. In fact, more than 80% of pregnant women have signs of migraine during pregnancy, of which 58% of pregnant women have migraine in the first 3 months of pregnancy.

Pregnancy migraine in the early stages of pregnancy is a manifestation of body changes in a woman. Fluctuations in hormone levels make migraines during pregnancy more common. The symptoms are easy to recognize such as throbbing headache, unilateral pain accompanied by nausea and vomiting. The main causes of migraine during pregnancy and postpartum include:
Many pregnant women have bad habits such as lazy to drink water, not eating at the right time, causing low blood sugar, causing migraines. during pregnancy. Regularly staying up late, using stimulant drinks also causes nervous tension, lack of sleep leads to headaches.
Maternal living environment is a cause of migraine during pregnancy. Specifically, pregnant women who live near a noisy environment can easily make them mentally stressed, tired, have trouble sleeping and feel headaches.
Pregnant women at 24 - 26 weeks often have symptoms of preeclampsia, which is the direct cause of migraines during pregnancy. Besides, you also need to see if you have anemia. If you experience migraines during pregnancy with symptoms such as abnormalities in urine, vision changes, or problems with your liver or kidneys, you need to see your doctor for an accurate examination. .
Postpartum women's migraines are mainly caused by psychological stress and stress: Because after giving birth, women often change their living hours, don't get enough sleep, and feel tired.

In addition, the disease is also caused by a sudden decrease in the amount of estrogen in the blood, causing high blood vessel wall pressure, causing migraine.
Migraine in postpartum women due to anesthesia during childbirth causes women to have headaches. If a migraine is due to this reason, it may go away on its own in 5 days to 1 week. Excessive blood loss during childbirth can also cause migraines in postpartum women.

Migraine symptoms can be reduced in pregnant and postpartum women in the following ways:
Get enough sleep from 7-10 hours/day, because pregnant and postpartum women need more sleep, especially When you have a migraine during pregnancy, however, napping should not exceed 1 hour to avoid fatigue in the afternoon. The sleeping environment should be quiet, not disturbed by noise, or electronic devices. Apply a cool towel when resting, sleeping to reduce migraine pain during pregnancy slowly and effectively. Use hot packs: Migraines in postpartum women often have difficulty in treatment because they can't take medicine, or can only drink when prescribed by a doctor. However, when you have a migraine attack, you can use a hot pack to apply directly to the temples and neck area to reduce pain symptoms and quickly get rid of the pain. A warm bath is also a quick method to relieve migraine during pregnancy for pregnant women. However, it is important to avoid bathing in very hot water and bathing for too long. Mothers need to supplement with a nutritious and reasonable diet. This is considered an effective way to quickly reduce migraine pain in pregnant and postpartum women. Depending on the needs and preferences of the mother, the mother can divide the meals into several times a day to avoid hunger causing hypoglycemia leading to headaches. Mothers should drink enough water every day, can drink filtered water, fresh fruit juice... should limit carbonated drinks, bottled fruit juice, processed meat, chocolate, .. .

Mothers need to rest and relax properly, which will help to relax the mother's spirit, reduce the frequency of migraine attacks during pregnancy. You know how to properly massage the painful head area, massage the shoulders, neck, soles of the feet ... will help blood circulation and reduce headaches more effectively. Limit stimulants to not stress nerves and have better sleep, effectively reduce headaches. Supplementing with foods such as fresh milk, cherries, white strawberries, potatoes... helps reduce migraines in postpartum women more effectively. Iron-rich foods such as spinach, sugarcane, broccoli are also very good for blood circulation to the brain, reducing headaches. Regular exercise helps the body to circulate, relax, reduce pressure when having migraine in postpartum women. Mothers can choose subjects such as Yoga, walking, swimming, meditation... which are also very good for health. Using herbal remedies such as chamomile reduces pain, nausea, sensitivity to light during a migraine attack, and reduces migraines in pregnant and postpartum women. Several scientific studies have demonstrated that there are certain herbs that can help prevent migraines. However, before taking herbal medicine you also need to consult with your doctor. Take pain relievers under the direction of an obstetrician, a specialist.

Pregnancy and postpartum migraine usually only lasts from 5 days to 1 week, but if this symptom lasts for 2 to 3 weeks, and the severity of the pain, you need to see a doctor. doctors, to diagnose symptoms in time and treat definitively, to avoid the disease progressing worse, making it difficult to treat and leaving harmful sequelae such as vision effects, blurred vision, etc.
In particular, it should be noted, if you have a migraine with symptoms such as high fever, dizziness, nausea, you need to go to the hospital immediately, because these symptoms often warn of intracranial diseases not should be taken lightly.
Department of Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Da Nang International General Hospital has many outstanding advantages because of many specialties and a team of experienced doctors in specialized fields such as: Cardiology, Neurology - Stroke Stroke , Endocrinology , Gastroenterology , Respiratory... Especially, Neurology Specialist, Vinmec Danang Hospital gathers many leading doctors with high expertise such as:
Master Le Duong Tien has 20 years of experience specializes in Internal Medicine.
Master. Doctor Bui Ngoc Phuong Hoa has more than 24 years of experience in the field of neuropsychology. Doctor Hoa was formerly the Deputy Head of the Department of Neurology - Quang Ngai Provincial General Hospital and participated in many continuous training courses on neurological diseases.
BSCK II Le Nghiem Bao has been trained well in the country and many centers have the world's leading medical background such as: France, Germany, China. With 30 years of experience in neurosurgery, Dr. Le Nghiem Bao is currently Deputy Head of General Surgery Department - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital.
Master Doctor Huynh An Thien has strengths and experiences in examination, consultation and treatment of neurological diseases; respiratory and endocrine-metabolic diseases.
With modern equipment, the hospital has deployed many high techniques, bringing optimal efficiency in disease treatment. In addition, patients can also experience many other facilities such as the inpatient room, which is guaranteed to have a private room for each patient. Fully equipped with equipment to support patients while in hospital...
Department of Medical Examination and Internal Medicine, Vinmec International General Hospital Danang always takes the patient as the center, wishing to bring care services. the best medical care for customers.