It’s Just Another Day In The Park Until…

☀️ The sun seems like it’s way too bright again.

🏃 Your familiar pre-migraine symptoms start unfolding.

👀 Panic sets in because you know what’s on the way.

😣 And, like an incoming storm, you seek shelter and wait for it to hit.

🛑 Don’t let this be your new NORMAL!

We’ve been naturally treating patients who suffer from migraine symptoms for 15+ years by addressing the root causes and helping people structurally, neurologically, and nutritionally.

And in this newsletter, we will give you everything we’ve learned.

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🧠 The Migraine Mentors

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In Today’s Email:

•  🗞️ Migraine Media & Research

  • Helpful Tips from Around the Scientific Community

• 📜 This Week’s Top Article

  • The Hidden Price of Taking Aspirin for Migraine: What You Need to Know...

• 🥑 Migraine Take-Out

  • Meme of The Week

  • The Migraine Mindset: 🤯 Stress and Control 

  • Migraine-Friendly Recipe of the Week - 🎃 Pumpkin Spice Protein Shake

  • Stress Hormone Pro Tip: 📈 Managing Cortisol

🗞️ MIGRAINE MEDIA & RESEARCH

_{What’s Happening in the Migraine World?}

• 🧬 Studies continue to uncover the genetic underpinnings of migraine and how they manifest, but that’s only part of the story. Genetics may load the gun, but the environment pulls the trigger for migraine sufferers.

• 🥚 A diet that contains foods high in this B Vitamin may be a critical factor in improving migraine, which is heavily involved in the methylation pathways of regulating inflammation, genetic expression, and protein synthesis.

• 🧠 Migraine symptoms have an interesting relationship with chronic inflammation; Research has now shown why.

• 💥 The similarities between vestibular migraine and concussion are more common than we’ve been led to believe… Check out this article to learn more about it!

📜 TOP ARTICLE

The Hidden Price of Taking Aspirin for Migraine: What You Need to Know...

💊 Aspirin is one of the most commonly used Over-The-Counter (OTC) medications globally, with over 16 million prescriptions written in the US in 2023 alone.

And for those who struggle with migraine, it’s often a first line of defense when migraine symptoms set in…

📜 The history of Aspirin is kind of insane.

From the ancient Egyptians' use of white willow bark for pain relief to transforming into modern medicine's most ubiquitous drug, the origin of Aspirin's healing journey spans thousands of years of humanity.

🧪 Fun Fact: It was isolated and patented by Bayer in 1897, but we only figured out how it actually worked in 1971, nearly 74 years later!

It’s safe to say that Aspirin is here to stay. And for good reason…

💪 Aspirin can be a safe and effective way to dampen pain and inflammation when used appropriately…

But does it treat the source of your migraine issues? Not really.

Let us explain…

❓️ Ever wonder what happens when you regularly take aspirin to manage your migraine symptoms?

🛑 Aspirin has a laundry list of potential side effects that can occur with both short- and long-term use:

• 💩 Upset stomach

• 😑 Nausea

• 🫥 Allergic reactions

• 🩸 Excessive bleeding and bruising

• 🦻 Hearing loss and/or ringing in ears (Tinnitus)

• 🧻 Kidney injury

• 🙈 Liver injury and potential jaundice

• 🙃 Rash, fever, and swollen lymph nodes

And to top it all off… 🫠 Headaches.

The big problem is that long-term use of Aspirin has been shown to lower your body’s levels of Vitamin C.

❓ So, why does this matter?

Vitamin C isn’t just for fighting off colds, although it does that very well.

❤️‍🩹 It’s a powerful antioxidant that is vital in reducing inflammation, supporting your immune system, and helping your body heal.

We know that underlying chronic inflammation triggers the onset of migraine symptoms.

And when you’re dealing with chronic migraines, the last thing you want is to compromise your body’s ability to recover and stay resilient.

🚨 So, what happens when you’re deficient in Vitamin C?

Vitamin C is critical for protecting your body from oxidative stress, reducing the damage that free radicals can do to your cells.

Low levels can increase your body’s inflammation, worsen pain, and even delay recovery from your migraine episodes.

🧑‍⚕️ Vitamin C has been shown to prevent the following medical conditions:

• Scurvy

• Colds

• Asthma

• Neurological conditions

• High blood pressure

Here’s the catch—Aspirin isn't just depleting Vitamin C; it can also impact how your body absorbs iron, another nutrient crucial for energy and brain health!

🩸 Aspirin can cause excessive bleeding, which can deplete iron levels in the body.

And since migraine affects women 4x more than men, and menstruating women are more prone to iron deficiency than their male counterparts, this discussion becomes a very real concept to consider.

🏥 Not only could you become Vitamin C deficient; You could also become iron deficient in the process.

Even more alarming is the fact that taking Aspirin with common SSRI’s to manage migraine symptoms is contraindicated and may cause excessive bruising and bleeding…

🔎 So what’s the solution?

If you’re relying on aspirin to manage migraines, it’s essential to replenish your Vitamin C and iron levels through diet and supplementation.

🥗 We always suggest getting your nutrition through whole foods, like oranges, bell peppers, strawberries, and leafy greens, which are excellent sources of Vitamin C.

🍖 Top iron sources are red meats, poultry, and seafood.

🫘 We also know iron is present in beans, nuts, legumes, and spinach, but these are harder to absorb.

Because of this, you may want to consider a high-quality Vitamin C and iron supplement to counteract the loss caused by Aspirin.

*Clinical Note: Taking Vitamin C and iron together will actually increase iron absorption, as Vitamin C increases the body’s ability to convert iron to a soluble form.

🌱 The good news?

By supporting your body with proper nutrition, you can help reduce the dependency on medications for migraine relief while keeping your body in balance.

🌿 At our clinic, we always recommend addressing nutrient deficiencies as a first step in migraine management.

But if you’re struggling with getting your nutrients in from whole foods, we’ve got a quick solution for you.

Once again, we’ve put together a list of the best supplements on the market to help you support your Vitamin C and iron levels.

✅ Click HERE to build out your profile on Full Script and we will send you a script for our favorite Vitamin C/Iron supplement once you’ve completed the onboarding.

You should get an email from The Migraine Mentors to get your script filled and auto shipment set up!

🛣️ Next week, we will discuss how too much of a good thing can become a very bad thing…

Ever heard of Serotonin Syndrome?

💡 Stay tuned for next week’s newsletter!

🥑 MIGRAINE TAKE-OUT

Meme of The Week

Migraine Mindset - Taking Back Control

I’ll just come out and say it…

😡 Stress sucks

It’s such a downer for so many reasons, and scientists have actually studied what the MOST stressful things are.

In no particular order:

☠️ Death of a loved one

❤️‍🩹 Divorce

🏘️ Moving

😷 Major Illness (something like chronic migraine, perhaps)

👨‍🏭 Job Loss

So, having a debilitating illness is one of the most stressful things that can happen.

✅ Got it.

But science took this one step further and studied what it is about these events that make them so stressful.

⏰ What they found is there are 2 characteristics of these events that make them even MORE stressful.

And they are…

👎️ The event is out of your control

😲 The event happened out of nowhere. It was unpredictable. 

Now think of this in terms of having migraine…

It is a top 5 stressful event that comes and goes without warning and is often only managed by pills you can only get at the doctor.

✅ Unpredictable…

✅ Out of your control…

THIS is why we’re making this newsletter.

If you have a collection of tools that work to minimize migraine symptoms on your own, the collective stress of migraine is less.

It gives you more control and a better sense of having what you need to manage migraine when it flares up.

So keep learning and keep collecting tools. It will pay off in the long run!

Recipe of the Week

Instructions

1. Combine Ingredients: In a blender, combine the pumpkin puree, unsweetened almond milk, vanilla protein powder, and pumpkin pie spice.

2. Blend: Add a handful of ice cubes and blend until smooth. If you prefer a thicker texture, adjust the ice or add a bit more pumpkin puree.

3. Serve Immediately: Pour into a glass and enjoy your refreshing, healthy fall-inspired shake.

Why It's Migraine-Friendly

1. Avoids Common Triggers: The shake avoids common migraine triggers like sugar, caffeine, artificial sweeteners, and certain dairy products.

2. Nutrient-Rich Ingredients: Pumpkin provides nutrients that support overall health without introducing additives or preservatives often found in processed foods.

3. Personalized Protein Powder: By choosing a migraine-friendly protein powder, you can ensure there are no ingredients that might trigger a headache for you personally.

Below is a link if you’re unsure what constitutes a migraine-friendly protein powder.

Why It's Low Glycemic

1. Low Sugar Content: The shake mainly uses pumpkin puree and almond milk, both of which have low sugar content and won't cause spikes in blood glucose levels.

2. High Fiber: Pumpkin is high in fiber, which further helps stabilize blood sugar levels and support digestive health.

3. Balanced Macronutrients: By combining carbohydrates (from pumpkin), protein (from protein powder), and healthy fats (if fortified almond milk is used), the shake provides a balanced nutrient profile that supports a stable glycemic response.

❤️‍🔥 This shake is not only a seasonal treat 🎃 but also crafted with care to accommodate dietary considerations focused on migraine prevention and low glycemic impact.

👎️ Stress, as mentioned above, just straight-up sucks sometimes.

Of the thousands of migraine cases we’ve seen over the years, one of the most common “triggers” is stress. 

🤕 Anytime life gets stressful, migraine attacks happen more…

😡 Add in the occasional advice of “just de-stress, and you’ll feel better” just to make it a little worse…

What if we could look under the hood and find issues with how your body produces and clears the hormones of stress?

⬇️ Take a look at the lab test below ⬇️ 

What you’re seeing is someone’s daily cortisol and cortisone readings. (FYI, cortisone turns into cortisol.)

As you can see on the left, there is a sharp rise in the morning 👆️ and then a gradual decrease throughout the day 👇️ 

This is what should happen. Your cortisol levels should fit into the dark grey portion all day.

Anything below, tired 🥱. Anything above, wired 😮‍💨.

The point is this:

⭐️ In order to feel good and have functional stress circuitry, you need a test that assesses hormone levels at different points in the day ⭐️ 

If this person was tested in the morning, the lab value would appear normal ✅ . If they tested her mid day, it would say something is wrong ❌ 

This makes it impossible to accurately give someone what they need from a single reading.

⭐️ You need specific strategies tailored to your lab values to feel good all day⭐️

Not only does this testing provide accurate data on stress, it also breaks down your entire estrogen pathway 📊 (for all your menstrual migraine people out there).

More on this to come…

The bottom line: If stress triggers you, you need to make sure your stress circuitry is running smoothly.

In order to do that, these tests help cut right to the chase 🏃‍♂️ 

*Disclosure* We are not affiliated with or compensated by the makers of these tests. Truthfully, we just think they are a tremendously helpful missing piece a majority of migraine cases will benefit from.

*Note: This advice does not replace having a comprehensive test run and interpreted by a professional or medical provider. There are many other factors in a DUTCH test that go into recommending specific advice.