Update on Wasabi mustard for instant migraine relief

I wrote about this some weeks ago, so I wanted to provide an update.

I've identified a pattern in my headache occurrence. I can go the a couple of weeks with no headache whatsoever, but then the thought " I've been feeling pretty good for a while" runs through my head and then I always get a migraine within 12 hours of having that thought.

Might this be a serotonin issue causing the migraines? Perhaps a peak of serotonin that is causing the mild euphoria that leads to that thought, followed by a let down that leads to a migraine.

The wasabi trick I wrote about previously works 100% of the time, but only for 30 minutes to 2 hours of pain free. Sometimes, especially if I've taken other measures, the headache does not return, as this morning.

I bagan having a headache last evening, and by morning is was getting pretty bad, mostly in the base of my skull region. I took a butyl/asa/caf/cod and it knocked it back a bit, so I made breakfast. When starting to eat, I noticed that i had little sense of taste, and with the headache still persisting, I went for the wasabi.

Seconds later the headache was completely gone and i could taste the food much better.

I'm sure the wasabi is causing release of natural pain killers, just don't know the mechanism, and why my sense of taste is affected in a positive way.

Anyone have an opinion?

Wasabi cure: Put pea sized amount on tongue and mash against roof of mouth while exhaling slowly through nose until a burning sensation is achieved in sinus area. Lasts about 1 or 2 seconds, then gone, along with headache. I use Japanese Wasabi, packaged in a tube by S&B of Tokyo. But other domestic brands will work also as long as they are highly aeromatic.

Works on other types of pain too, not just headaches.

Steve

re: wasabi mustard.....I take it you're talking about the mustard in regular mustard form and not the powder? Let me know. thanks. Gail

I've used both the dry powder that is then mixed with water, and the wet, but the wet seems to work better. The really cheap ones don't produce the aeromatic vapors that seem to be active ingredient.

Texasheadache wrote:I've identified a pattern in my headache occurrence. I can go the a couple of weeks with no headache whatsoever, but then the thought " I've been feeling pretty good for a while" runs through my head and then I always get a migraine within 12 hours of having that thought.

Might this be a serotonin issue causing the migraines? Perhaps a peak of serotonin that is causing the mild euphoria that leads to that thought, followed by a let down that leads to a migraine.

Interesting... I rarely go more than a day or two without a migraine, but the times when it has been 3 days to a week or two, the exact same thing happens to me. I think something along the lines of, "Wow, I haven't had a migraine in awhile..." then the same day I get one. I used to think it was just me remembering that thought ONLY when I then got a migraine, and so making up the association.

I tried this once at a Japanese restaurant when a migraine when coming on. I asked them for some wasabi and then used about 1/3rd of a teaspoon. I pushed it against the roof of my mouth and breathed the fumes.

After the top of my head reattached, the migraine was reduced. But only for about 30 minutes.

I've noticed some variation in the degree of relief and the longevity, but overall it is very effective. There is always a timing element, as with any type of relief. If i catch it early before the headache has intensified, it is nearly always effective in preventing the migraine and not just relieving it.
When used for immediate relief while meds are taking affect it seems to make meds work better, probably because the migraine has not had a chance to spread so far that nothing will help.

You mentioned your headache was coming on when you tried this, Charmed, do you think that if you caught it a few minutes earlier this might have worked better? Have you tried it since?

I bought a jar of wasabi powder and tried this a few times, all early in the process where I can abort a migraine. The results were pretty much the same, for me, and I relegated this to the "interesting, but probably doesn't work" category.

About this time I had finally found a pharmaceutical that works for me (discussed elsewhere) and had less need of these less effective approaches. Although it is always good to have a bag of tricks just in case.

I'm having a bad headache this morning. The triptan wasn't doing any good, so I decided what the heck, I'd give this shot. We have some wasabi in the fridge so easy enough to try.

I gathered up my courage, and put a dab of the wasabi paste on the roof of my mouth, then pressed with my tongue for a bit. What an eye opener!!! But not really painful as I was afraid of. And I've become a bit of a wimp with spicy foods.

It did actually lift the headache quite a bit surprisingly. Not 100% gone, but pretty good in the pain relief category( I'd say 80-90% improvement). Certainly better than I get from Triptans and most pain relief meds. It's now 1 hour later and I can feel it coming back. But it's still no where as bad as it was. So I'd say a pretty successful pain reliever, at least temporarily. (But really, compared to most drugs that is the best you can hope for anyway). I'd certainly try it again.

Why does this work? My guess is that our mouths are filled with nerve sensors very tightly linked to our brains. This seems to stimulate a nueral pathway that is tied into the migraine syndrome. Or perhaps the pain pathways. It would be interesting to see on MRI what is going on.

Thanks for sharing this!

You are a brave soul to do this first thing in the morning! So glad it worked for you.

-Peter

I have mentioned this before, but I have a capsaicin nose spray I use that *can* have a similar effect on me to what you describe with the Wasabi. I say can because it really depends on the type of headache and the timing. At a minimum though, it provides a fair amount of pain relief for even the most severe headaches.

But man o man. The first few times you use it it's quite a jolt. Your eyes and nose literally just dump tears and snot. It even makes my ears feel blown out.

I also tried the pepper nose spray. Is there something wrong with me that I enjoyed the sensation?

charmed quark wrote:I also tried the pepper nose spray. Is there something wrong with me that I enjoyed the sensation?

Even though I describe it the way I do, I enjoy it as well. It's invigorating. It gives you a nice wake up first thing in the morning lol. It's one second of shock, then a wave of energy.