Naturopathic Treatment for Chronic Migraines

Dr. Kirk works with adults experiencing complex neurologic conditions, including cognitive decline, memory impairment, and chronic migraines. Many patients who seek care have been told that their symptoms are progressive, irreversible, or simply something they must learn to live with.

Chronic migraines are a passionate area of his focus. Rather than viewing migraines as isolated headache disorders, Dr. Kirk approaches them as neurologic signals pointing to deeper systemic imbalance. Through a comprehensive evaluation of inflammatory drivers, neurologic sensitivity, metabolic factors, and environmental stressors, many patients have experienced substantial reduction — and in some cases sustained resolution — of migraine frequency and severity, often with reduced reliance on ongoing medications. Many patients come to Dr. Kirk specifically because other treatments have failed. His individualized, root-cause-focused approach helps patients achieve meaningful reductions in migraine frequency and intensity.

“My approach differs from conventional migraine care by focusing on neurologic sensitivity, root drivers, and individualized physiology rather than symptom suppression alone. This approach is informed by emerging research in neuroinflammation, mitochondrial function, and central sensitization.”

Chronic & Recurrent Migraines

Naturopathic medicine offers a holistic approach to managing chronic, recurrent migraines by identifying root causes like food sensitivities, nutrient deficiencies, and stress. The 6 most common food sensitivities are wheat, dairy, eggs, corn, soy, and peanuts. People sensitive to these food can sometimes achieve improvement just by removing them from their diet.

Key treatments include supplementation with magnesium, riboflavin (B2), and CoQ10, along with dietary modifications and lifestyle changes, such as improved sleep and hydration.

Vestibular Migraine

Stated simply, Vestibular Migraines (VM) equal dizziness, vertigo, and imbalance, often without head pain. Dr. Kirk works to uncover and address the root cause issues of VM’s.

As a child, Dr. Kirk experienced VM firsthand. After discovering root cause investigation, he was able to accurately pinpoint the cause of his own VM’s to mold. To this day, he reports that he can tell whether or not a home has black mold, by sleeping overnight in it. If he wakes up after midnight with severe room-spinning vertigo, the house is contaminated.

Hormonal Migraine

Women who get migraines once per month, related to their menstrual cycle, are often suffering from menstrual migraines. The drop in Estrogen a few days before their bleed is often the culprit.

Mainstream care is primarily prescription medications. And in treatment-resistant cases, surgery including a hysterectomy. Drug prescriptions could be daily OCP, with no placebo pills taken, just straight hormones every day. Spirinolactone can sometimes help, prescribed off-label. Magnesium may also show some benefit.

The power of naturopathic medicine lies in its ability to investigate causes, and address them directly. Unfortunately, the power of insurance companies over our health care has limited most doctors’ ability to fully investigate root causes of hormonal migraines. Which leaves generic medication prescription the only viable treatment option.

Post-Concussion Headaches

Roughly 95% of people experiencing a Traumatic Brain Injury also endure Post-Concussion Headaches. These occur in even very mild TBI’s. They often onset within 7 days of the injury, and can vary in pain, from an aching, tension-type of headache, to a pounding, pulsating pain.

Mainstream care primarily targets symptom management, through the prescription of OTC pain meds like Ibuprofen. Sometimes prescription migraine medications are used, with some success. Some Post-Concussion Headaches present with light or sound sensitivity. When light sensitivity is present, avoiding screens like phones may offer some benefit. Ensuring proper sleep (again, reducing screen time before sleep actually improves sleep efficiency. Consider Blue Light Blocking Glasses one hour before bed, to improve sleep efficiency. Proper hydration is another avenue for mainstream care, but when we start getting into your preference for ice cold versus luke warm water, we begin to delve into the nuances that help prescribing an appropriate homeopathic medicine to help with healing.

Integrative care aims to address where mainstream medicine fails to reach. Is there a structural component that should be addressed by physical medicine through Modified Nasal Specific technique? Are the symptoms peculiar enough to prescribe a homeopathic remedy? Does underlying inflammation contribute, and the TBI was simply the straw that broke the camel’s back?

Neurologic Sensitivity Syndrome

Neurologic Sensitivity Syndrome (NSS) often coexists with chronic migraines. NSS is a condition where the Central Nervous System becomes hyper sensitized. The littlest sensory signal gets interpreted by the nervous system as “pain”, or “danger”. It causes widespread unexplainable pain, fatigue, brain fog, and sensitivity to all external stimuli, like bright lights, sounds, odors, and even light touch.

NSS is often underlying in conditions like Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and Chromic Migraines. Mainstream treatment focuses on medications like GABA to reduce pain signals, therapy like CBT to manage stress, and sometimes physical therapy.

Naturopathic treatment aims to uncover the root cause. Possibilities include nerve irritation, chronic stress, or low-grade chronic infections. Functional medicine lab testing, including organic acids, heavy metals, and Lyme tests may be indicated after a thorough health history is studied. Toxins and Infections may trigger neuroinflammation. If you desire better treatment beyond mainstream medicine’s symptom suppression, then seek out integrative treatment.

FAQs

What qualifies as a chronic migraine?

A chronic migraine is defined as headaches occurring 15 or more days per month for at least 3 months, with at least 8 of those days meeting migraine criteria.

A migraine is typically moderate to severe, often one-sided, and throbbing. It may worsen with normal activity and is commonly associated with nausea, light sensitivity, or sound sensitivity.

Some people experience an aura before the headache begins. An aura may include visual disturbances (such as zig-zag lights or blind spots), tingling in the face or arm, speech difficulty, or dizziness. These symptoms usually develop gradually and last between 5 and 60 minutes.

If headaches are happening most days of the month, this may qualify as chronic migraine.

Why do some migraines become chronic?

Medication overuse often results in rebound headaches, that are more frequent and more extreme. Medication use does not address the root cause of migraines. For example, the root cause of your migraine is NOT that your brain is deficient in Tylenol. If Tylenol deficiency was the root cause, then taking Tylenol would address the root cause, and you would no longer have headaches. Additional causes of chronic migraines are unaddressed comorbidities, such as sleep issues, anxiety, depression, and obesity. Addressing these issues can help alleviate migraines. Over time, the brain’s processing systems become more sensitized, if the root cause is not addressed. This can result in migraines becoming more common. For example, a slight irritation, which wouldn’t become a full blown migraine, can become a migraine with a lower and lower threshold, making them more common.

Why aren’t my migraine medications working?

Gastric inflammation can cause slow absorption of the medication, if you take it by mouth. Migraines can also slow gastric emptying, exacerbating the issue. Injections are not affected by gastric issues. If you’re taking an injection medication, and it’s not working, it could be the wrong class of medication. Not every medication works for everybody. It’s important to distinguish here, that while medications do provide relief in many people, they don’t address the root cause of your migraines. Imitrex injections, are a class of triptan drugs. The root cause of your migraine is not that your brain is deficient in triptans. But they do provide relief some of the time, in some people. Addressing the underlying issue takes work. Is it structural? Have you had head injuries, or chronic sinus issues? These can lead to structural issues that exacerbate migraines. Is there underlying inflammation? DHA and EPA from algae or fish oil, can help to reduce the inflammation, and has been shown to reduce migraine intensity.

Can migraines improve without lifelong medication?

Yes. Migraines can and do improve without daily or weekly medications. Many women’s migraines are hormonally linked, and will naturally diminish around 40, or after menopause. You can reduce the frequency and severity of migraines through lifestyle modification. Specific foods, alcohol, and irregular sleep patterns all contribute. If you have all of these lifestyle and dietary habits in check, and you’re still suffering, consider homeopathic medicine. Homeopathy is individually prescribed, to the person, based on their unique symptoms. What type of pain is it? Burning? Pulsating? Aching? Tearing? Bursting? Pressing? What is the location of the pain? Does it stay in that one area, or does it move to a different area? What body or head positions make the pain slightly better? Which ones make it slightly worse? Think in these terms, when discovering which remedy fits your migraine the best.

Can migraines affect mood or cognition?

Absolutely! Migraines can and do affect both. Brain fog is common. Difficulty concentrating, and reduced processing speeds, can occur before, during, and even after a migraine attack. Memory issues are also common. As a Naturopathic Doctor, I go into detail with my patients here: do you forget words when speaking? Do you forget names more? Have you ever forgotten your own name? Side note, forgetting your own name is a slam dunk for me, and I love hearing that symptom! Irritability, anxiety, and depression are also linked to chronic migraine sufferers. Additionally, some studies show that chronic migraines are associated with an increased risk of cognitive decline.