Whenever I mention my migraines on my blog, I get an email or two from people asking me if I've tried taking magnesium. And every time I get one of those emails, I remember that I should post an update about how the magnesium experiment I started last year turned out. Because yes! I do take magnesium for my migraines!
I had a stretch last year where I was getting migraines just about every other day. It was brutal. And I felt completely hopeless because I had tried everything at that point--TMJ treatment, Imitrex, all kinds of supplements, changing my diet. I was even given an epilepsy drug as a preventative, which made me feel exhausted all the time, but did not help my migraines. I don't think people who don't suffer from migraines really understand how debilitating they can be. For me, it's not just a headache--I sometimes lose my vision completely from auras, I can't keep food (or medication!) down, and I've even passed out from them. Despite all that, I had trouble getting doctors to take me seriously.
So things were pretty dire when I decided to try magnesium for my migraines. I had a few people suggest it to me, but it was my friend Kelly (who blogs at Texas Type A Mom) who convinced me--she started taking magnesium supplements and hadn't had a migraine since. I started out by attempting to up the amount of magnesium I got in my diet (which I wrote about in my No-Bake Molasses Bites post), but I switched to magnesium pills and then to Natural Calm.
The magnesium in Natural Calm comes in ionic form, which is more easily absorbed by the body. This gives it an advantage over the pills I used to take. I take two teaspoons everyday--at first I did one in the morning and one at night, but now I take them in one larger dose. Since I started supplementing with magnesium, I have gone from several migraines a week to getting them once every month or two. I know this sounds incredibly corny, but magnesium has changed my life. And Natural Calm is my favorite way to get magnesium.
Natural Calm comes in several different flavors and can be mixed into both warm and cold drinks. As the name suggests, Natural Calm also helps you relax, so I like ending my day with a mug of this Lemon Ginger Tea. I often make a ginger herbal tea by boiling pieces of ginger and slices of lemon with a few cups of water--it's great for stomach aches and colds, but I mostly just like the spicy flavor of ginger. Now when I make it, I add Natural Calm. You can add a bit of stevia or honey if the drink is too tart for you, but I like it as-is.
Obviously, there are many causes of migraines and just because magnesium worked for mine, doesn't mean it will work for yours. But if you haven't tried it, it's definitely worth a shot. To learn more about magnesium, check out Dr. Carolyn Dean's magnesium ebook or her print book, The Magnesium Miracle. You can purchase Natural Calm on Amazon or at most retailers of natural products.
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 1- inch piece ginger peeled and sliced into rounds
- 1-2 slices lemon optional--for a more lemony drink
- 2 teaspoons Lemon or Lemon Raspberry Natural Calm
Instructions
- Combine water, ginger, and lemon slices in small saucepan; bring to boil over high heat. Once mixture has come to boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.
- Place Natural Calm in large mug; pour tea into mug, discarding lemon and ginger. Add sweetener if desired.
Nutrition
Disclosure: Natural Vitality compensated me for the time spent developing and photographing this recipe. I was excited to have the chance to work with them, because I really believe in their products!
McKel | Nutrition Stripped says
Love this post Kiersten. I as well, used to be a sufferer from migraine and used (still sometimes today) magnesium to treat them. I love the Naturally Calm product, great taste and value! I found it very helpful to watch my diet when I had chronic migraines- for example, too much coffee, chocolate, and MSG (which I never eat) will trigger migraines. When I went gluten-free they improved even more so. I hope you don't have to experience these too much longer!
Kiersten says
I tried an elimination diet for my migraines, but couldn't find any food triggers. I'm guessing they're 100% stress related! :/ Although I do try to avoid MSG...
Mum's the word says
this is real good! Just reading it brought calm!!
Anne - Mommy Has to Work says
My husband suffers from migraines, thanks!
trisha says
This looks delicious! And how did you get the rine to curl so beautifully?
Kiersten says
I curled it around my pinky finger--ha!
Georgia @ The Comfort of Cooking says
I love ginger tea as a natural way to calm stomach upsets. This looks like a great product!
everydayathena says
Thank you for this! I've suffered from migraines for 15 years, and although I'm amazed at how they've decreased since I went vegan, I'd love to be rid of them completely. The tea sounds delish.
Kiersten says
I hope it works for you! I started getting migraines about 17 years ago and nothing helped until I started magnesium supplements.
Honey,What's Cooking says
love this idea. i love hot water and lemon, never thought of adding ginger. every night after dinner i have a cup of tea, but sometimes i just want something hot to sip on during the winter months.
Kiersten says
Try adding ginger! It's so pleasantly spicy and it helps settle my stomach after dinner. 🙂
Kait says
Thanks for this great post -- I get horrible headaches during the spring so I will definitely be trying this. I also have terrible Restless Leg Syndrome and I've heard magnesium is helpful for this too -- I'll let you know! 🙂
Hannah says
This is awesome. I also suffer from chronic migraines and have been on a preventative for some time now, but it makes me uncomfortable putting all those chemicals in my body. I started taking Magnesium in the capsule form but I think I will switch to this Natural Calm! We sell it at my work! Thank you so much for doing this post-sometimes I feel like I am the only one with chronic migraines.
Hannah says
Sorry-I came back to this post to re-read cause I actually bought the Natural Calm tonight and thought my comment did not go through, but alas it was in the "older comments". Sorry for the redundancy.
Kiersten says
No worries! 🙂 The way the comments are paginated can be confusing.
Shirley says
I don't think I've ever had a migraine. (You're probably saying, you'd know if you did!) They sound brutal. Really glad you found something that worked!
Brenda Williams says
I am going to share this with my daughter and granddaughter who both have migraines. Plus, I am glad to learn this for myself too! Thank you.
Kiersten says
I hope it works for them as well as it works for me!
debra pearlstein says
I can relate. I get bad migraines at certain times of the month. I haven't tried magnesium though so I am going to give it a shot. Thank you. I am aleady a big fan of homemade lemon ginger tea! It's so good.
Kiersten says
I hope it works for you! If it's hormonal, it might not, but it's worth a try. 🙂
Maryann says
i LOVE magnesium. Helped me overcome my depression. Dr. Mercola says we are all most likely low on magnesium. Seems to help a ton of things.
Karen says
Coincidentally, I just ordered some yesterday - I'm hoping it will help calm my restless legs syndrome.
Kiersten says
My husband just started it this week for his restless legs too. I hope it works!
Bethany says
I suffer from cluster headaches, a step above migraine, and so far nothing I take has helped. I do drink lemon/ginger tea to help with my headache nausea and a mag supplement. I will be getting the one you recommend today. I'll repost if I find it works. Finges crossed.
Libby says
I have suffered from what I now know is called "restless leg" for years and always attributed to my level of exercise. Upon the recommendation of a chiropractor, I started taking 500 mg magnesium capsules daily. I also stretched compulsively but still would occasionally have periods of time where my sleep was haunted by leg cramps, however only on my right leg. I recently started getting migraines and visited a different chiropractor, who suggested I consider the magnesium-potassium-calcium balance, which I had never heard of before. I immediately stopped taking the magnesium capsules and instead took a cup or two a day of Natural Calm Plus Calcium. My migraines have slowly improved (thanks in part to meds) but my restless leg has literally disappeared. I don't take very much dairy and had never really considered my calcium intake but I was very pleased to discover that the balance of the three minerals trumps the effects of just taking one.
Kiersten Frase says
I'm glad you found something that works for you! I've been told that if you get enough calcium in your diet, you only need magnesium supplements, but if you don't, calcium supplementation to balance the magnesium is a good idea.