The new preventative measure for “curing” migraines may be found in a piercing shop rather than your doctor’s office. Used as both in conjunction with and as a popular alternative to medication, acupuncture proven to be effective in the treatment of migraines.
Recently, there’s been an influx in patients who are taking their treatment one step further by piercing the cartilage in the inner ear, above the ear canal—an area described as the “crux of the helix.” The piercing is known as a “daith piercing,” and those who suffer from migraines claim that piercing the pressure point has cured them of the paralyzing headaches.
So what’s the catch? There’s no medical proof that this alternative method actually yields results, but a countless number of sufferers began promoting the idea through the #DaithPiercing hashtag, which surfaced on the Internet in the middle of this year. However, in a recent blog post, Dr. Thomas Cohn, an interventional pain doctor, explained that the daith piercing is in the “general area” where an acupuncture needle would be placed during a treatment session. He recommends that patients try acupuncture first, before opting in to the piercing to determine if it could prove to be effective or not.
It’s important to note that daith piercings may not be the solution for everyone. If you’re afraid of needles or have a low pain tolerance, you may want to stick to other alternative methods. The piercing itself can be quite painful as the area is composed entirely of bone-like cartilage. However, if you have not tried acupuncture, Cohn suggests that sufferers can test themselves to see if the daith piercing would be beneficial. “If you begin to have a migraine, take you thumb and middle finger and gently massage that location on your ear,” he explains. “Switch ears after a few minutes, or massage both at the same time. If you notice significant relief, and you deal with regular headaches, a daith piercing could be a worthwhile solution.”
Would you consider a daith piercing as an alternative method to cure headaches? Let us know in the comments below!