Headache patients bring with them a history of experiences and expectations with respect to medical care and other treatments. Some feel like "medical orphans" after being abandoned by clinicians who felt that the headaches must have been due to psychiatric issues since the patient did not respond to the first few treatments that were attempted. Many patients are looking primarily for pain relief although some want reassurance that their head pain is not a sign of some underlying, dangerous organic problem. Some are on a quest for a magic pill. All, however, need to know that the clinician takes their symptoms seriously and views headache as a valid medical disorder.
Behavioral Medicine Program for Headache Treatment
The following is a behavioral medicine program for treating headache patients. It is an important component to good pharmacological care in the management of a patient's headache problem. The treatment plan has several goals:
- Education: Informing the patient about current concepts of regarding causes and treatment of headache
- Dietary and behavioral factors: Altering lifestyle factors that may contribute to or perpetuate headache
- Self-regulation/biofeedback: Providing instruction in ways to control physiological responses thought to be involved in headache
- Cognitive/behavior modification: Adjusting actions, attitudes, and expectations that can lead to physiological arousal and headache
- Participation: Involving the patient as an active participant in the treatment process
Education
