Menstrual headache is a common clinical condition, and its occurrence is closely related to menstruation. The head is the meeting point of the yang energy, and the qi and blood of the five organs and six bowels all ascend to nourish the head. The foot shaoyin liver meridian connects at the top of the head. The liver is the organ that stores blood, and during menstruation, the qi and blood descend to the uterus to form menstruation. As a result, there is relatively insufficient yin blood, leading to an imbalance of qi and blood in the organs and causing headache.
Menstrual headache can be classified into deficiency and excess types. If the pain occurs before menstruation and presents as distending or stabbing pain, it is considered an excess pattern. If the pain occurs after menstruation and is dull and lingering, it is considered a deficiency pattern. When headache occurs before menstruation, it is often due to poor circulation of qi and blood and blood stasis. Dark menstrual blood with clots is considered a sign of blood stasis in traditional Chinese medicine. Therefore, the treatment should focus on nourishing blood, regulating menstruation, and promoting blood circulation to remove stasis.
Herbal medicine should be used for conditioning one week before menstruation to achieve a cure.
Women rely on blood, which easily depletes yin blood. The body often exists in a state of blood deficiency. As stated in the "Suwen: Shanggu Tiantan Lun", "When the yangming meridians are weak at the age of 35, the face becomes scorched and the hair begins to fall." Therefore, even in the presence of blood stasis, it is often a combination of deficiency and excess. Therefore, during the post-menstrual period, it is important to tonify the kidneys, strengthen the spleen, nourish qi and blood to treat the root cause.
In addition, paying attention to emotional regulation is also an effective measure to treat this condition and prevent recurrence. A pleasant mood promotes smooth flow of the body's qi and blood. When qi and blood circulation is smooth, there is no stagnation.
