Customer Reviews

What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About(TM): Migraines: The Breakthrough Program That Can Help End Your Pain

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Most people seem to regard headaches as a natural consequence of the stresses of life. I used to think this way myself -- one or more headaches were a weekly occurrence for me. Then I began to learn about the importance of vitamins and minerals in human health and starting taking nutrient supplements including magnesium and B vitamins. Since then my headaches have virtually disappeared.

One of the major causes of headaches -- including migraines -- is deficiency of magnesium, which is a natural relaxant. And studies have found that about 80% of Americans don't get enough magnesium in their diet. The result is that Americans suffer inordinately from headaches (including migraines), muscle cramps, and various forms of anxiety and stress disorders. But magnesium deficiency --which causes these ailments -- is easily remedied by taking supplemental magnesium. The preferred form of supplemental magnesium is chelated magnesium because it is readily absorbed by the body and because other forms of magnesium supplements sometimes cause diarrhea.

As pointed out by the authors of this book, the B vitamin niacin and the herb feverfew are also helpful in preventing and treating migraine headaches. If you suffer from migraines -- or any form of headaches -- please read this book. And, to help optimize your health, be sure you get enough magnesium and B vitamins as well as other essential nutrients.

You may have seen headlines in your local newspaper from time
to time that go something like this: "Saddam Hussein Continues
to Cause Headaches for President Bush." You think: doesn't this
trivialize the tense relationship that the U.S. has with Iraq--to
equate this long-term, antagonistic connection with a mere
headache? Quite the reverse. Ask migraine sufferers: they'll tell
you that the excrutiating pain has often driven them to thoughts
of suicide.

Headaches are no laughing matter, but for the past twenty years
or so, Dr. Alexander Mauskop has helped thousands of
agonized victims of the malady in the offices of the New York
Headache Center. An associate professor of neurology at
Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY, Mauskop has
focused his practice exclusively on the treatment of headaches,
the migraine version affecting some twenty-five million Americans
(70% women). He has pushed back the frontiers of knowledge in
his books for the layman and articles in professional journals.

Preferring alternative therapy over prescription drugs, he often
starts patients off with biofeedback and acupuncture, moving on
to both prophylactic (preventive) therapies and abortive drugs in
his skirmishes against cerebral soreness.

What is it that your own doctor may not tell you about migraines--
as the suggestive title seductively suggests? Most doctors tell
you little about headache treatment beyond "take two aspirins
and call me in the morning," because they simply do not keep up
with the research, but Mauskop tells us plenty in this easy-to-
read volume replete with anecdotes, humor, and insight. His
treatment du jour, which he personally developed from research
with scores of patients, is the use of a product that combines
magnesium, riboflavin and feverfew; i.e. a mineral often found
deficient in chronic sufferers, a vitamin that works because, well,
who knows why...and a herb which has often been used

especially by Europeans in their fight against pain but which is
only recently commanding the attention of Americans.

While this triple therapy may not reduce headaches for everyone
who tries it (allow 4-6 weeks for the supplement to take effect),
there are many other programs that an individual can employ.
Mauskop describes isometric exercises and ordinary physical
activities that can indeed help to strengthen neck muscles and
provide an overall sense of well-being, but since headaches may
plague the patient even after using these techniques, "What Your
Doctor May Not Tell You" lists a barrage of prescription drugs of
various sorts that can be summoned to service, from the
relatively benign to those containing narcotic agents.

Don't let the ease of delivery fool you. "What Your Doctor May
Not Tell You About Migraines" gives headache sufferers valuable
information on the latest approaches to attacking a malady that
could well be more effective than what our ancestors in Egypt
employed. A doctor in the time of the pharaohs might bore a
hole in your head to let the evil spirits out. They had one thing
right: headaches are the work of the Devil. This book could
provide the exorcism you seek.

The book describes nutritional ways to combat migraines (trigger foods to avoid) and indicates that one should take magnesium, feverfew, and riboflavin. If that doesn't work, it recommends drugs. The magnesium-feverfew-riboflavin didn't work for me (though I don't doubt it may work well for others). My problem with the book is that there are other supplements that can help. For instance, I read (elsewhere) that taking melatonin can help prevent early morning migraines. This has indeed prevented my early morning migraines. So, I would recommend reading the book, but be advised the information is not comprehensive.

If you get migraines, buy and read this book. I suffered from frequent and harsh migraines for 4 years. At their worse, they came twice a week with debilitating pain and vomiting. None of my doctor's prescriptions did very much for me. Finally, I discovered this book and began the recommended vitamin and mineral therapy. Within days, my migraines began to subside and after several weeks until now (9 months later), I simply don't get them any more. To be fair, I also do continue to take 2 prescription medications daily, but I believe most of the relief came from Mauskop's mineral/vitamin recommendations. I can't thank Dr. Mauskop enough for this book. I have literally gained 1 or 2 days back each week. I highly recommend that migraine sufferers read about and consider his therapy (Magnesium, Riboflavin (B-2), and the herb, Feverfew). See his book for exact amounts and timing, as well as his other recommendations. It may not work for everyone, but it worked for me. Take care, and good luck!

I have been a migraine sufferer for most of my life, and have explored treatment after treatment (both mainstream and alternative) to alleviate the frequency and severity. After reading this book 8 months ago, and beginning all the non-prescription supplements recommended by Dr. Mauskop, I can gratefully acknowledge that I have a tremendous reduction in the frequency of attacks! Until I had been on the supplements for 3 months, I had been getting 3-5 migraines each week, and loading up on Imitrex. I now have just a few migraines each month, which is something I had thought was an impossibility! Plus, when I do get a migraine, they tend to respond to half the dose of Imitrex I was taking in the past. In addition, while I had been aware of and adhering to the dietary changes recommended in the book for many years, and which I had discovered on my own, it was a relief to find out that there is a scientific basis to the changes I have made! This book is a must-read for any migraineur!

This book is somewhat helpful. I read it after reading "Heal your Headache!",
which sort of set the standard.
This book does contain some helpful tips but my impressions and observations
are that it is dancing around the fringes of the migraine root causes, whereas
"Heal your headache!" gets much closer to the real problem.
You can't go wrong by reading this book, but it is not the final answer either.

This book supports the use of Magnesium to treat migraines, a treatment option which has unfortunately received little press to date. Author Mauskop reviews specifics about why Magnesium is thought to be effective, citing a significant amount of research which has been done in this area. I actually discovered Magnesium treatment for my own migraines prior to reading this book, and given how helpful it has been for me, I am definitely a believer. What I have not yet tried is Mauskop's "Triple Therapy" recommendation, which involves daily use of Magnesium along with two other substances, Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) and the herb Feverfew. I do plan to try this recommendation in the hopes of achieving even greater efficacy in treating my own headaches.

The only complaint I have about this book is regarding how it is organized. The author seems to jump around quite a bit--i.e., the relevant discussion of Magnesium appears in various locations throughout the book rather than being more sensibly offered all in one place. Regardless, the information is still readable and extremely valuable, and so I would not hesitate to recommend this book to my fellow migraine sufferers.

I can't believe that none of my previous doctors, including several neurologists, never mentioned most of the advice I found in this remarkable book. Not only my migrianes are gone, my PMS symptoms disappeared. If I forget to take my supplements, after a few days both my migraines and PMS return.

I read the book and it is very detailed on the types of headaches, medications, and the triple therapy.
I was so impressed with the book that I went to see him.
I got a shot of magnesium and started to feel a little better
I am taking the triple therapy and the intensity of my migraines is getting less.
His tips on giving up caffeine, starting exercise, are tough but I am trying to little by little.
The book is very well written and easy to read for the layman.
I would highly recommend it

Thank you so much Dr. Mauskop for all of your hard work; that you are doing on migraines. I found this book to be very helpful, and I have a better understanding of migraines. Thank you again for all your time that you put into this book This book is a MUST for everyone; but those that suffer from migraines it is gold in your hands. The approach that Dr. Mauskop shows in this book is very helpful, and anyone can read this book and understand. It is not over someones head, it is for the lay person. THANK YOU, THANK YOU!