Intensive Mindfulness Meditation Reduces Frequency and Burden of Migraine: An Unblinded Single-Arm Trial.
Mindfulness February 1, 2023 Madhav Goyal, Jennifer A Haythornthwaite, Sharat Jain et al. 10 citations
A 10-day silent Vipassana meditation retreat with 100 hours of sitting meditation reduced migraine burden. Among 58 participants with chronic or episodic migraine, average monthly migraine days dropped by 2.7 (from 16.6) per 28 days at 12 months, and headaches decreased by 3.4 (from 20.1) per 28 days. Acute medication use fell by 2.2 days per 28 days, and activity-limited days decreased by 2.3. Improvements in migraine-specific quality of life, pain catastrophizing, and perceived stress were sustained at one year. The findings suggest intensive meditation training may reduce migraine frequency and burden.