A New Path to Migraine Relief? How CGRP Medications May Help
Migraines steal moments—quiet mornings, family dinners, or a much-needed night’s rest. For many people who live with them, the search for real relief becomes a revolving door of treatments: Botox, acupuncture, over-the-counter options, or long-standing prescription medications.
Because these medications are appearing more frequently in TV commercials and online ads, many patients are curious about what they actually do and whether they’re right for them. To help bring clarity, Christina “Chrissy” Camp, MSN, FNP-C, BSN, PCCN—of the Neurology Division at Shore Physicians Group in Somers Point—explains how CGRP medications work and when they may be considered.
Before discussing the newest treatment options, Chrissy emphasizes that effective migraine care starts with understanding the whole patient—not just the headache.
“You’re coming to us because you don’t feel well,” she says. “So it’s important we don’t just cover up symptoms with medications without a full assessment. A headache can be caused by a lot of things, and I need to make sure we’re treating the right problem.”
Sometimes, she explains, a headache that seems like a migraine could actually be something more concerning—such as a mild stroke—or connected to an issue like untreated sleep apnea, Vitamin deficiencies, or infectious diseases. In those cases, jumping immediately to migraine medication could mask the symptoms while the underlying condition goes overlooked. “We want to rule out the big, the bad, and the ugly,” she says. “My job is to make sure we’re not missing something important. That means reviewing records, ordering imaging when appropriate, looking at lab work, and really listening to the patient.”
Once she determines a migraine is truly a migraine, Chrissy helps patients understand what’s happening inside the body. “A migraine is a neurological event,” she says. “When it starts, the body releases inflammatory markers that irritate blood vessels and make nerves hypersensitive.” One of the most important of these markers is CGRP—calcitonin gene-related peptide.
Clinically, CGRP is a neuropeptide found throughout the brain and nervous system. During a migraine, levels of CGRP rise sharply, triggering blood vessels to dilate and increasing inflammation around the nerves that sense pain. This is what makes migraines feel so intense. CGRP medications work by blocking either the peptide itself or its receptor, interrupting this chain reaction. “By stopping that signal,” Chrissy explains, “we stop the symptoms from spiraling into a full migraine.”
“Inflammatory markers ramp up irritation in the nerves and blood vessels,” Chrissy adds. “CGRP is one of the signals that tells the body, ‘Okay, this is turning into a migraine.”
That’s where CGRP-targeting medications come in. She uses a local analogy to explain them. “Picture traffic on Route 9 going from Somers Point into Linwood,” she says. “Now imagine another line of traffic coming off Ocean Heights Avenue at Wawa that cuts across and stops that flow. CGRP medications block the migraine signal the same way—they prevent it from getting from point A to point B.”
These newer medications come in two forms. Preventive options, like Emgality, Ajovy, and Aimovig, are monthly injections that reduce how often migraines occur. Acute medications—brands like Nurtec ODT or Ubrelvy—are taken at the first sign of an attack to stop it before it escalates. Both types are well tolerated and often work for patients who have exhausted other treatments.
But none of that happens before Chrissy completes a thorough, personalized evaluation. “I don’t want to hand someone a medication when the real issue might be their sleep apnea, vitamin deficiency, or an infectious disease, or when I need to rule out a mild stroke first,” she says. “The goal is not just to make the headache go away—it’s to understand why it’s happening.”
For those in our community who have struggled to find lasting relief, Chrissy’s thorough, evidence-based approach—and the potential relief made possible from CGRP medications—offers renewed hope. It’s a path forward grounded in understanding the whole patient and helping them reclaim more of the moments that matter.
Chrissy Camp, MSN, FNP-C, BSN, PCCN, treats patients at Shore Physicians Group’s Neurology Division offices located at 700 Shore Road in Somers Point, NJ. To schedule an appointment with Reeva Salkin, call 609-365-6202.
