Headache is a common condition that anyone can experience. It can occur in different degrees of severity and can affect your daily life and productivity.
Headaches are a common neurological disorder that can significantly disrupt your daily life. From dull throbbing sensations to sharp, intense pains, headaches come in various forms and can stem from a wide range of causes.
In this article we delve into the fascinating world of headaches, exploring their different types and possible ways to alleviate the discomfort.
A headache is a pain that is felt around the head, face, or neck. This pain can be described as a sharp, dull, pounding, or throbbing pressure on these upper body parts.
Headaches can be complicated. They can happen for different reasons, come with different symptoms and require different treatment approaches. Some people can experience it as much as 15 days in a month while others may experience it only once or twice a year.
Headaches are linked to issues that relate to the central nervous system the muscles, nerves, and blood vessels around the head and neck.
The major cause of a headache is the stimulation of pain receptors in the brain. Things that trigger headaches, such as stress, change in hormones, and certain medications can stimulate pain receptors called nociceptors. Nociceptors react to the triggers by sending messages to structures in the brain.
Due to the wide range of possible headaches, medical conditions, too, can trigger headache disorders.
"Some of these medical conditions include viral infections such as influenza and COVID, bacterial infections like meningitis, and medical conditions like ruptured aneurysm (brain bleeding)” said Naomi Jean-Baptiste, a practicing Florida-based emergency medicine doctor and founder of Hope4med, an organization which helps healthcare professionals deal with burnout.
Lifestyle factors such as obesity, alcohol consumption, smoking, stress, and dehydration can also lead to headaches.
Other possible causes of headaches include:
Here are a few sensations you might feel if you've got a headache:
Studies have shown that 96% of all headaches are mild and harmless and can be treated at home. When headaches are severe, they are often a result of an underlying medical condition. In such a case, it will be necessary to run further tests for proper diagnosis.
Severe medical conditions that can begin with a headache include:
There are at least twelve different types of headaches that could affect a person. They can be broadly classified into two main groups, namely:
A primary headache is one that is unrelated to any underlying health condition. Dr. Jean-Baptiste explained that the brain cannot feel pain, and the pain that people with primary headaches experience is due to inflammation of the nerves and muscles around the head and neck.
Types of primary headaches include:
With an estimated 1 billion people living with migraine headaches, this neurological disorder is extremely common, and the figures may be higher due to a large number of undocumented cases.
Migraine headaches can occur either on one side of the head or both sides. The pain might be accompanied by nausea or light sensitivity. Because these migraine attacks can last for a long time, they can interfere with work, school, or other activities.
Migraine can be further subdivided into 3 classes namely:
Stages of Migraine Headaches
Research has also shown that migraine headaches occur in four major stages, which could last from a few minutes to at least four days.
Tension headaches, also known as stress headaches, are so common that people consider them to be normal. These headaches are usually mild or moderate and could last for as little as 30 minutes.
Though the exact cause of tension headaches is not known, studies have shown that genetics, nutrition, and the environment play a major role. Tension headaches usually feel like there's a band tightly wrapped around your head, and they could occur frequently.
Though the least common type of primary headache, cluster headaches have a reputation for being painful, and they're more common in men than in women.
It begins when an important nerve known as the trigeminal nerve is triggered. The headaches could cause non-stop sharp pain or there could be occasional days off. During a cluster attack, many people, instead of seeking relief in a quiet place, tend to pace around agitatedly.
Secondary headaches are headaches that are caused by an underlying medical condition.
"Some medical conditions that could cause secondary headaches include high blood pressure, brain tumors, inflammation, and infections.” Dr. Jean-Baptiste explained.
Managing these types of secondary headaches effectively requires identifying and treating the root condition.
Types of secondary headaches include:
This headache also known as rebound headache is caused by the frequent use of painkillers to cure an already existing headache.
Instead of being a relief, these drugs then become the source of the headache. In most medication overuse headaches, the patient is already living with migraine.
As with all other drugs, when these painkillers are overused, it could lead to side effects such as bleeding in the stomach and intestines.
Just like thunder, this headache strikes suddenly and lasts for one minute or less. The pain it brings along has led it to be described as the "worst-ever headache".
Thunderclap headaches can be a sign of a potentially serious underlying medical condition such as a blood clot, blood vessel rupture, or an intracerebral hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain).
Some possible symptoms of a thunderclap headache include nausea, vision loss, and vomiting.
Brain injuries can occur unexpectedly. They may result from a slip and fall on a wet floor, a head collision during sports, or even a car accident.
Post-traumatic headaches could begin as soon as 7 days after a traumatic incident or a year later.
Scientific studies have also shown that post-traumatic headaches are triggered after a brain injury either by a chemical imbalance or the activation of nociceptors.
Most headaches will subside with adequate rest, painkillers, and drinking plenty of water. In some cases, these are barely enough, and stronger measures have to be taken to treat headaches.
Depending on the type of headache, different medications could be prescribed for proper treatment. Some classes of these medications include:
Some alternative headache treatments include yoga, biofeedback, meditation, and acupuncture which might be helpful to some people living with headaches.
Preventing a headache is more effective than curing one, you get to save costs and make the best use of your days without succumbing to compulsory bed rest.
Living a healthy lifestyle is key to preventing headaches, says Dr Jean-Baptiste. She also suggested the following tips to prevent headache:
Some headaches could stubbornly resist all home treatment methods, but at what stage should you see your doctor?
Dr. Jean-Baptiste recommends speaking to your doctor if you observe strong, sudden headaches which increase in intensity in a short time, this could indicate bleeding in the brain and require immediate medical intervention.
In addition, the presence of new changes in behavior and convulsions should prompt you to see a doctor. Your doctor may order for some tests to determine whether what you are experiencing is a secondary headache which requires treating the underlying medical condition.
Checking in with your doctor after a head injury especially one that involved loss of consciousness could be life-saving, too.
Further, symptoms like a stiff neck, rash, or a fever should not be ignored as they could be symptoms of diseases that could make one prone to headaches such as meningitis.
In summary, headaches can be a nuisance but with proper understanding and proactive measures, we can effectively manage and prevent them.
By understanding the different types of headaches and their causes, we can minimize the impact of headaches on our lives and promote a healthier, pain-free existence.