Do you often experience a headache? If so, then, perhaps you always bring medicines for headache with you all the time. However, not all headaches are still treatable with the same tablet or capsule. In other words, you must know the common types of the headache, so you can determine too, the right drug to take.
Since headache has different types, their causes and symptoms vary, too. Essentially, most headaches are short-termed and rarely lead to significant concern. Therefore, if you can determine the kind of headache you have in a particular experience, you can quickly identify the right treatment. More so, you can simply tell if there is a need for you to see a doctor.
What are the Different Headache Types?
Headache may be a common illness. Nevertheless, there are many different types of the disease, making it more severe and even life-threatening. Here are 7 of the most commonly experienced headache:
1. Migraines
First, it is important to know that a person with migraine typically massages his temples and frequently frowning. Relatively, visual interruptions commonly accompany these types of headache. Additionally, someone with migraine can characteristically feel severe pain on the only line side of the head. Similarly, migraine gives one a feeling of heightened sensitivity to sound, smell, and light.
Second, dizziness or nausea and vomiting are common, as well, among migraine patients. Incidentally, according to an online health website, Everyday Health, “About a third of people experience an aura before the onset of a migraine.” These are sensory and visual disturbances that usually last from 5 to 50 minutes. These migraine symptoms can be:
- Seeing spots, flickering lights or zigzagging lines
- Speech difficulty
- Partially losing vision
- Numbness in the head
- The weakness of the muscles
- Feeling needles and pins in the head
2. Tension headaches
These headache types are prevalent. More so, most people are experiencing them occasionally. One can experience them as dull, continuous pain on both sides of his head. Other than the aforementioned, symptoms include:
- Tenderness of the head, neck, face, and shoulders
- Heaviness behind the eyes
- Becoming more sensitive to sounds and lights
Typically, tension headaches last from half-an-hour to several hours. Moreover, the severity of pain can vary, but they rarely preempt normal activities. There is no clear cause of these kinds of headache. However, depression, anxiety, and stress are the usual triggers.
Other causes include:
- Bad posture
- Eyestrain
- Neck Pain
- Dehydration
- Skipped meals
- Loud noise
- Poor sleep
- Lack of exercise
3. Exertional headaches
These headache types are typically very short-termed. However, they can, at times, last up to 2 days. In addition, exertional headaches present indicate a throbbing pain felt in the entire head. These are more common in people who have a history of migraine in their family.
Such headaches are results of strenuous physical activities or exercises which any of the following may have triggered:
- Weightlifting
- Jumping
- Too much sneezing and coughing
- Running
- Sexual intercourse
4. Medication-Overuse Headaches (MOH)
Medicines, when taken more frequently than regularly, can cause episodes of headache. Undoubtedly, specific medication may lead to frequent headaches if you take them typically. Also, MOH, also called the rebound headache, is the most typical headache type. Relatively, it may occur and recur on a daily basis with symptoms somewhat similar to that of migraines’ or tension headaches.’
5. Sinus headaches
Sinus headaches are usually results of sinus infection or sinusitis. Sinusitis means the swelling of the sinuses resulting in an allergy or find an infection. The symptoms of these types of headache include throbbing ache in the cheeks, forehead, and around the eyes.
Also, the pain can get worse with straining or movement, and can at times, spread to the jaw and teeth. Usually, these headaches occur with a thick yellow or green nasal discharge. Other symptoms can be fever, nausea, sound or light sensitivity or blocked nose.
6. Head-injury headaches
Fighters or boxers are typically the ones experiencing head-injury headaches. In relation to this, head injuries, which include those acquired during contact sports, may result in headaches. Minor blows and bumps to the neck and head, on the other hand, are typical, too. More often than not, these headaches are conditions you should not worry about.
There may be times when the headache may progress immediately. It is frequently similar to tension headaches or migraine. You’ll know if the cause of your trouble is a severe injury if you are experiencing the following symptoms:
- Seizures
- Hearing or vision problems
- Unconsciousness
- Vomiting
- Confusion and
- Memory Loss
7. Caffeine-related headaches
Heavy consumption of caffeine, about 400 mg or 4 cups equivalent, can at times, lead to headaches. So, if you are consuming about 200 mg of caffeine every day for more than 2 weeks, try to stop drinking abruptly. As a result, you will develop the migraine-like headaches. additionally, the headache usually progresses within 24 hours from that abrupt stop.
What are the Treatments for these Types of Headache?
Most headaches, though frequently occurring, are treatable. In fact, over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers like aspirin or ibuprofen can help prevent and fight the headache symptoms. Here are some of the treatments you can try and apply for a specific kind of headache.
• How to Treat Migraines?
Though most migraine attacks are treatable by pain relievers, your doctor can prescribe an antiemetic medicine like metoclopramide for one, to relieve nausea or dizziness and vomiting. Also, there are also some natural remedies for you to try, to ease migraine attack. These include:
- Drinking lots of water
- Resting in a quiet and dark place
- Placing a cold cloth or ice pack on your forehead
• How to Treat Tension Headaches?
For these kinds of head pain, you may take OTC painkillers like aspirin, acetaminophen, and ibuprofen. Indeed, these are the most effective when it comes to reducing anxiety. However, if you have been experiencing headaches for over 15 days each month already, per 90 days, you should consult your doctor.
Other than the medicines to take, you can do some lifestyle changes to treat tension headaches. These are as follows:
- Getting adequate sleep
- Undergoing an eye check
- Acupuncture
- Managing anxiety, depression or stress
- Improving standing or sitting posture
- Doing regular stretching and exercise
• How to Treat Exertional Headaches?
If you are experiencing these headache types, you can take OTC pain relievers. However, if, after taking the medicines and you still feel the pain, better see a doctor for medical advice. Chances are, you are already experiencing some signs of severe headaches.
It will help if you take a beta-blocker or an NSAID or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicine before exertion. Indeed, you can also prevent headaches if you do warm-up exercises.
• How to Treat Medication-overuse Headaches?
Typically, MOH headaches first respond to pain relievers. However, they recur later on. Consequently, these head pains take place if you’ve been taking painkillers for more than 15 days in one month already. Medicines that can lead to MOH include:
- Opioids
- NSAIDs like ibuprofen and aspirin
- Acetaminophen
- Triptans like Sumatriptan
• How to Treat Sinus Headaches?
You can treat this type with nasal decongestants and painkillers. Nevertheless, if your condition does not improve within 7 days, you should see a doctor. He may prescribe antibiotics if he thinks that bacterial infection is causing your headache. Moreover, your doctor is more likely to prescribe antihistamines if an allergy is the one causing the pain.
• How to Treat Head Injury Headaches?
Occasionally, a headache may occur immediately or soon after. You can treat these types using OTC pain relievers. Also, if you experience worsening or persistent headaches, consult your doctor. And, for serious head injuries, you better call an ambulance.
• How to Treat Caffeine-Related Headaches?
Symptoms are frequently addressed within 60 minutes of caffeine intake, or, will fully be relieved within a week after you completely withdraw from the habit of frequent caffeine consumption. Caffeine withdrawal impacts may vary according to the person suffering from headaches. However, lessening the intake can decrease the risk as well, of experiencing headaches.
What are the Ways to Prevent Headache?
You don’t have to experience headaches frequently, even if it is considered a common illness. Fortunately, there are some ways to prevent this discomfort. Some of the things to do are:
1. Know the Type of Headache You can Control
There are several headache triggers you can control, and the others, you cannot. Therefore, it is essential that you know if the one you are experiencing is something beyond what you can do. For instance, hormonal fluctuations ovulation and menopause are beyond your control, and they sometimes cause the pain.
2. Know the Typical Triggers of Headache
You should be familiar with these common headache triggers so that you can avoid or lessen the intake of them:
- Regular or frequent drinking of alcohol, particularly red wine
- Overload of the sensory system like exposure to ultra-bright light, loud sounds, and strong smells
- Oversleeping or not adequate sleep
- Dehydration
- Hormonal changes
- Rigorous exercise
- Smoking
- Unhealthy diet
- Strained eyes as a result of too much exposure to computer or reading
3. Keep a Diary
If you know your headache triggers, you can already start with your own program for the prevention of pain. Hence, keeping a diary can help you identify which of the many triggers are affecting you personally. Also, in your diary, you should input the following:
- Each food (healthy and unhealthy) you eat
- All kinds of beverages you drink
- All drugs or medications you take
- The exact times you sleep and wake up
- All of the physical activities and exercises you engage in
