One of man’s most common indications of the presence of physical disturbance or bodily disorder is headache. When one gets a headache, it’s not his brain that’s actually aching. According to doctors, while troubles in the brain may cause headaches, the brain itself isn’t capable of feeling pain. The brain does register pain occurring in the different parts of the body, but it lacks the sensory nerves that collect and convey the sensation of pain.
When one gets a headache, the blood vessels, membranes, and various tissues in his head are the ones that instantly feel the pain since sensory nerves exist in and around these parts. Headaches usually occur in reaction to the tensions, pressures, and frustrations brought on by competitive living. The usual types of headache include vascular, tension, allergy, hangover, and orgasmic. Under the vascular type are migraine, cluster, and caffeine. Further down the list under migraine headache are classic migraine and common migraine.
Migraine headache is a severe, disabling type of headache which recurs frequently and occurs most often in daytime. It is usually associated with such conditions as dizziness, vomiting, dryness of the mouth, mood swings, and changes in body temperature. Migraine headache usually occurs as a slowed reaction to emotional stresses. Warning signs, such as blurred vision and numbness, often precede a classic migraine; pain ensues within about half an hour. A common migraine, on the other hand, usually occurs without any warning. The pain in both types of migraine is throbbing. At its onset, one eye is affected, and then one or both sides of the head. The pain may last from a few hours to about a couple of days. Some of the usual causes of migraine headache are skipped meals, fatigue, stress, menstruation, menopause, changes in altitude, and the use of oral contraceptives. Other possible causes include consuming nitrate-cured foods and foods containing monosodium glutamate or the amino acid tyramine, such as chocolate, mature cheeses, and alcohol. For mild cases of migraine headache, a change in diet or the taking of paracetamol or aspirin may be effective. For chronic cases, medications prescribed by a doctor are the best treatments.
As its name suggests, cluster headache occurs in clusters of up to ten headaches within a twenty-four-hour period. Each episode lasts from a few minutes to over an hour, and the pattern may continue for weeks or even months. The pain in cluster headache can be very severe, initially affecting the surrounding areas of one eye, and then stretching out to the temple, cheek, or jaw. Unlike migraine headache, cluster headache occurs most often at night. It isn’t clear what exactly causes cluster headache, although some doctors point to drinking alcohol and smoking tobacco as possible culprits. Obviously, staying away from alcohol beverages and tobacco products can help prevent cluster headache.
It shouldn’t be difficult to guess what caffeine headache is and what causes it. This type of headache, which produces a throbbing, two-sided pain, usually occurs after a heavy consumption of coffee. In case of abstention, caffeine headache may occur several hours after downing the last cup. There is no treatment for this type of headache other than reducing coffee consumption. Caffeine pills may work in withdrawal headaches.
In tension headache, a dull, two-sided pain can occur anytime, affecting the neck and both shoulders. The duration of each episode may differ from case to case. Depression and stress are the two known causes of tension headache. Treatment ranges from the simple taking of rest to undergoing relaxation training or psychotherapy.
Squeezing pain on both sides of the head, which usually starts within about five hours of exposure to a substance that induces allergy, characterizes allergy headache. As in tension headache, the duration of each episode of allergy headache varies from case to case. Avoiding allergens is the sure way of preventing this type of headache. While antihistamines are a common treatment, immunotherapy may be necessary in some cases.
Hangover headache brings a throbbing, two-sided pain on waking up after heavy drinking of alcohol beverages. Taking enough rest and consuming sufficient fluids are the keys to treating this type of headache.
In orgasmic headache, a very severe, two-sided pain occurs during and after orgasm. This type of headache is caused, in part, by the hypertension that accompanies orgasm. In some cases, it may be caused by anxiety. Taking sufficient rest is a common, easy treatment, although doctor-prescribed anti-inflammatory medications may be required in some cases.
There are cases of headaches that call for the immediate arrangement of a meeting with the doctor. Such cases include headaches which always occur in a specific area, headaches which become more severe with each episode, and headaches associated with changes in personality. Requiring urgent medical attention even more are headaches associated with convulsions, double vision, high fever, weight loss, fainting, or paralysis.
