Migraine is one of the most painful and debilitating conditions a person may suffer from and what is worse, there is not much you can do about it. Migraine headaches are often caused by the changes in the shape and size of the blood vessels that are found in the head. The blood vessels may expand or an inflammation may occur in the tissues that are found in that area.

Compared to the usual type of headache, the tension headache, which often occur on the entire head area, the pain in migraine headaches is more localized and much more specialized. It is however harder to predict when it will occur as migraine headaches do not present any warning signs. In fact, these types of headache will just happen when you least expect it to.

There are however kinds of migraines where some symptoms may be observed. One type is what is commonly called as the classic migraine headache where in the person suffering from it may see a hallucination called ‘aura’ before it actually occurs. Auras are visual hallucinations that resemble lights or zigzagging lines in the person’s line of vision. The hallucination can last from about 15 minutes up to an hour. The duration vary from one case to another. There may also be pain in the areas surrounding the eyes, temporary blind spots and blurred vision.

As to what exactly causes this to happen in such an unsystematic way, no one knows yet. Ongoing researches about the underlying causes of migraines have not yielded much and debates are still going on. Some specialists believe that migraine headaches may be caused by the constriction in the blood vessel, particularly in the electronic changes in the vessels that are similar with what happens during seizures. Others feel that migraines are actually hereditary and people with history of migraines in the family will most likely suffer from the problem.

A migraine headache should not be confused with the common headache, which a person may suffer from every now and then. They are poles different from one another. The migraine headache, for instance can last from four to 72 hours while the common headache, or what is commonly referred to by medical practitioners as tension headaches, can last only for a few hours. Pain is also more localized with the migraine headache, often occurring on the sides of the head while tension headaches can encompass the entire head area. Another difference is the intensity of the pain.

Tension headaches are milder and duller in comparison while migraine headaches can be really severe, accompanied by pounding throbbing pain that only increases. Migraine headaches can also be accompanied by other physical problems such as sensitivity to light, sound and odors as well as nausea and vomiting.

Migraine does not announce itself in a set of early symptoms. The recurring headaches just happen, often catching the person by surprise. There is however one kind where in the person may see a visual hallucination, called an aura, before the actual migraine headache occurs. This kind is called the classic migraine headache.

Environmental and other physiological factors may also contribute in the occurrence of migraine headaches. One factor is stress-related. Over exertion and over fatigue especially in the eye area can cause severe migraine. Depression and anxiety are also factors that you should look into.

Other medical conditions that can start a migraine attack are colds, cough, influenza, and sinusitis. Food and diet may also play a role. Some experts believe that eating chocolates, drinking coffee and abusing alcoholic drinks may contribute in the attack. Sensorial triggers such as over bright lights, too much noise and strong odors may also trigger an attack.

The classic migraine headache is a lot different from what specialists call the common headaches, which occurs without any warning whatsoever. There is also the complicated migraines, which may be a manifestation of more serious medical problems in the nervous system. Often, this type migraine headache is accompanied by speech, movement and motor irregularities.



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Headache is one of the most common ailments affecting thousands of people every day. Migraine alone directly affects about 12% of the population. The symptoms and pain associated with the various types of headache can be difficult for your doctor to recognize. This makes it hard to pin point exactly what type of headache is the problem and the best treatment for it.

Although research suggests that early treatment of migraine headache when the pain is mild results in better outcomes for patients, many patients delay taking their acute-migraine medication until their headaches are moderate or severe. Understanding when and why patients use their migraine medications is an important first step to improve migraine management.

Mild Headache Causes

Headache is caused by irritation or injury to pain-sensing structures of the head. The structures that can sense pain include the scalp, the muscles of the neck and head, major arteries and veins in the head, the sinuses, and the tissues that surround the brain.

Headache may occur when these structures suffer compression, spasm, tension, inflammation, or irritation. The brain has no nerve endings so the brain itself cannot “hurt.”

Mild Headache Treatment

Treating a mild headache will usually involve over-the-counter pain medications. There are many different medications marketed for control of headache pain. The pharmaceutical companies spend millions of dollars each year to advertise their products. However, many “special” headache remedies are no better than simple acetaminophen, ibuprofen, or aspirin. In addition, stress reduction and rest may be helpful.

Mild Analgesics (pain relievers) – Aspirin, acetaminophen, and the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen, naprosyn. Daily use of aspirin and/or acetaminophen may cause rebound headaches. Frequent use of aspirin and NSAIDs can lead to gastrointestinal bleeding and, in the case of aspirin, ?tinnitus (ear ringing).

1. Food: Give fruit juice or food if your child is hungry or hasn’t eaten in more than 4 hours (reason: skipping a meal can cause a headache in many children).

2. Rest: Lie down in a quiet place and relax until feeling better.

3. Local Cold: Apply a cold washcloth or ice pack to the forehead for 20 minutes.

Other preventive measures may include keeping warm if the headache is associated with cold, using a different pillow, or sleeping position or similar changes. Use good posture when reading, working, or doing other activities that may cause headache. Exercise the neck and shoulders frequently when typing, working on computers, or doing close work.

Effective acute treatment of headache begins with making an accurate diagnosis and ruling out secondary causes of headache. Once a primary headache is diagnosed, it is important to choose the right combination of behavioural therapy and acute care (abortive and symptomatic) therapy for each patient.



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Tension headaches are one of the most common forms of headaches and are more likely to occur in adults and adolescents also statistics show that they are 40% more likely to occur in women than men which could be because woman tend to worry more about the family, bills and overall health. Tension headaches are usually triggered by some type of environmental or internal stress and are not associated with structural abnormalities in the brain.

What are Some Causes of Tension Headaches?

Tension headaches are often a response to stress, anxiety, and emotional conflict in a person’s life. Many occur when you already have a migraine headache and often in the middle of the day which just adds fuel to the fire, causing a more intense pain. They can last for a few hours, several days, weeks, or even months.

What are the symptoms of a tension headache?

While symptoms may differ, the following are common symptoms that you could experience: pain on both sides of your head around the temple area, neck pain, change in vision, numbness or tingling in your arms or legs, a sudden fever or vomiting, blurred vision, headaches that seem to be increasing in intensity or frequency over time, difficulty walking or speaking and a thunderclap headache or a headache associated with loss of consciousness. These symptoms could resemble other conditions or medical problems and could be severe, so please notify your doctor immediately if you have any of the symptoms above. Tension headache symptoms are very different from a migraine headache so let’s determine how they differ. A migraine headache is usually a pulsating type of pain where tension headache symptoms are a continuous pain that can last for weeks or months.

Medications

Managing a tension headache is often a balance between fostering healthy habits, finding effective herbal treatments and using medications appropriately. Rebound headaches may occur from overuse of analgesic medications. Caffeine and codeine containing medications should be avoided in cases a chronic tension headache occurs and due to the risk of overuse in medication which could cause a rebound headache. Your health care provider may prescribe one or more of the following medications.

Analgesics – These medications reduce the pain of a tension headache.

Muscle Relaxants – These medications aid in relaxation by causing sedation and decreasing anxiety. They have little or no direct effect on relaxing the muscles of the head and neck that contribute to the headache. Some of these medications can become addictive.

Tension headaches are sometimes related to contraction or spasm in the muscles of the head and neck and can come from bad posture or stress, which causes tightening of the muscles in the neck and the scalp. Make sure you understand what is causing your headaches because if either depression or anxiety plays an underlying roll that you should seek treatment right away. Even if your tension headaches are responding nicely to over-the-counter pain medications, look at whether other triggers are contributing to your headache and try and find a natural way of helping your tension headaches.



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tural treatment methods for migraine headaches are usually harmless and also cheaper than traditional pain medications. Sure, it’s possible you could experience a negative reaction or even increase your headache pain because of a natural treatment, but the odds are far less than with pain-relieving medications.

People are different from each other. A natural treatment that might relieve one person’s migraine headaches may not relieve someone else’s. But on the same measure, just because one migraine headache treatment does not work for one person does not mean it won’t work for you. There are many effective alternatives to taking medication when it comes to relieving migraine headaches. One of these alternative methods may be just what you have been looking for.

Chiropractic adjustments, or chiropractic manipulations, are a very popular natural treatment method for headache relief. Patients with migraine headaches have been visiting chiropractors for over 100 years, and with very good results. Studies have shown that over 80% of headache patients find relief with chiropractic care. Plus, chiropractic treatment has been shown to be extremely safe. Spinal problems do cause headaches and by correcting these spinal problems many headache sufferers find welcome relief.

Biofeedback is another form of treatment that is safe and can be effective in eliminating pain. Biofeedback is a training program designed to help a person develop the ability to control their autonomic (involuntary) nervous system. Functions that are normally automatic can be controlled voluntarily. This technique makes it possible for a person to control their own heart rate, blood pressure, skin temperature, and of course, the relaxation of their tense muscles.

Stress can cause tension, which can lead to muscle tightness (muscle tension) and cause headaches. By relaxing these tense muscles, especially in the neck, it is possible to relieve the tension causing the migraine headaches. With biofeedback, once the technique is learned there is no longer any need for the biofeedback equipment. The patient with migraine headaches can now produce the desired effect at any. They can control certain bodily functions, such as muscle relaxation, which can help reduce and relieve their migraine headaches.

Most people are unaware that too much salt can cause headaches. And by simply lessening the salt intake headaches can sometimes be prevented.

Food allergies or sensitivities can also cause migraine headaches. Certain foods such as cheese, alcohol, monosodium glutamate (a food additive), nuts, beans, caffeine, chocolate and onions can cause migraines. Foods that cause headaches are called triggers. People who experience migraine headaches because of food sensitivities can eliminate their pain by simply eliminating the foods causing the pain.

However, its not always easy to discover which foods are the culprits. One way is to keep a food diary. Get a small notebook, with each page representing one day. On each daily page make three columns. The first column will contain the hours in the day. The second column will be a list of the foods eaten that day. And the third column will list the symptoms that you experience.

As an example, if you had eggs and toast for breakfast at 8 AM you would write eggs and toast in the food column that corresponds with 8 AM. Make a note of everything that is eaten on this list and at what time they were eaten.

When you eventually experience a migraine headache you write migraine headache or headache down in the symptoms column at the time it began. For example, if one of your headaches begins at 2 PM you will write headache in the symptoms column for 2 PM.

It may take a few weeks or even a few months, but after experiencing a few migraine headaches, with the help of the food diary, you will be able to tell which foods cause headaches. Over time, by figuring out which ingredients in these foods are causing your pain, you will be able to eliminate these ingredients and relieve some pain.

Another very common cause of tension headaches and migraine headaches is just plain stress. People who experience tension can get headaches from their increased tension.

Relieving tension can often relieve migraine headaches. Tension can be relieved in many ways such as with biofeedback training (as explained above), taking a warm bath or shower, lying down and resting in a quiet dark room, putting something cold on the back of the neck (at the base of the skull) or having someone massage your neck muscles and possibly your temporal region to help relieve your tension and muscle spasms. Regular exercise can also, over time, reduce tension.

These are just a few of the many natural treatment methods that are available to migraine headache patients. They are all considered safe and are effective for many people. If you have headaches it may be beneficial to try some of these treatments or search out others on your own. But as always it is a good idea to talk with your doctor before attempting to treat yourself for a health problem.

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People often complain about having a headache. There are many types of headaches and many types of causes of headaches. Some people suffer what physicians call chronic headaches. Chronic means that the headaches occur on a regular basis over a long term. If a person has had a headache for which lasts for several months with only intermittent relief they can probably assume they are suffering from a chronic headache.

The good news about chronic headaches is that they are seldom caused by a serious illness. People with chronic headaches often worry that they have a brain tumor or some other dreaded disease but these diseases more often have other symptoms before headaches occur and the headaches associated with such disease will usually come on suddenly and severely. Chronic headaches usually indicate a less severe condition although a painful condition.

Chronic Headaches Due to Migraines

Many chronic headaches are considered migraine headaches. Migraines are probably the least understood of all headaches but recent advances in medicine have made treatment of migraines much more successful. People who suffer with migraines complain of sudden, severe throbbing pain usually on one side of the head. The people often become very light and noise sensitive.

People with migraines have often found that the only cure is resting in a quiet dark room for an extended length of time. No one truly knows what sets off a migraine headache. It may be anything from flashing lights to some type of chemical reaction in the body. A physician can prescribe medication for the migraines and many of the recently discovered medications work well.

Other Causes of Chronic Headaches

There are other causes of chronic headaches some which have not even been discovered. Sinus headaches and tension headaches which are left untreated can easily become chronic headaches. Certain types of allergies may cause headaches until they are diagnosed and treated. There is speculation by some individuals that certain sweeteners and preservatives may cause chronic headaches.

These claims have not been scientifically proven but many people relate their headaches to such chemicals. The best thing that a person who finds they are suffering from chronic headaches to do is to consult their doctor. A doctor can determine what the cause of the headache is and the best treatments available.

Treatment may be as simple as dietary or environmental changes or may include daily medications. Whatever the course of treatment prescribed by the physician, the relief from the headache will be well worth it.



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