Headaches: the most common types and the signs that demand help
Few pains ruin a patrol like a pounding head. Most headaches are benign and passing, but knowing the types — and the danger signs — is the kind of information that saves nights and, sometimes, lives.
The most common types
- Tension headache: the most frequent. A tightening or pressure, like a band squeezing the head, usually on both sides. Linked to stress, muscle tension, poor posture and fatigue.
- Migraine: throbbing pain, often one-sided, moderate to severe, worsened by exertion and accompanied by nausea and sensitivity to light and sound. Some get an 'aura' (visual changes) beforehand.
- Cluster headache: rarer and brutally painful, in bouts around one eye.
Common triggers
Poor sleep, dehydration, prolonged fasting, too much or withdrawal of caffeine, alcohol, stress, screens and bad posture. Spotting your pattern is half the battle.
What usually helps
- Regularity: sleeping, eating and hydrating on stable schedules.
- Reducing identified triggers.
- Simple painkillers occasionally — but beware: overusing painkillers causes medication-overuse headache, a vicious cycle.
- Frequent migraine has specific treatments, preventive and acute, that a doctor can prescribe.
Red flags — seek care
- The worst headache of your life, sudden and explosive ('thunderclap').
- Headache with fever and a stiff neck.
- Headache after a head injury.
- Headache with confusion, weakness, changes in speech or vision, or a seizure.
- A new, persistent headache after age 50, or one that changes pattern and progressively worsens.
These signs take a headache out of the trivial. Don't play the hero: get help.
A word from the Lair: this content is informational and does not replace medical care. Severe, sudden headaches or those with the signs above require immediate care.
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