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How do i make my headache go away: Why It Happens and How to Manage It

by alexxlab

When headaches won’t go away

When one of her bad migraines hits, Jacqueline G. (last name withheld) can’t do anything but lie down in a dark room and wait for the waves of pain to recede. “It’s completely debilitating,” says the 73-yearold, who has been plagued by severe migraines since her 20s. “The nausea comes on right away, and then I can’t keep anything down—even crackers or ice. And it can last from early morning to 12 at night.”

Migraines are a particularly disabling form of headache because they launch a four-tiered attack:

  • The first strike is the prodrome (or preheadache), a sick or moody feeling that may set in a day or two before the actual headache starts.
  • Next, for about 20% of migraine sufferers, comes the aura—flashing lights, bright spots, or other visual phenomena that distort or even interrupt sight for a few minutes to an hour.
  • Then the migraine hits, a crescendo of headache that can involve throbbing pain and nausea, as well as increased sensitivity to sound and light.
  • And finally, the postdrome may occur—a “headache hangover” that leaves you feeling tired and drained from the whole ordeal. This feeling can last for a day or more.

What causes migraines?

Researchers still aren’t sure exactly what causes migraines. These headaches may be due to changes in the brain stem and imbalances of brain chemicals such as serotonin, which helps regulate pain.

Women are three times more likely to get migraine headaches than men, in part because the hormone estrogen “primes the pump.” After menopause, migraine headaches in women usually become less frequent. Yet some women—like Jacqueline—continue to have migraines even after they’ve seen the last of their menstrual cycle.

Women who get regular migraines often have “triggers” that instigate their headaches. Common migraine triggers include:

  • strong odors
  • stress
  • lack of sleep
  • loud noises or bright lights
  • changes in weather
  • low blood sugar from skipping meals
  • foods such as red wine, chocolate, aged cheeses, dried fruits, nuts, beans, cured meats, soups and bouillons made with the preservative monosodium glutamate (MSG), yeasty beers and breads, and diet drinks containing artificial sweeteners such as aspartame.

The anatomy of a migraine

A migraine occurs when nerve cells in the brain become activated—usually in response to a trigger such as stress or a particular food. These nerve cells release certain chemicals, which cause the blood vessels in the brain to dilate (widen) and become inflamed. But scientists still are not sure this is the specific cause of the pounding pain and other symptoms of a migraine.

How to get rid of migraine headaches

The first step to help reduce migraine attacks is to try to remove the triggers. Keeping a headache diary can help pinpoint your migraine triggers. For one month, write down

  • what time each headache started and ended
  • the intensity and location of the pain (for example, behind your eyes or in the back of your head)
  • what warning signs heralded the headache
  • what you ate that day
  • what you were doing before the headache hit (for example, exercising)
  • what treatment you used, and whether it helped.

Then, go over your diary with your primary care doctor, neurologist, or headache specialist to see where you can eliminate or modify triggers. If trigger avoidance isn’t enough, your doctor might recommend migraine medications, which follow two therapeutic approaches:

Acute treatments (also known as abortive therapies) relieve pain and nausea, but you need to take them at the first twinge of a headache. They include:

Triptans—migraine-specific medicines that narrow blood vessels in the brain, such as frovatriptan (Frova), naratriptan (Amerge), zolmitriptan (Zomig), rizatriptan (Maxalt), and sumatriptan (Imitrex).

Pain relievers—NSAIDs, including aspirin and ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), can help with less severe migraines. Acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) also helps some women with migraines. Some of these products are formulated specifically for migraines, combining one or more pain relievers with caffeine (such as Excedrin Migraine). Indomethacin (Indocin) is available in suppository form for women who get nausea with their headaches.

Anti-nausea drugs—metoclopramide (Reglan), prochlorperazine (Compazine), and similar drugs can relieve the queasiness that often accompanies a migraine.

One note of caution: The overuse or misuse of some migraine medicines can trip off additional headaches—called rebound headaches—especially if you use these drugs more than three times a week. Talk to your doctor if you notice that you’re getting more headaches than usual while on these medications.

Preventive treatments can reduce the frequency and severity of headaches. But these types of medications need to be taken daily. They are recommended for people who have frequent migraine attacks (more than two or three a week), or whose migraines haven’t responded well to other treatments.

Preventive treatments include

  • blood pressure drugs—beta blockers or calcium-channel blockers
  • antidepressants—amitriptyline (Elavil), venlafaxine (Effexor)
  • antiseizure medicines—sodium valproate (Depacon), topiramate (Topamax), divalproex sodium (Depakote)
  • botulinum toxin type A (Botox) — an approved treatment option for people with chronic migraine
  • biofeedback

Other types of headaches

Migraines aren’t the only type of headache that can cause misery. Others include:

Tension headaches—These common headaches feel like a pressure or tightness on both sides of the head. They can last from 30 minutes to several days. Tension headaches can occur from time to time, or on a daily basis. How to treat them: Address the health problem that’s causing tension headaches, such as stress, sleep apnea, depression, or jaw clenching. To relieve the pain, try an over-the-counter NSAID.

Cluster headaches—These sharp, severe headaches typically arrive in “clusters” at the same time of day or night. Cluster headaches are usually focused on one side of the head, often behind the eye. They can last anywhere from 5 minutes to a couple of hours. You may also have a runny nose, tearing in one eye, and a feeling of agitation. How to treat them: Ask your doctor about oxygen therapy, prednisone, or triptan drugs. Calcium-channel blockers and anti-seizure medicines may also reduce the frequency of cluster headache attacks.

Sinus headaches—This type of headache occurs when the lining of the sinus passages becomes swollen and inflamed. The throbbing pain is often accompanied by pressure around the eyes, cheeks, and forehead; a stuffy nose; cough; and yellow-green mucus. How to treat them: Nasal steroids, over-the-counter decongestants and pain relievers, and saline nasal irrigation can help relieve symptoms.

If you get regular headaches, you’ll probably start to see a pattern to the symptoms. If you develop any unusual or particularly severe symptoms, call for medical help right away. Even if headaches have become part of your routine, talk to your doctor. Your doctor can get you started on a treatment to relieve your aching head and finally stop headaches from interfering with your life.

When a headache signals something more serious

In rare cases, headaches can be a sign of a serious health issue, such as a tumor, meningitis, or a burst aneurysm. Any of these signs warrants an immediate call for medical help:

  • a sudden, severe headache
  • a severe headache along with a fever, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, weakness anywhere in your body, confusion, double vision, or a stiff neck
  • the “worst” headache of your life
  • a severe headache when you rarely, or never, get headaches
  • a headache that starts after a head injury.


Image: ©Dolgachov | GettyImages

The caffeine connection between coffee and headaches

Dear Doctors: I am 69 years old and have two cups of coffee each morning. Once or twice a week, I wake up with a dull ache at the back of my head, toward the left side. It always goes away with my first cup of coffee. Is this caffeine withdrawal? My doctors have found no physical causes.

Dear Reader: Caffeine is a fascinating compound. For people who consume it regularly, its absence can trigger a headache. And because of the way the body responds to caffeine, its presence can sometimes relieve one. It’s possible that both of these things are occurring in your case.

Unfortunately, because headaches themselves are extremely complex, it is difficult to pinpoint their cause. Even with the CT scan that you said your doctors performed, they were unable to identify a reason for the intermittent headache you wake up with. What we can offer here is a discussion of caffeine and its effects on the human body. This includes what happens when someone consumes it regularly, and what can happen when they suddenly don’t.

Caffeine is a mild stimulant that is easily absorbed by the body. Depending on each individual, its effects can last up to 12 hours. As caffeine revs up the central nervous system, it can leave you feeling more awake and alert, deliver a boost of energy and help with focus and even mood. Caffeine also narrows blood vessels that surround the brain. That is its link to headache.

In some types of headaches, the blood vessels in the brain dilate, or swell. They expand into the surrounding tissues, which triggers pain. Consuming caffeine, which narrows the vessels, can ease or even reverse some headache pain. Ironically, a sudden lack of daily caffeine can cause a headache. It triggers a series of events that also lead to dilated blood vessels, and thus to headache pain.

Additional factors that can lead to a morning headache include too little or too much sleep, nighttime snoring, sleep apnea, high blood pressure, sinus congestion and dehydration. Some people find that a spike in sugar consumption, particularly later in the day, can be an overnight headache trigger.

If you’re willing to risk the effects of caffeine withdrawal, you can conduct a little experiment. Begin to gradually cut back your caffeine consumption over the course of a week or two. You can do this by drinking a bit less coffee each day, or by slowly swapping decaf for regular in your morning brew. As you systematically wean yourself from your habitual caffeine levels, you will be able to observe whether there’s a difference in the frequency of your occasional morning headaches. If you do see a change, this can help you pinpoint the amount of coffee you can drink without adverse effects.

It would not be surprising if a smaller amount proves easier to tolerate. As we age, our body’s ability to process caffeine changes. It’s common for older adults to have to make adjustments to their daily intake as the years go on.

(Send your questions to [email protected], or write: Ask the Doctors, c/o UCLA Health Sciences Media Relations, 10960 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1955, Los Angeles, CA, 90024. Owing to the volume of mail, personal replies cannot be provided.)

Surgery for excruciating headache

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Severe and often recurring headache dramatically reduces the quality of life of a person, preventing productive work and good rest. Today, this problem can be solved with a simple operation.

There are different types of headache – migraine, tension headache, chronic headache and others. With any of these, muscle spasm may be present, leading to nerve compression. With the help of the operation, you can relax the spasmodic muscle through which the nerve passes, or release the nerve from the muscle ring.

The lesion is usually located in one of the following areas:

  • Superciliary ridges (most common).
  • Neck.
  • Whiskey.

The localization of the primary source of headache is determined during the preoperative examination of the patient. A special role here is given to testing with botulinum toxin, the results of which can most likely be used to judge the degree of effectiveness of the upcoming operation.

Surgery in the area of ​​the brow ridges is called transblepharoplasty corrugator resection. With its help, they achieve relaxation of the corrugator – the muscle that wrinkles the eyebrow. Branches of the trigeminal nerve pass through this muscle. With prolonged muscle spasm, the nerve is irritated and begins to send pain signals.

The average duration of this operation is one hour. When it is performed, a small incision is made on the upper eyelid and through it the lateral sections of the corrugator are reached. Thanks to the use of an electrocoagulator, large bruises are not formed. Without affecting the zone of passage of the branches of the trigeminal nerve, the surgeon dissects small branches that approach the muscle from the sides and regulate its contraction. The spasm disappears, and with it the headache goes away.

Access is the same as in upper blepharoplasty, therefore, if the patient has overhanging skin of the upper eyelids, it is suggested to take advantage of a convenient opportunity and at the same time get rid of the aesthetic defect.

At the end of the operation, intradermal sutures are applied to the wounds – almost invisible. The ends of the thread are left outside and fixed to the skin with patches of plaster. After six days, the threads are removed.

In cases where the headache is caused by irritation of the large occipital or ear-temporal nerve, an operation is performed, respectively, on the occipital or temporal muscle. In terms of duration and complexity, they are approximately the same as transblepharoplasty resection of the corrugator. The plastic surgeon makes an incision and releases the nerve very carefully, avoiding the slightest damage to it.

Headache can be unilateral or bilateral, felt in one or different areas of the head. The exact localization of the pathological focus is not always possible to determine – the nerves of the face and neck exchange impulses with each other, provoking painful muscle contraction. Muscle spasm spreads from one area to another, making it difficult to find the primary source. Patients often talk about such combinations of pain as “eyebrow – back of the neck”, “eyebrow – temple”. In such cases, it is preferable to test with the introduction of botulinum toxin in different areas of the head, and if the results are positive, surgery on several areas may be indicated.

It is difficult and sometimes impossible to get rid of such a symptom as severe and frequent headaches with the help of medicines, physiotherapy and folk remedies. Surgery may be the best solution. Its unique advantage lies in the ability to check the effect in advance – before lying down on the operating table.

3 successful surgeries already performed!

Migraine treatment in St. Petersburg

Operation cost

The terms of rehabilitation and the duration of the effect after the operation are average.

These indicators depend on the patient’s age, lifestyle, individual characteristics of the body and the accuracy of the recommendations.
doctor after surgery.

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