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Headache is defined as the pain in the head or upper neck. It is one of the most common locations of pain in the body and has many causes. It is said to be a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head and sometimes neck. Headache ranks among the most common pain complaints. Treatment of a headache depends on the underlying etiology or cause, but commonly involves analgesics.
Types
Primary Headaches
- Migraine
- Tension-type headache (TTH)
- Cluster headache and other trigeminal autonomic cephalalgias (TAC)
- Other primary headaches, such as
- Hemicrania continua
- Coital cephalalgia
- New daily persistent headache (NDPH)
Secondary Headaches
- Headache attributed to head and/or neck trauma
- Head injury
- Headache attributed to cranial or cervical vascular disorder including:
- Intracerebral hemorrhage
- Subarachnoid hemorrhage
- Giant cell arteritis
- Headache attributed to non-vascular intracranial disorder including:
- Idiopathic intracranial hypertension
- Post dural puncture headaches
- Ictal headache
- Headache attributed to a substance or its withdrawal including:
- Medication overuse headaches
- Medication or drug withdrawal headaches
- Hang overs
- Headache attributed to infection including:
- Meningitis
- Headache attributed to disorder of homoeostasis
- Headache attributed to psychiatric disorder
Neuralgias and other headaches
- Cranial neuralgias, central and primary facial pain and other headaches
- Other headache, cranial neuralgia, central or primary facial pain including:
Symptoms
- Can be mild, moderate or severe pain, affecting whole head, a part of head, forehead or eyes.
- Nausea
- Difficulty in sleeping
- Loss of appetite
- Feeling of uneasiness
Causes
- sinusitis
- Hypertension
- Constipation
- Over work
- Mental stress
- Indigestion
- Acidity
- Sleeplessness
- Fever
- A symptom of some disease
- Excessive consumption of tea, coffee, aspirin or nicotine is also known to contribute to headache
- Nervous weakness
- Anemia
- Deficiency of oxygen in the blood
- Sitting too close to the television
- Reading with insufficient light
- Reading in a moving train or car
Natural Cures
- Take clove, cinnamon and almond in equal quantities and grind together with a little water to make a paste. Apply paste on the forehead.
- A paste made of sandalwood powder can also be applied on the forehead.
- Mix a quarter teaspoon of clove powder in one teaspoon of cinnamon oil. Apply mixture to the location of pain.
- Mix 1 tablespoon of milk and half teaspoon of ginger powder and put one or two drops in each nostril twice a day.
- Wrap a wet cloth around the neck.
- Heat 1 teaspoon of almond oil. When it cools down, put two drops in each nostril.
Treatment
- Take medication properly and don’t use it more than twice a week. Consul the doctor, if headache persists.
- For chronic headaches, consider non drug treatments such as acupuncture, biofeedback, physical therapy, and relaxation techniques.
- If the doctor suggests that you have a medication-overuse headache, work with him or her to taper off the drugs.
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