Women and Headaches: Don't Ignore Them

We know women get headaches. C'mon. We all do. But I'm betting you don't realize how big the problem truly is.

Believe it or not, there's a National Headache Foundation., and that's where these statistics are coming from:
You might think you are alone, when that throbbing starts, and your head is hurting? You're not. More than 45 million Americans, suffer from chronic recurring headaches, and 28 million of them, suffer with migraines. And it's not just adults: Statistics show 20 percent of children and teens have issues with headaches.

It's not just tension and migraines. There are 150 different migraines categories: Let's talk about the main one, the Mac Daddy of all headaches, the migraines.

Migraine causes are unknown. We think it is related to the contractions in blood vessels in our heads. Thankfully, there are so many meds dilate the blood vessels, and get you some relief.

A moderate to severe migraine is characterized by pounding, throbbing, unremitting pain. You'll notice distinct symptoms: aversion to light, smell, and noise sensitivity. Very often, migraines are accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite. Young kids can have same symptoms, and sometimes, even a fever.

Migraines can occur in relation to a lot of issues. When we look at migraine: hormones play a role, because they affect more women more than men. More than 70 percent of migraine sufferers are women, and in 60 to 70 percent of those women, the migraines are related to menstrual cycles. You need to be on the alert.

What can you do? The hormone issue is typically when the estrogen levels drop, just before the menstrual cycle starts. This is also a reason that migraines might disappear during pregnancy. The estrogen levels are high, and there is no drop.
Oftentimes, simple non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), such as Motrin, do help. If you feel have to have a prescription medication, you need to know that they can span an entire spectrum, from beta blockers, to anti-convulsants, and calcium channel blockers.
See your doctor to get help, and be patient. The right medication is available for your specific worries.

Another quick word: caffeine. Despite common misconceptions, caffeine: can make headaches much, much worse. You are taking blood vessels that are already under stress and then add caffeine. It's not worthwhile. You need to look at things to calm you whenever you have a headache. Cluster, tension, and migraine headaches are usually made worse by caffeine.

Cluster headaches are less common, but still very severe.
The pain is an intense, burning feeling, almost piercing, to where you can't sit still, Clusters come in a grouping of attacks, occurring 1 to 3 times a day, and can last up to 2-3 weeks, or even months. Clusters go away and you can be in remission for years. These require an astute diagnosis, and long-term therapy.

Causes
- C'mon. Right now, the recession is giving you all tension headaches! Absolutely, daily headaches can come from stress. It usually happens because the muscles on top of skull connect to the back, and the shoulders go upward, and you know how tight you get. All that tightness pulls down on the skull, and that pressure is enough to give you a headache.
- You need to take a deep breath, and feel very aware of the fact that you have a tremendous amount of muscle tension, on those trapezoid muscles in your back, your neck, and your shoulders. Sometimes, you can roll your shoulders back and forth, and that helps tremendously.
- You can also use Trigger point massage. Take your thumbs to base of skull, and press deeply. That's a trigger point and will release the muscle, somewhat. Most importantly, you need to get to the point of what is getting you riled up?
-
There are other causes: poor sleep habits, depression, medications, alcohol, anything involves eyesight such as eye strain, or neck or back strain. Rotten posture causes a lot of damage to your nerves. If you are walking around with bad posture, you are doing a number on your muscles.
Environment impacts migraine/headache sufferers: air, noise, lighting, weather changes, secondhand smoke, and household chemicals, even perfumes, all play a role. You can get a headache, just by overdoing it with training/physical activity.
-
There is something to be said about family history, and genetics.
A lot of headaches run in families, with migraines being one of the most common. In children suffering from migraines, 90 percent have family history of migraines. If both parents have history, there is a 70 percent chance kids will get them as well.


When do you worry?
You should worry about any pain - when your functionality in life is disturbed. Be concerned when an interaction is draining, when you can't get up for work, and your ability to maintain your self is interfered with pain is so bad or brand new or unremitting, and now, you can't get rid of it.

The classic problem with many women is that they put themselves in position, where they don't take care of themselves. They are always caring for others, and they write off headaches and other pains as simply "stress." Newsflash, ladies: Stress kills.
This is another reason why women die from heart attacks. Women blow it off. So don't.