Nothing can ruin your day quite like the painful throbbing or dull ache of a headache. Although painful, occasional headaches are relatively common and usually nothing to worry about. “Tension headaches are the most common type of headache,” says Tejas Deliwala, M.D., DAPN, a fellowship trained neurologist on staff at Kimball Medical Center. Dr. Deliwala specializes in treating headaches and other neurological disorders including stroke, dementia, movement and seizure disorders and neuropathy.  

“Tension headaches are usually caused by stress and emotional strain, and are characterized by upper back, neck or jaw pain, as well as a dull ache felt above the eyes,” he says. “These headaches typically affect both sides of the head and can vary in frequency and severity,” he adds. 

Another common headache, according to Dr. Deliwala, the sinus headache, often causes tenderness in the area over the sinuses located just under the eyes. “A sinus headache is often characterized by a deep dull ache made worse by moving your head. It can also include a nasal discharge, a sense of fullness in the ears and facial swelling,” he adds. 

As a rule, whether they’re caused by stress or sinus allergies, occasional headaches are nothing to be too concerned about. According to the American Council for Headache Education (ACHE), fewer than 10 percent of headaches are linked to any type of underlying medical problem, and nonprescription pain relievers such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen can usually alleviate them. A very small percentage of headaches, however, can be caused by serious medical problems.
According to the National Headache Foundation (NHF), 45 million Americans suffer from chronic headaches and nearly 30 million Americans experience migraines – a chronic, debilitating headache associated with symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, vomiting or extreme sensitivity to light and sound.

“Migraines typically affect individuals between the ages of 15 and 55,” says Dr. Deliwala, “and the majority of suffers – 70 to 80 percent – have a family history of this type of headache.” Unfortunately, migraines are often misdiagnosed leaving many sufferers in pain. 

“Migraine headaches are actually a chronic neurological disorder,” says Dr. Deliwala, “that occur as the result of an electrochemical imbalance in the brain. The imbalance causes a successive narrowing of blood vessels followed by an expansion or dilation of blood vessels. The nerves surrounding these blood vessels respond by releasing chemicals that cause inflammation. This inflammation is ultimately responsible for the pain experienced during a migraine headache,” he adds.

According to the doctor, there are two types of migraine headaches: common and classic migraines. Common migraines are migraines without auras, and classic migraines are migraines with auras.
“Auras are unusual sensations experienced shortly before the onset of migraine headache pain and can include visual disturbances – such as streaks of light or zigzag patterns seen in the individual’s field of vision – as well as tingling, weakness, or in extreme cases even brief paralysis,” he adds.
According to the doctor, common migraines can last anywhere from four to 72 hours, are typically characterized by a pulsating or throbbing pain on one side of the head, and are intensified by daily activities. The headache sufferer usually experiences nausea or vomiting as well as an unusual sensitivity to light and sound. Classic migraines include all those same symptoms with the addition of aura symptoms, according to Dr. Deliwala. “In a classic migraine, headache pain may follow the aura within 60 minutes, begin before the aura, or appear simultaneously with the aura symptoms,” he adds. 

According to Dr. Deliwala, if you suffer from headaches, keeping a headache journal can help determine what’s causing your pain and assist in proper diagnosis and treatment.

“Whether it’s a tension headache after you’ve had a particularly stressful day, or a sinus headache caused by an allergy, knowing what triggers your headache can help in diagnosing the type of headache and is the first step to finding appropriate treatment,” he notes.

Dr. Deliwala recommends recording the date, the time that the headache begins, and how long it lasts. In addition, record any accompanying symptoms, such as nausea or vomiting, sensitivity to light, sound or odors, any possible migraine triggers and aura sensations.

Depending on your individual triggers, there are a variety of lifestyle changes that can help reduce the severity or frequency of some headaches. If you suffer from migraine headaches, Dr. Deliwala notes there are a variety of prescription medications to help alleviate the pain – medications to reduce the debilitating affects of acute attacks as well as preventive medications you can take to reduce their frequency.

“There are so many options available for patients today, that there’s no need to suffer with chronic headache pain,” says Dr. Deliwala. If you’re suffering from headaches, see your doctor for a definitive diagnosis and together you and your doctor can develop a treatment plan that works for you so you can be headache free.