Dealing with headaches

Headaches suck.

Whilst I wouldn’t say I suffer hugely with headaches, I know how debilitating they can be. A friend of mine at school suffered with migraines and would be really wiped out by them on a regular basis. Also my dad has always suffered from headaches for as long as I can remember, mostly brought on by tiredness. I remember he always got one after we had driven a long way on holiday.

When I have a headache I do anything to avoid taking paracetamol or something similar. Most of the headaches I do get are tension headaches and most likely arise from being tired. More common in women than in men, tension headaches are the most common type of headache with half of the UK experiencing them once or twice a month. Tension headaches can feel like a constant ache on both sides of your head and a general feeling of pressure in your neck and sometimes even behind your eyes. Most of mine come from my neck, which is often stiff. Common causes of these annoying headaches include: stress, dehydration, poor posture, eye strain, tiredness, and excessive noise. I feel that the two main causes of mine are dehydration and tiredness.

Whilst some people swear by yoga or resting to budge these, this isn’t the approach of a busy mummy. Fresh air always helps, as does increasing fluid or giving the head and neck a quick massage. Ensuring that fluid levels are maintained seems to work the best for preventing them.

For me,  medication is always a very last resort and if you are someone who gets headaches frequently it is useful to find other ways of dealing with them without constantly reaching for the pills.

Syndol have developed a website dedicated to helping you find your better place. Syndol offer a step-by-step guide for finding your better place that includes:

  • choosing where that place is
  • choosing the soundtrack to that better place
  • learning to relax
  • learning what exercise helps
  • learning what types of massage help

My favourite way to both avoid and get rid of a headache is a head and neck massage. You can do this yourself but of course if you can persuade someone else to do it for you so much the better. If you click here you can learn about the best massage techniques for headaches.

How do you deal with headaches? What type of headaches do you suffer from?

6 comments

  1. I used to get really bad headaches every day which would then turn into migraine headaches and would feel so tired. Found out it was paracetamol / nurofen causing me to have rebound headaches. I started using anti inflammatory tablet instead of a headache tablet and my headaches stopped.

  2. I get headaches most days and certainly at least 3 times a week. Sometimes they completely debilitate me, and I struggle to do the most simple things. I’ve started listening to gentle music at bedtime to help me relax and unwind, along with some other med-free therapies..so I’m hoping they will start to work.

  3. This is something I struggle with a lot and have been diagnosed with a trio of headache related conditions. I nearly lost my job around 5 years ago as they were saying my 11 days of sick in a year due to my (what is legally classed as a) disability causing me to have days stuck at home in the dark vomiting.

    Since becoming a parent it has become harder to balance pain management and caring for the kids. I can’t take anything that knocks me out or makes me feel too out of it to feel incapable of looking after them properly. The hormones related to pregnancy and breastfeeding gave me a nice 4 year holiday from the worst of it but they have been getting worse again – and I am struggling to balance everything.

    1. Oh gosh Zoe you poor thing – pregnancy can do that can’t it. My back pain was much easier during my pregnancies. I hope that one day soon you find a solution. It must be very difficult x

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