My Headaches

And no, I'm not talking about a person (although, I know quite a few people that could be considered the source of my headaches). Anyways... Headaches are quite fascinating, painful, but fascinating. There are several varieties of headaches (150 different headache categories to be exact). One of the most common headaches is the tension headache; which can be described as a the scalp muscles or the neck muscles contract and feel as if there is a tightening band wrapped around your head. Tension headaches can be "episodic" which means they happen less than 15 times a month, or "chronic" more than 15 times a month. These headaches can actually last days (trust me). Okay, next type of headache is the dreaded *cue scary music* MIGRAINE. This type of headache is the reason I started writing this (I go to a neurologist because of my frequent migraines and I'm currently suffering from one). Science hasn't found the exact reason these headaches happen or why they are triggered by bright lights, strong odors, and loud sounds. Migraines can be inherited because of "abnormalities in certain parts of the brain". The pain is described as "throbbing, or pounding". These headaches can be hours to three days. Some of the side effects are nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, dizziness, blurred vision, and it can cause a person to become pale. If you have migraines 4 or more times a month, go see a neurologist, they work wonders! Now on to cluster headaches, although they aren't as common, they still affect about 0.1% (doesn't sound like a lot, but it's actually 7,000,000 people). Usually this headache originates behind one eye or around the eyes, but doesn't really "move around" (what I mean by that is it doesn't start in the right then migrate to the temples). They call them "cluster" headaches because it has a "characteristic grouping of attacks". You might get these headaches often then one day you seemed cured or as if you went into remission, but sadly this might not be so. These headache can attack every day the seem to disappear, then like an unwelcome house guest, pop up months or even years later. The final headache I will educate you on is the sinus headache. These are commonly linked with sinus infections. The pain is deep and constant in the cheekbones, bridge of the nose, and forehead. There are a few symptoms that are coupled with sinus headaches; stuffy/runny nose, clogged ears, excess phlegm in the throat, swelling of the face, and sometimes a fever. If you're experiencing headaches often, you might want to look into finding a doctor, and maybe one day you might stumble into my (future) office.