About Chronic Tension Headaches

There is a fairly good chance that someone you know has experienced some type of headache today, just because there are so many different sorts of headaches about. These kinds of headache may be the result of dehydration, missed meals, migraines or other kinds of headache like a tension headache or even a chronic tension headache.

A tension headache can feel like a tight elastic band around your head, however, the pain from tension headaches goes away after a short time. But imagine having to suffer from a tension headache every day - for weeks. This sort of tension headache is classified as a chronic tension headache because the pain is experienced at least 15 days a month for a period of several months.

With the case of chronic tension headaches, the symptoms of the headache are similar to those of tension headaches, except for the fact that the pain never really seems to go away. People who have experienced chronic tension headaches describe the pain as if they were wearing a pressure band around their heads. Other people may describe severe chronic tension headache pain as a hooded cape that drapes down onto their shoulders.

In the case of both tension headaches and chronic tension headaches, the pain can be located either in the forehead region, in the sides of the head or sometimes even at the rear of the head. At its usual strength the chronic tension headache is a dull, aching pain, although sometimes the pain is like a tourniquet. Generally the pain is mild to moderately severe.

The severity of the pain varies with the general physical condition of the individual concerned and it can also vary with the different sorts headaches. A lot of people start to experience chronic tension headaches as soon as they wake up in the morning, although others have reported that their chronic tension headaches start in the early hours of the morning.

Normal tension headaches are more common than chronic tension headaches, however twice as many women as men suffer from chronic tension headaches. The duration and the severity of the pain is about the same as a normal tension headache, although the pain from the chronic tension headache is almost a daily occurrence and is also of a continuous nature.

Individuals who get chronic tension headaches are thought to be more susceptible to anxiety and depression than non-sufferers of chronic tension headaches. It is further known that chronic tension headaches are more common during or after heightened periods of stress and anxiety. Anyone who has mood disorders like depression or anxiety should have these conditions treated prior to getting their chronic tension headache seen to.

People suffering from chronic tension headaches can lead pretty normal and fulfilling lives with the correct medical advice and treatment. In time, they may come to understand what triggers their headaches and how avoiding these triggers can prevent the start of another bout of chronic tension headaches.

If you suffer from migraines or headaches, you ought to definitely go along to our website on Stopping Headaches.

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This post was written by Rose Williams on December 28, 2009

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Coital Headaches

by Bob Jones

Although orgasm is usually a pleasurable and happy activity for most people, it can be painful for those who find that it starts coital headaches. For these people, sexual activity can actually cause these coital headache attacks.

Technically, a headache, or cephalalgia, is a symptom of a number of different conditions of the head and sometimes the neck too. They can be classified into two main groups: primary or idiopathic, and symptomatic, although there are other ways of classifying them too; for example by severity.

Put simply, primary headaches have a known or unknown cause, whereas symptomatic headaches are often the result of trauma. Primary headaches include: migraine, tension headaches, cluster headaches and coital headaches, amongst others.

Coital headaches, also called coital cephalalgia or sexual headaches, is a rare, but severe type of headache that starts in the nape of the neck during sexual intercourse, but before climax. It can occur in all conditions where climax is the expected result. The pain can move to behind the eyes and can then be even worse. Typically the pain will last from a few minutes to an hour or so, but some cases have been known to last for days in extreme examples.

It is surprising to many to discover that men are three times more likely to experience coital headaches than women and the age groups most at risk are those between 20 and 25 and 30 and 44. Doctors do not really knows why this should be. Coital headaches afflict about one percent of the population, although this figure could be much higher due to people being embarrassed to talk about it.

Coital headaches are benign, meaning that they cause no long-term ill effects, as far as doctors know. It seems that people taking sexual stimulants, like Viagara, are about 10% more at risk to a bout of coital headache. In fact, besides the obvious, temporary pain, the worst effects of coital headaches are differing levels of dizziness, confusion and stiffness of neck.

However, it is still worth seeing a doctor though, especially in the early cases, just to rule out the more severe causes of headaches, such as brain tumours and blood clots. However, the doctor can do rather little to help by way of cure. He could suggest a complete abstention from any kind of sexual practice for a period ranging from days to weeks or he may recommend trying taking medication some time before sexual foreplay begins.

Some of the headache medications that may be used are indomethacin, imitrex, zomig and propranolol, although if the headaches persist, your doctor could prescribe daily preventive medication. People suffering from frequent coital headaches may obtain a positive response to migraine preventive medications, such as beta blockers or verapamil. Non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) such as ibuprofen may also be helpful. Coital headaches and migraines are also more likely to occur if the person is in poor physical shape.

However, the cure for coital headaches for many people can be as simple as bringing your weight up or down to the normal weight for your size. Coital headaches can also be cured in some sufferers by an increased level of exercise, although this could bring on exertion headaches in a few cases.

Now the good news is that most headaches related to sexual activities are not at all serious in nature. In fact, research actually suggests that orgasm can stop headaches and even migraine in some cases. This implies that for some adults, refusing sex may actually be the cause of their headache in the first place.

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This post was written by Bob Jones on September 25, 2009

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About Stress Headaches

I think we all have an idea what stress is and how we behave during a stressful time. Some individuals can cope very well with the stresses that obstacles bring with them. Other individuals are overcome by the great pressure that they are experiencing. In many people this pressure manifests itself as stress headaches.

Stress headaches are primarily a result of excessive amounts of stressful situations; ie more than an individual would normally find themselves in. The ability to deal with these obstacles fades gradually, and so stress begins to take its toll on them and a stress headache can develop.

Sometimes, having other kinds of headache can result in stress headaches just because we have to cope with the headache and get on with our daily life. As the pain from the headache seems to take over our life, we start to feel stressed and unable to cope. All of these headaches (including stress headaches) can be controlled safely and, in some cases, prevented from recurring with the right medicine.

There are other methods of treating stress headaches besides using medication. These methods include cognitive therapy, behavioural therapy and physical therapy.

Cognitive therapy seeks to redirect a stress headache. In this method, the patient is taught to understand what triggers the stress symptoms and how they can affect their response to these conditions.

Behavioural therapy is the another way of treating a stress headache. When people feel overwhelmed by a particular situation, they try coping with their headache by consuming drugs, alcoholic drink, prescription tranquilizers, pain medications and some people also take illicit drugs. As taking these substances will only offer temporary relief, it is better to show them the tools to build a healthy lifestyle, which will help that person to deal better with their stress headaches.

Physical therapy attempts to use biofeedback responses. People, who experience stress headaches, learn to be aware of and minimize the amount of physical tension in their bodies. The techniques that are recommended for this method are muscle relaxation, deep breathing, yoga and other self-relaxation methods. It is easy to see what effect these measures have on patients of stress headaches, as these techniques calm the body.

The various techniques of therapy that were just mentioned are all interrelated. Using all three of these therapy techniques, in addition to headache medication, provides the sufferer with a type of relief that will work for them for the rest of their lives and not just the short time when they are suffering from a stress headache.

If you suffer from stress headaches, you really ought to definitely go to our website at http://stopping-headaches.the-real-way.com.

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This post was written by Rose Williams on September 12, 2009

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