Headache, in simple words, can be defined as pain in the head. Headache is not life-threatening condition but it is a clear indication that something is going wrong with you and your body. Headache is not a disease but it is a symptom indicating some underlying cause. Headache is indeed bad because it will interrupt your work and will not allow you to concentrate on any damn work you do. There are innumerable causes of headache and headache is therefore treated as symptom and not the disease. However, if the main disease is treated, the headache disappears gradually.
There are many types of headache and some of the main types of headache are described below…
In general, almost all headaches are tension headache. As the name suggests, they all occur from stress, anxiety and tension. Tension headaches are caused by contracting of the layer of muscle around the skull that in turn can decrease the flow of blood to the brain and can create severe headache. This is very steady type of headache and generally very intense.
This is terrible and gives throbbing type of headache. Amazingly, some people get migraine without any intense pain and therefore, it is still very difficult to understand this type of headache. Cause is however unknown but researches reveal that migraine is a neurological disorder that is based on an inherited genetic abnormality.
Some other theory suggest that if there is a problem in chemicals of the brain then headache occurs. For instance, change in the serotonin level can produce headache as it also changes the blood vessels. In some cases, migraine headache may accompany with nausea and vomiting.
A sinus headache could be raised from sinusitis. The sinuses in the human body get inflamed in various condition and this sinusitis will then turn into headache as a symptom. Sinus headache generally comes with other symptoms such as congestion, fever, fatigue and malaise.
Cluster headaches are another different type of headache, which may not always be a headache. It is rarer as compared to migraine and clusters that are more painful usually attack men. There is no perfect cause found for clusters and therefore the triggers are still a mystery. However, new researches are giving us some idea that may crack the cluster code and provide cure. Cluster headaches can be related to the sinuses or the nervous system. It can also because of altered serotonin levels.
The treatment for any headache will be symptomatically. Generally, painkillers are prescribed. Many doctors prefer non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for better results. Some of the people get headache due to starvation, fasting or acidity and therefore, antacids may work in such cases.
Ayurveda deals headache as ‘shirashool’ where shiras is head and shool is pain or ache. There are many types of headache according to Ayurveda depending upon the bodily humors. The disease is treated according to the Dosha involved in it. Some of the medications such as ‘shirashuladi vajra rasa’,’avipatikar churna’ etc. can be useful.
