Health - Brain Pain

Identifying—and treating— the most common types of headaches.

- Anna Sharratt

IF YOU SUFFER from headaches (and 2.7 million Canadians do) then you’re well acquainted with throbbing or pulsing pain that can leave you reaching for painkillers or looking for an ice pack. Though more than 300 types of headache exist, the most common are tension, migraine and cluster headaches. The good news? You can prevent and minimize headaches—and new, promising treatments are available.

Tension headaches

Chances are you’ve experienced tension headaches, which affect 29 percent of the population. The most common type, they’re characterized by dull pain and pressure around the forehead, as well as throbbing on one or both sides of the skull. Tension headaches are caused by stress, tight neck muscles, sitting in one position for too long or by cold weather, and usually last 30 minutes. Treat these headaches with over-the-counter painkillers. If the discomfort doesn’t dissipate after several hours or grows worse, see a doctor to rule out something more serious, says Dr. William Kingston, a neurologist and headache specialist at Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital.

Migraines