Why do you really HAVE A HEADACHE?

First off, check your hydration, sleep and stress management, then read on!

It’s been a busy day, you’re juggling a million things and your head is banging. But the show must go on. You pop a painkiller and carry on regardless. Sound familiar? You’re not alone.

Headaches are one of the most common neurological diseases globally, with an estimated 50 percent of the adult population suffering at least one headache in the past year.

Headaches are categorised as tension, cluster or migraine, and migraines significantly affect more women than men.

Yet headaches remain one of the most underestimated, under-recognised and undertreated disorders throughout the world. But have we contributed to this? Are we so desensitised to pain that we’re dismissive of our suffering?

“When it comes to pain, many women have grown up with the attitude to ‘just deal with it’,” says Associate Professor Lauren Sanders, a neurologist and co-secretary of the Australian and New Zealand Headache Society. “Our experiences of pain have been downplayed and often this has been perpetuated by society. It’s common for women with headaches and migraines to also have menstrual problems, and it’s disheartening how many women haven’t even considered that it could be better.”

Lauren notes it’s common for women to refer to their headaches as “normal”, but this can backfire and exacerbate the underlying condition.

“Headaches may be the result of a night out or a stressful day, but they indicate that your body’s out of balance and needs attention,” she says.

For people with a primary headache disorder such as migraine, physiological, mental or emotional stress will increase the chance of the body responding with a headache.