Tensional headaches can be a real day spoiler when they hit and those of you who have been through this, know what we are talking about. It is mostly during the afternoon that you might get struck by one of these annoying headaches that cause mild to moderate pain. You can feel a sense of tightness and pressure around the head making its way to your neck.
The root cause of a tension headache is when the muscles in your neck, scalp, or shoulder become tense. While for some people, it occurs from time to time, for others it’s more chronic.
Some reasons why your muscles get tense
- Wearing a new pair of glasses can cause a tensional headache as your eyes are still not used to them
- Eye strain can cause it, too, especially when you have power but do not wear glasses
- Poor posture is another reason
- Grinding teeth
- Traumatic experiences like an accident
Those who have experienced this pain will know how it feels like a band wrapping around your head tight. It is an uncomfortable sensation. The muscle tension often causes nerve compression that further leads to pain in the head and the eyes.
How to tame a tensional headache?
If you suffer from chronic tensional headaches, that is, if they happen more than twice a week, you can try a few strategies that might help get rid of them.
- Check the basics- The basics include a regular sleeping pattern with adequate hours of sleep, a healthy diet, daily exercise, and engaging in stress-relieving activities like yoga, painting, cooking, etc.
- Try a few relaxation techniques- Regular practice of relaxation techniques can help ward off tensional headaches. These activities are both physiological and psychological. Apply a heating pad now and then on your head and shoulders. These will help your muscles to relax. You should also stretch and strengthen your muscles to avoid headaches.
- Biofeedback- This is an up and booming form of relaxation technique that is used to control your body’s functions using electrical sensors. These sensors are useful as they help you receive information about your body. They can be a great way to avoid chronic tensional headaches.
A biofeedback therapist will attach electrodes to your skin which will detect electrical signals flowing from your neck to shoulder muscles and vice versa. You directly get access to these sensations and learn to recognize when you tend to get tense. This information can help you find and practice ways to relax your muscles, and thus before they lead to a tension headache. This method is preventative.
- Medical methods- In the case of some people, these tensional headaches tend to be more serious as they have trigger points at the back of your neck or in the shoulders. Medical methods like local anesthesia can help get rid of the pain and headache. If non-drug therapies like the ones mentioned earlier are not helping, you can try prescribed medications as well after consulting a doctor.
To sum up
We understand that tensional headaches can get worse and on those days, you are barely able to work or be yourself. Hope this article helps you understand the primary causes of this problem and some ways to get rid of them.
