The headache never stops. Prolonged headache - what is behind this ailment Severe headaches do not go away

14.08.2020

Our expert - Phytotherapist Svetlana Olkhovskaya.

Headache is a serious symptom, so it is better not to take this phenomenon lightly and undergo a comprehensive examination by a therapist and a neurologist. You will probably need to check the condition of the cervical spine, and maybe the vessels of the brain. But if specialists do not find any neurological pathologies in you, you can try to cope with the trouble on your own.

Prohibited

But first, about what not to do if you suddenly have a headache:

● Take pills. This is not the best solution, especially if they are abused. The fact is that most analgesics and many vasodilators have an echo effect, that is, over time they themselves begin to provoke an attack of pain.

● Drink alcohol. It dilates the blood vessels and at first, indeed, it becomes easier, but then the condition worsens.

● Drink coffee. If you have high blood pressure or have a tendency to atherosclerosis, even one cup of coffee can hurt. However, for hypotensive patients, on the contrary, a couple of sips of coffee will be a salvation. For those who constantly take horse doses of this drink, an extra dose will not help, but will only make it worse.

● Smoking. Nicotine causes a sharp vasospasm, from this the pain will become even more intense.

● Pamper yourself with delicacies. It is known that the so-called "gourmet migraine" can be provoked by hard cheeses, legumes, chocolate, nuts, cocoa, citrus fruits, spices, red and sparkling wines, crabs, smoked meats.

It's time to take over your head!

And now about what you should do to cope with the attack yourself.

1. The easiest way is to do nothing, but just lie down, close your eyes and relax in complete silence, wait 10-15 minutes until it passes by itself. In most cases, the method works.

2. Make a head massage with light stroking movements from the forehead to the back of the head. Next, walk from the top of the head down to the ears and from the top of the head to the back of the head, smoothly descending to the neck. Don't forget to massage your neck too.

3. Ventilate the room well or, if time and weather permit, go for a walk in the fresh air.

4. Darken the room and humidify the air with the help of appliances or simply by hanging wet rags on the radiator.

5. Take a warm (but not hot) bath by adding a few drops of essential oils to the water: lavender, lemon, peppermint, marjoram. Fragrant foam and sea salt are welcome! Alternatively, standing under a hot shower will help relieve spasmodic headaches caused by muscle spasm at the back of the neck and head. You can do mustard foot baths - they reduce blood pressure in the brain.

6. Make cold compresses - they constrict blood vessels in the painful area and reduce pain pulsation. A bag of ice cubes wrapped in a towel should be applied to the forehead, temples or back of the head for about 10-15 minutes.

7. Spread whiskey or the occipital region with menthol ointment (an ordinary Vietnamese balm will do) or essential oil (citrus or rosemary).

8. Drink a glass of still water. Often cramps arise from dehydration of the body, which can occur not only on a hot day, but also, for example, after a workout in the gym.

9. Eat something warm: soup, porridge. Irregular eating often leads to headaches. This is likely due to fluctuations in blood glucose levels.

10. Listen to calm, pleasant music or watch an interesting humorous program. Laughter not only tones blood vessels, but also contributes to the production of endorphins, pleasure hormones, which have an analgesic effect.

11. If your head hurts quite often, and examinations do not find any neurological disorders in you, try wearing a string of natural yellow amber around your neck all the time. It is believed to ward off migraines.

Medications from the fridge

Traditional medicine knows many ways to help a sick little head. Some recipes contain rather exotic ingredients, such as bear fat. But still, most of the recommendations are quite feasible.

Since ancient times, our savvy ancestors used various natural substances to treat headaches. And most of them were edible: cabbage leaf, apple cider vinegar, honey, potatoes and other products. Well, what are we worse? We open the refrigerator and see what delicious things we have there that can also become healing?

1. Take a cabbage leaf, briefly dip it in boiling water, cool it and apply it to your forehead, temple or nape - where it hurts. You can also boil potatoes in their skins and apply mashed warm potatoes directly in their skins to the forehead and temples. And another excellent remedy is lemon peel, peeled from white pulp.

2. Drink freshly brewed black or green tea with a few mint leaves, generously adding sugar, and honey is even better. Honey contains potassium and magnesium, which relax the arteries, allowing it to improve blood flow to the brain. These same elements are rich in apple cider vinegar. Dilute a teaspoon of vinegar in a glass of boiled water and drink - it should feel better.

3. Look into the kitchen and look for rosemary among the spices. This herb is good not only as an addition to fish or meat, but also as a cure for migraines. It prevents some headaches related to stress. Rosemary helps to resist spasms of blood vessels. The best way to use it is to brew it like a tea. Pour one teaspoon of dried rosemary leaves into a glass of boiling water, cover, let steep for 10 minutes, strain and drink.

4. Many medicinal herbs effectively relieve headaches. For example, tea from lavender leaves and flowers is useful for this scourge. An excellent analgesic property has a common chamomile. You can also make a mixture of equal amounts of peppermint, oregano, and fireweed. For 1 st. a spoonful of the mixture - half a liter of boiling water. Insist, wrapped for 30 minutes, strain. Take 0.5-1 glass. But it is dangerous for pregnant women to take herbs.

5. With frequent migraines, you need to change your diet and lean on foods rich in vitamin B2 (riboflavin).

Most often, brain cells in people who suffer from headaches receive an insufficient amount of the necessary components, and hence energy. Therefore, you need to periodically “feed” your brain cells with vitamin B2. It is found in liver, yeast, rose hips, eggs, milk, pulses, spinach, apricots, dark green leafy vegetables, tomatoes, and cabbage. A good "cure" for migraine is a fresh apple.

Despite the fact that poor diet, stress and fatigue are the main causes of headaches, dental problems can also be the cause of headaches. Headaches are based on malocclusion and an incomplete set of teeth. In the event that the headache is localized in the area of the eyeballs, you notice pain in the masticatory muscles, grind your teeth, feel clicks in the jaw joints, suffer from pain or ringing in the ears, neck or lower back pain, feel dizzy, consult a dentist .

Important

Headache is not a trifle, Dutch doctors warn. They argue that it may be a sign of focal lesions of the brain, which can be detected with careful examination. After checking about 300 people who complained of headaches, as well as 140 people from the comparison group, on magnetic resonance imaging, scientists identified 60 foci of cerebral infarction in 31 participants in the experiment who complained of migraine. At the same time, in patients with headache, heart attacks were detected seven times more often.

There are so-called “habitual symptoms”, that is, unpleasant sensations that absolutely every person encounters during life.

These conditions include headache, dizziness, abdominal pain, nausea, and general malaise.

However, the most common painful phenomenon is a headache. Such manifestations may vary in duration, nature, intensity.

Despite the differences, a headache of any form is undoubtedly far from the most pleasant sensation that reduces the quality of life.

If the head hurts for one day, then dealing with it is quite simple, but there are also attacks that last for a single week.

In this regard, it is important to understand the main reasons why the head hurts for several days. , accompanying symptoms and, of course, what to do if the headache does not go away for several days.

Several days of headaches - the main causes

If for several days the head hurts without ceasing, then this is a serious enough reason to contact a specialist.

The causes of such, prolonged discomfort in the head, as a rule, are clinical signs of the development of diseases.

Among the main pathologies that provoke the fact that the head can hurt for several days in a row include:

Increased intracranial pressure or decrease in performance. This reason is considered one of the most common. At the same time, not only the condition, but also the life of a person can depend on timely treatment. Timely normalized pressure reduces possible complications in the future.
Traumatic brain injury - this condition can be harmful, and it needs timely treatment and diagnosis. Concomitant symptoms are nausea, vomiting, general malaise, dizziness.
Psycho-emotional stress, as a rule, stressful situations, panic attacks, depression, apathy are accompanied by the development of painful sensations. Such symptoms often do not go away on their own and require a complex therapeutic effect.
Intensive inflammatory processes in the brain and body are no less common causes of cephalalgia. In this case, the clinical picture is supplemented by an increase in body temperature, a decrease in appetite, general malaise, and weakness. Pain of this origin can last from 2 to 3 weeks.
anemia. The head hurts, most often, in the morning and is accompanied by vertigo, general weakness, shortness of breath, loss of appetite.
Benign or malignant tumors in the brain as one of the main symptoms have pain in the head. As a rule, such unpleasant sensations are localized in a strictly defined part and do not go away under the influence of weak drugs. Pathologies associated with tumors are considered the most serious.
Pituitary adenoma - similar to the above reason, however, in this case, the clinical picture is supplemented by decreased vision, impaired speech activity, and muscle weakness.
Aneurysm is another dangerous disease that can be fatal. The pain is concentrated in the frontal lobe, when the aneurysm ruptures, the nature of the unpleasant sensations changes, becomes acute, intense. In such a situation, emergency medical attention is needed.

In addition, a headache can be a natural physiological reaction of the body to various kinds of external influences.

The reasons why the head hurts for several days are quite diverse, they differ in treatment.

In this regard, if the pain does not go away for the fourth day or a week, this is a “bell” of the body that requires attention.

Headache for a week, what not to do

A person who experiences pain in the head for a week or a little less must visit the attending physician without fail, if necessary, undergo a comprehensive examination.

It should be noted that before visiting a specialist, a number of factors stand out that in no case should you do it, even if your head hurts very badly.

Otherwise, deterioration may occur. Such recommendations include:

You can not take potent pills, including painkillers, antispasmodics. In addition, you should strictly adhere to the recommended dosages, otherwise you can provoke the development of side effects, negative complications.
It is necessary to completely exclude the use of alcoholic products. In some cases, a headache that has lasted for several days in a row disappears for a while. But do not forget that when the alcohol ceases to act, the pain will return with renewed vigor.
If the third day has a headache, then it is forbidden to use cold compresses and smoke. Such processes do not help in the fight against pain, provoking spasms and affecting the deterioration.
In no case do not self-medicate, do not use alternative methods without consulting a medical specialist. In the opposite situation, the clinical picture may be spoiled, which means that the chance of making a timely correct diagnosis decreases.

The head hurts for two, three days or a week, if so, it is necessary and important to seek medical help as soon as possible.

Since prolonged cephalgia can be a symptom of pathologies, which is dangerous not only for health, but also for human life.

How to give first aid if your head hurts

Many modern experts note that such painful sensations should never be tolerated.

But since it is contraindicated to start treatment on your own, it is contraindicated to take strong drugs, there are several steps that allow you to relieve pain without worsening the general condition and the picture of the disease:

One of the most effective ways is to apply a towel moistened with room temperature water with mint and lavender to the area of the temples, forehead. This method helps to calm nervousness, relieve tension, alleviate the condition.
The second way is to brew a soothing tea based on chamomile, mint. This action also helps relieve pain.
Often the head hurts due to a lack of oxygen, so it is necessary to ensure its circulation: open windows, walk accompanied along the street.
Allowed tablets will help relieve pain: Aspirin, Ibuprofen, Paracetamol. However, such drugs do not always affect the cause, so long-term use may not bring the desired effect.

If the pain is continuously manifested for a week or two, do not delay visiting a specialist.

Diagnostic studies - identifying the cause of headache

The surest and most necessary step in the fight against a headache is a visit to the doctor.

Only a qualified specialist is able to determine the cause of the disease, make a diagnosis and prescribe effective therapy.

However, it is often necessary to undergo diagnostic procedures to accurately identify the pathology:

General and biochemical blood tests allow you to identify possible inflammatory processes, infectious pathologies.
Ultrasound is aimed at determining diseases associated with blood vessels, the presence of atherosclerotic plaques, and circulatory failures.
MRI, that is, magnetic resonance imaging, is mainly used to detect disorders in the blood flow, brain formations.
X-ray examination is used to determine traumatic brain injury.
Electroencephalography is performed to visualize the state of the brain, it is considered one of the most effective studies, showing most of the pathologies.

If the head hurts for the third day or even more, going to the doctor is an opportunity to prevent complications.

Only qualified help helps to really get rid of the pain, and not to stop the manifestations.

Headache is an effective treatment

On his own, a person is able to relieve only the symptoms, it is forbidden to influence the causes of unpleasant sensations without a doctor's prescription.

As a rule, several drugs are collected in a therapeutic complex.

Popular pills that allow you to cope with painful symptoms, even if it manifests itself for the third day or more:

Analgin, Baralgin - this kind of pills are quite popular, they help to cope with unpleasant sensations of a medium and mild nature. Prolonged use has a negative effect on the genitourinary system.
Panadol, Paracetamol are common drugs prescribed for inflammatory processes. For the relief of moderate pain. Overdose or long-term use harms the liver.
Migrenol - a drug used for migraine, allows you to cope with allergic reactions, sleep disorders.

Prevention of headache development

As with any other painful sensation, the most effective treatment is to prevent the occurrence of:

Normalization of the daily routine, the inclusion of physical activity, daily walks.
Compliance with the recommendations of proper nutrition.
Regular preventive examinations.

Pain in the head, which manifests itself regularly every day, is not only a common, but also a dangerous symptom.

A similar clinical sign can indicate a number of different diseases. Effective treatment is possible only after the detection of pathology, the appointment of therapy by a specialist.

Useful video

Persistent headaches are an uncomfortable condition in which a person feels pressure inside the head or a continuous pulsation in it. In addition, the person feels tired and drowsy. If your head hurts all day, this phenomenon may be accompanied by a temperature. Another reason that a head can hurt can be manifestations of infectious, colds and other diseases.

Causes of persistent headaches

A constant headache does not subside even after a person's rash. If such a problem occurs, you should immediately consult a doctor. The causes of persistent headache can be different. To eliminate the problem, it is worth conducting the necessary diagnostics of the body, as a result of which - to undergo a full course of treatment.

A person with such problems wants to sleep all the time. Most often, to calm the nerve cells of the body, it is enough just to take a pill. The headache stops and the person returns to normal. However, a strong medication can cause drowsiness or, conversely, disrupt sleep patterns. Any pharmaceutical drug should be taken as prescribed by a doctor.

How to deal with a chronic problem

If you constantly have a severe headache, you should immediately consult a doctor. Each case must be dealt with individually. Only a doctor can identify the cause of constant pain, based on the results of diagnostic tests. The patient should indicate the approximate time when the first headaches appeared. It is important to understand that chronic pain indicates a serious illness. That is why self-medication should not be carried out.

A person who has a headache and wants to sleep should calm down and lie down on the bed. Thus, nervous excitement subsides, and unpleasant sensations gradually cease. The pain may be pressing, throbbing, or mixed. Often with pain, a person is not able to do anything physically and even think normally. Discomfort may be accompanied by nausea and loss of appetite.

When contacting the clinic, the attending physician diagnoses the problem, after which he identifies the symptom and prescribes the necessary course of treatment. To cure a patient, the doctor must be based on the indicators of diagnostic blood tests, urine tests, measure blood pressure, etc. To identify the problem, special diagnostic equipment (MRI, ultrasound, etc.) can be used. Determine the causes and treatment should be selected exclusively by a qualified specialist.

Headache characteristics and self-diagnosis

If your head hurts constantly, you need to treat its cause. You should always understand why pain occurs. Medications should be taken depending on the location of the headache. Since pain can be in the temples, the back of the head or elsewhere. It is worth paying attention to the following symptoms: vomiting, nausea, disrupted sleep patterns or no sleep at all.

Only based on the above points, it is possible to determine which pharmaceutical drug should be taken to alleviate the condition. Often, when pain occurs, a person's blood pressure rises. Almost all drugs are sold under a prescription issued by the attending physician, since it is the specialist who can identify the true causes of persistent headaches.

Characteristics of headache in brain tumors

Brain diseases are rare. Constant and persistent headaches, the main cause of which is a disease of the central nervous system with localization in the brain, are quite severe. It can be, in particular, neoplasms, in which the whole human brain can be affected. What to do if your head constantly hurts because of such pathologies? Since only a doctor can prescribe the correct course of treatment, you should immediately contact a medical institution, where they will help establish the correct diagnosis and adequate therapeutic measures.

Usually, the pain appears in the temples. But also pain can appear in the back of the head. Pain, by nature, pressing and dull. Falling asleep with these symptoms is almost impossible. Pain, in most cases, is accompanied by nausea and even vomiting. A person may want to sleep, but at the same time he will not be able to fall asleep.

Standard and traditional methods of alleviating the disease are simply powerless. At the first of these symptoms, you should immediately contact a medical specialist, as this can develop into a continuous headache. To fix the problem, the patient may need to undergo a certain surgical operation.

Headaches of a pregnant woman

Pain in the head is a typical problem for many pregnant women, regardless of their age. Because the fetus releases toxins, a pregnant woman may suffer from headaches. Pain is chronic and not relieved by medication. Sometimes, pain in a pregnant woman is accompanied by vomiting and nausea. There is often a loss of appetite and a decrease in the quality of sleep. Also, women complain of chronic pulsation in the temples and neck. Such headaches can appear in 40, 20 and 30 years. In this case, if medications can relieve pain, then this will have a negative effect on the baby.

It is important to understand that this or that pharmaceutical drug can relieve pain only for a short period of time. When a state of discomfort and this type of pain appears, it is better to immediately contact a medical specialist who can examine the patient and prescribe the correct course of treatment. Self-medication can only be done if the pain is not constant, but manifests itself in single cases, and the person is sufficiently confident that such treatment will not bring much harm.

First of all, it should be taken into account that regular headaches appear in a person if he develops a malignant brain tumor.

Specialists distinguish several types of cephalalgia (headache), which manifests itself for a long period of time:

Vascular. With an increase or decrease in blood pressure.
Nervous. Caused by stress, psychological overwork.
Tension pain. Accompanied by pain in the cervical spine.
Toxic. It is provoked by food, drug, alcohol poisoning.
Infectious. Occurs with meningitis, encephalitis, sometimes accompanies colds, flu, tonsillitis.

Provoke prolonged headaches injuries of the head, neck, concussion. Moreover, discomfort can appear not only immediately after the injury, but also after a certain period of time after recovery: in a month, a year.

If the patient has a headache for the third day, one should not forget about such a pathological condition as an increase in intracranial pressure.

Characteristics of the pain syndrome

The nature of the headache manifests itself depending on the cause of the discomfort. It is not enough to tell the doctor that you have a headache for a week, you also need to describe in detail your feelings. For a long time, pain accompanies:

Migraine. There is a throbbing nature of the pain, which can become aching. It hurts not only the head, the backache is given to the ear, eye, jaw. The duration of the attack is up to two days.
Cluster pains are burning, sharp, paroxysmal. Unpleasant sensations cover one part of the head, eyes, cheekbones. The attack lasts minutes and passes. Then it reappears on the same day. Episodes of cluster pain last from two weeks to 4 months.
Meningitis. The peak of pain in meningitis is reached when the temperature rises to 40 degrees. Damage to the meninges causes acute unbearable pain. Painful sensations capture the entire head, a feeling of fullness gradually appears (as if the head is about to explode).
Encephalitis. The disease is accompanied by a prolonged intense headache of a bursting, pressing character. Unpleasant sensations do not go away after sleep, aggravated by movement.
An increase in blood pressure. Of course, you can identify the disease by measuring the pressure with a tonometer. But what if this device is not at hand? It is possible to suspect the development of arterial hypertension if the patient has a headache in the back of the head for the second day. At the same time, unpleasant sensations are similar to those that a person feels with a migraine: pulsation, heat, fullness. There may be a feeling of goosebumps running along the back of the head, neck.
A decrease in blood pressure is accompanied by dull, pressing, aching pain in the frontal, parietal region of the head. Discomfort occurs after daytime sleep, gradually covers the entire head.
Tension pains usually appear on both sides of the head, have a moderate squeezing character. There is no pulsation, with movement the discomfort increases slightly.

Pain from poisoning

Prolonged headaches are noted if a person is subjected to drug poisoning - for a long time takes a certain drug that causes discomfort. The specific nature of the pain depends on the cause of the poisoning:

Lead poisoning provokes periodically exacerbated chronic pain, capturing the entire head.
With regular inhalation of gasoline vapors, aching pain appears in different areas of the head, often changing its localization.
If the discomfort is caused by food poisoning, constipation, the pain is inexpressible, dull in nature, and diffusely spreads throughout the head.

Psychological factors

I've been having a headache for a week now, what could it be? If injuries, infectious diseases are excluded, perhaps the pain is psychological in nature. With this type of discomfort, pulsating, squeezing pains are noted in one or two points of the head, sometimes with a feeling of fullness.

How to eliminate pain?

What to do if the headache does not go away even after the pills? When discomfort is caused by hypertension, the following activities are permissible at home:

Measuring blood pressure with an automatic blood pressure monitor.
A hypertensive patient who has been diagnosed can take the drugs prescribed by his doctor earlier.
If the blood pressure has risen in a person for the first time and pain has been tormenting the patient for several days, you can take an antispasmodic (No-shpu, Drotaverine).

If the cause of pain is poisoning, intoxication of the body should be reduced:

Stop taking the toxic drug.
Drink Activated charcoal - 1 tablet per 10 kg of human weight (no more than 15 tablets per day).
In case of food poisoning - rinse the stomach by drinking plenty of water.
Drink aspirin to thin the blood and relieve pain.

Despite the measures taken and taking medications, the headache still does not go away? It is imperative to eliminate the source of intoxication, for example, constantly ventilate the room or install an air purifier if the windows of the apartment face a busy avenue.

Patients who periodically suffer from migraine, cluster pain, know that taking medication may not bring relief. Reduces discomfort:

Tight head wrap, you can use a scarf, kitchen towel, woolen handkerchief.
Good rest: it is desirable to sleep for at least 10 hours in absolute silence.
Sleep in a room with no lights. With such a rest, the production of sleep hormones is normalized, a person recovers faster.

No way to sleep? Ask your family not to make noise, avoid loud sounds, bright lights. This rule also applies if a person has discomfort due to a cold. In addition, you can relieve pain if:

Drink a lot: fruit drink, chamomile tea, black tea with raspberries, honey.
Take antipyretics: Paracetamol, Ibufen.
Observe bed rest.
Do not watch TV, do not play on the computer.
To sleep a lot.

As soon as the patient begins to recover, the headache will subside.

How to avoid complications after a head injury or the effects of stress?

After a concussion, a headache torments you, flies fly before your eyes for several days, did you feel very tired? It is necessary to extend the rehabilitation period:

Lie in bed, get up only to use the toilet.
Observe the silence mode: do not listen to music with headphones, exclude the appearance of loud sounds.
Do not play computer games, completely abandon the use of gadgets: phone, e-book.
Do not read books, newspapers.
Avoid scandals, showdown, nervous shocks.

If the discomfort in the head is caused by a nervous shock, you should also normalize your psycho-emotional state.

Drink tea with mint, lemon balm.
Take a sedative: Valerian extract, Glycine, Sedavit.
Get a relaxing head massage.
Relax actively: go hiking, visit a museum, ride a bike, swim in the pool or go to a yoga class.
Get away from business problems.
Build family relationships.

You can find something to your liking, a hobby that will greatly captivate and help you forget about problems. Sometimes, to get rid of a nervous headache, you need to contact a psychologist or psychotherapist.

Management of chronic headache

Have you had a headache for 4 days? Does the pain constantly change its character, sometimes it hurts the forehead, sometimes it burns the back of the head? Analgin and Sumamigren do not help, and cold compresses only increase the discomfort?

When at home it is impossible to get rid of discomfort, you should consult a doctor. Additional reasons for urgent medical attention:

Previously, the pain of this nature of the patient was not disturbed.
Not so long ago, a patient was diagnosed with a concussion.
There were moderate daily pain sensations in the morning, passing by the evening.
Discomfort is accompanied by acute pain in the eye, behind the ear, numbness of the limbs, impaired speech, vision.
A migraine attack is suspected, but even after three days it does not go away, the pills do not help to cope with discomfort.
The patient has a high temperature and does not go astray with antipyretic drugs.
The man falls, loses consciousness.
Every day the pain gets worse.

It is worth noting separately what you can not do:

Take painkillers one after the other.
Suppress discomfort with alcohol.
Make a diagnosis on your own and start treatment with potent drugs, tranquilizers.
Trying to get rid of pain in radical ways: going to the bathhouse, diving into an ice hole.

Attention! Diseases such as meningitis, encephalitis are treated only in a hospital setting. A doctor can make an accurate diagnosis. In case of an atypical pain syndrome, be sure to call an ambulance.

Folk methods of treatment

When you have a headache for a week, and there is no way to see a doctor, you can alleviate the condition with the help of simple procedures. Relieves discomfort for a certain time:

Hot foot bath.
Cold and hot shower.
Self-massage of the neck and head.
Acupressure.
Use of cold or warm compresses.
Lotions with natural ingredients: grated potatoes, pumpkin gruel, cabbage leaves, burdock.
Aromatherapy (you can use tea tree, lemon, valerian, laurel, mint, lavender oil for inhalation).
Decoctions with medicinal herbs: oregano, Ivan tea, chamomile, peppermint.

Remember! Home treatment is not a panacea. This is only a temporary solution that can be used when there is no way to get medical help.

Prevention

Watch your diet, prolonged headaches appear in patients who abuse caffeinated drinks, chocolate, eat a lot of synthetic products, spices containing monosodium glutamate.

Dose physical and intellectual loads. Even absolutely healthy people "burn out" at work, refusing to rest, communicate with friends and cultural leisure.

The head hurts for a long time in those patients who cannot organize the daily routine, go to bed late and get up for dinner. Normalize your daily routine, have a good rest, regularly undergo medical examinations, and discomfort will not disturb you.

Video

All information on the site is provided for informational purposes only and cannot replace the advice of your doctor.

Prolonged headache - what is behind this ailment

There are many types of headaches of varying duration. Prolonged headache is characterized by an intense course, occurs more than 15 days a month and may portend a serious illness.

It is difficult to meet a person suffering from only one type of painful syndromes in the head. For some reason, pain may alternate or be mixed. Depending on the mechanism of occurrence and symptoms, prolonged headache is divided into the following categories:

Vascular. Pathology occurs with narrowing or expansion of blood vessels, with hypotension or high blood pressure, as well as with other vascular diseases: atherosclerosis, migraine. In this case, there are pulsating sensations in the temples and dizziness.
The pain of muscle strain is provoked by stress, prolonged uncomfortable body position, diseases of the spine. A person feels squeezing spasms in the back of the head and around the head.
Neuralgia. Neuralgic diseases cause short-term attacks when touching the facial zone and may be the result of inflammation of the trigeminal or occipital nerve.
Liquorodynamic. Intracranial pressure, hydrocephalus, inflammatory diseases of the brain, various cysts of the brain are provoked by a disorder in the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid through the vessels.
Toxic. Manifested when the body is intoxicated with harmful substances, medicines. Poisoning can be the reason why your head hurts for a long time.
Infectious. It is formed under the influence of viral infections, SARS, sinusitis, frontal sinusitis, meningitis and encephalitis.
Sequelae of trauma to the brain or soft tissues. Symptoms may appear much later, so any bruises in the area of \u200b\u200bthe skull should not be left without the attention of a specialist.
Oncological. Prolonged headache is a frequent companion of tumors and neoplasms in the organs of the central nervous system. It is characterized by intensity, lack of relief when taking painkillers, impaired gait and speech of the patient.

The reasons

There can be many reasons why your head hurts every day.

Migraine

An attack can occur suddenly and last from 4 to 72 hours. In this case, photophobia, nausea, tearing, pulsating sensations from one part of the head, most often in the temple, are observed.

fluctuations in blood pressure

Hypertension often causes headaches for several days. Spasms are localized in the temporal and occipital region.

trigeminal neuralgia

Shooting sensations on the face are a symptom of neuralgia. Such soreness can occur frequently, but last no more than 1 minute, give to the ears or lower jaw.

Abscess

Purulent processes in the brain, accompanied by fever, can cause prolonged pain syndromes that occur in the temples and forehead.

Arteritis

Arteritis is an infectious disease complicated by fever, swelling in the eye area, and difficulty moving the head. Treatment of the disease is complex and may take several years.

Iron-deficiency anemia

A constant low content of hemoglobin in the blood can cause prolonged pain syndromes in a person. At the same time, general well-being worsens, squeezing in the head, dizziness, and weakness are felt.

adenovirus infection

Inflammatory diseases of the eyes and respiratory organs can lead to constant aching spasms in the head, high fever, tinnitus, and nausea.

Meningitis, encephalitis

Inflammatory diseases of the meninges are always accompanied by prolonged pain, chills, decreased vision and hearing, fainting and dizziness may occur.

Diseases of the spine, osteochondrosis

When squeezing the vertebral arteries, herniated intervertebral discs often hurts in the area of the temples and in the center of the head. Hypoxia, insufficient blood circulation of the vertebral arteries lead to permanent cephalalgia.

cerebral ischemia

It is a consequence of atherosclerosis or hypertension. Narrowing of small capillaries leads to oxygen starvation of the brain. As a result, prolonged painful symptoms in the head are formed.

Abuse pain

The development of abuse pain syndromes occurs with the abuse of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and analgesics.

Neoplasms of the brain

Tumors, cysts, vascular aneurysms often provoke chronic cephalalgia, which tends to increase. Concomitant manifestations may be an increase in intracranial pressure, vomiting, nausea, impaired speech and coordination.

Liquorodynamic cephalgia

A change in intracranial pressure leads to persistent pain in the head, accompanied by pulsation, nausea, and vomiting.

External factors that provoke the development of prolonged pain symptoms in the head include:

Overwork. With a neglectful attitude to rest, constant fatigue, an overstrain occurs, characterized by a feeling of constriction of the entire surface of the head and a constant flow.
Hormonal restructuring of the body. Prolonged cramps often bother teenagers, pregnant women and women during menopause.
Insomnia, chronic lack of sleep lead to a general decrease in body strength and can be a factor causing prolonged pain syndromes in the head.
Stress, depression, anxiety.
Muscle strain.

First aid

No one can endure a headache for long. When a headache does not go away for several days in a row, a person is forced to consult a doctor.

So, how can we help ourselves with long-term headaches in several ways:

first aid measures for conditions of chronic cephalalgia are painkillers aspirin, paracetamol, ibuprofen. However, they can only have a temporary effect;
if constant soreness in the head worries a pregnant woman or is caused by intoxication, drinking plenty of plain water, juices, herbal decoctions will help reduce symptoms. This method is suitable for moderate severity syndromes;
at the first sign of impending soreness in the head, you should relax and take a break, change the position of the body, drink strong black tea with sugar;
if a stressful situation arises, take a calming herbal remedy, a solution of valerian or motherwort;
make a light massage of the head, neck, temples;
taking a contrast shower or bath with medicinal herbs will help prevent an attack at the very beginning;
if there is a tendency to vascular disorders, a cold compress or hot lotions to the site of localization of spasms will help.

As a rule, with chronic pain, drug treatment is directed to the cause that causes them. Depending on the type of pain and the mechanism of their appearance, they use:

medicines that stabilize blood pressure;
beta-blockers and nootropic drugs for oxygen deficiency;
carry out infusion therapy for poisoning.

Diagnostics

When contacting a specialist, you need to pay attention to the following factors:

When did chronic pain first appear?
duration of seizures;
presumed causes of occurrence;
accompanying symptoms;
in which parts of the head pain appears;
nature of pain.

Based on a patient survey, the doctor draws up a clinical picture of the disease and sends for additional studies:

magnetic resonance imaging;
electroencephalography;
Ultrasound of the vessels of the head and neck;
biochemical and general blood test;
consultations of doctors of other specializations: ophthalmologist, otolaryngologist, neurosurgeon, psychiatrist.

Treatment

If your head hurts for a long time, the most reasonable thing would be to go to the doctor. Further therapy will depend on the diagnosis of a specialist. The patient may be prescribed the following procedures:

physiotherapy;
cranial osteopathy - used in complex treatment with the help of a doctor's hands. Work with the bones of the skull and brain structures stabilizes the movement of cerebrospinal fluid, normalizes blood supply in the vessels;
physiotherapy;
compresses and lotions;
manual therapy of the temples and neck;
reflexology with the help of point effects on the nodules and nerve endings, acupuncture;
fixation of the cervical region in a corset for vertebral pathologies or cervical osteochondrosis.

Medicines used to treat chronic cephalalgia include:

antidepressants: amitriptyline, paroxetine, melipramine;
muscle relaxants: tolperisone, mephedol, tizanidite;
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: ibuprofen, ketoprofen, naproxen.

Prevention

In some people, pain symptoms may recur after therapy. However, doctors do not advise getting involved in taking medications: this can provoke even more intense syndromes. The recommendations of doctors for the prevention of prolonged pain in the head come down to simple tips:

a full night's sleep - at least 8 hours;
avoidance of overwork, rest during the working day, relaxing exercises for the muscles of the skeletal system;
fresh air, regular ventilation of the premises;
a healthy diet that includes vitamins and minerals;
regular courses of soothing herbs: peony, valerian, motherwort;
exclusion of bad habits - smoking and alcoholic beverages.

Conclusion

“Headache does not go away” - very often a doctor hears when taking patients. The success of therapy mainly depends on the person himself. A timely appeal to a specialist will help to avoid the negative consequences and the development of many head diseases.

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The site is consulted by a neurologist Rothermel T.P.

The information is provided for reference purposes only.

Do not self-medicate.

At the first sign of disease, consult a doctor.

Why can a head hurt for a week

Sensation The sensation of a headache is familiar to most people. Due to the peculiarities of modern life, such sensations are manifested more and more often. However, there are people who do not know this feeling. Medical statistics show that only about 15% of the population do not know how a headache manifests itself. But the population of large cities hardly belongs to this category. It is precisely from this category that you can increasingly hear that your head hurts for a week, almost without ceasing.

Causes of headaches

Headache is the body's signals about any damage or unfavorable course of internal processes. This manifestation often accompanies various diseases, being one of their symptoms. The possible duration of such an unpleasant sensation is from a couple of seconds to several weeks. This manifestation has a special medical name - cephalgia.

Headaches can also occur in children. About 15% of people who have experienced a headache learned what it is in childhood. And only one-twentieth of this contingent, who know firsthand about cephalalgia, has a serious illness accompanied by such a symptom. In this case, without curing the underlying disease, it may not be realistic or very difficult to get rid of headaches.

Currently, there are about two hundred varieties of headaches, which can be conditionally divided into two main groups:

Headaches with no detectable cause. During the examination, the patient does not find clearly expressed pathologies, but the pain does not go away. Here, there is a direct correlation with dysfunctions of the analgesic systems that begin 2. Headaches manifest themselves directly with a specific disease, for example, with the presence of a neoplasm in the brain or other pathologies.

The most common today are two causes of cephalalgia:

Manifestation Mechanism

The walls of blood vessels in the human brain are quite elastic. However, if they are overstretched, headaches can occur, accompanied by rhythmic dull and constantly pulsating beats in the head, which can appear on any side of it. This type of pain is inherent in the following diseases:

arterial hypertension, as well as its antipode - hypotension;
migraine;
vegetovascular dystonia (with emerging crises).

Severe manifestations of arterial hypotension and migraine are accompanied not by pulsating, but by bursting and pressing, and sometimes bursting pain. Spasm of the vessels of the head is accompanied by a local decrease in blood supply (ischemia) and hypoxia (decrease in oxygen content). In this case, the pain takes on a dull, squeezing form and is accompanied by nausea, dizziness, the appearance of "flies" before the eyes and moments of "faded" light. It is possible to change the color of the skin, in particular, its pallor.

With any other pathological changes in the body, a specific manifestation of headaches, inherent only to this disease, is possible.

Headaches due to overexertion

This type of headache is very common. Due to certain factors, tension cephalalgia is experienced by up to half of the entire population. Its initial manifestation is aching pain, then it compresses and squeezes the head with something like a hoop. Pain becomes exhausting and dull.

A person is forced to continue to perform his professional functions or daily duties, but at the same time he feels tired and overwhelmed. Most often, stress cephalgia haunts office workers who are in a stuffy room and perform the same operations in a monotonous rhythm. And the brain is subject to constant stress. Such people get fresh air only on the way home or to work, and then for a short time, since there is also little of it in transport.

This type of pain occurs due to the constant tension of the muscles of the neck, forehead, back of the head, as well as the shoulder girdle, in conjunction with intense brain activity. The stressed state of both tendons and ligaments also plays an important role.

Why can a headache appear in our dynamically changing time? The reasons are the presence of frequent stresses and work conflicts, the constant “sitting” position, the systematic driving of a car with a forced concentration of attention, changing weather conditions, excessive physical exertion, especially against the background of malnutrition. This is not a complete list, because the lack of fresh air, the inability to fully relax, alternating stress and relaxation of the body in a modern dynamically changing life, are also factors that affect a person’s well-being.

Migraine is one of the most common causes

Migraine is another common cause of cephalalgia. The manifestation of this disease is one-sided or alternating sides in turn. Migraine is another common cause of cephalalgia. The manifestation of this disease is unilateral or alternating headaches in turn, which can be quite pronounced. Their manifestation is possible with an increase or be pulsating. Pain is so pronounced that it leads to nausea and a painful reaction when looking at a bright light. This condition sometimes lasts for several days.

Migraine is a hereditary disease and affects mainly women. However, men, although in smaller numbers, but this disease has not passed. It can occur in teenagers and even young children. It is believed that complete relief from migraine cannot be achieved. But the course of the disease can be alleviated, and the attacks of the disease can be reduced to a certain minimum.

The main cause of cephalalgia in migraine is expanding brain vessels that provoke pain receptors. The possibility of manifestation of such a condition arises due to hormonal disorders, the short time allocated for sleep, heavy physical exertion on the body, and even because of some foods eaten.

Often, with this ailment, pains appear, called cluster pains - accompanied by short bouts of rather pronounced pain on one side and concentrated in the eye area. Its possible development is at night, a few hours after falling asleep. In this case, it may be accompanied by tearing and swelling of the mucous membranes of the nose. After an hour, the pain disappears, but its occurrence is possible several times during the day. Such repetitions can last a week or two.

red wine and preferably alcoholic beverages in general;
chocolate;
citrus fruits and nuts;
eggs, as well as aged cheeses;
coffee (if it is impossible to refuse, drink no more than a cup a day);
smoked products and meat products with the popular additive E621 - monosodium glutamate, as well as preservatives.

Modern medicine has developed drugs that are produced specifically for the relief of migraine.

Some diseases accompanied by cephalalgia

Arteritis

Arteritis is an inflammation of the walls of the arteries caused by an infection. With the development of a brain infection, the pain syndrome is pronounced. There is a feverish state, movements in the cervical region are limited. Pain is possible both on one side and on both sides of the head. The temporal arteries swell. Blood tests indicate an inflammatory process.

When temporal arteritis occurs, it is important to quickly diagnose the disease in order to preserve vision. The actual treatment can take years.

anemia

This disease occurs when the concentration of hemoglobin in the blood decreases, usually accompanied by a decrease in the number of erythrocytes (red blood cells). Anemia, which is the most common, is due to a lack of iron in the body.

Symptoms that are common to any type of anemia are as follows:

fatigue, decreased performance;
headaches, accompanied by tinnitus and flashing "flies";
increased heart rate during any physical exertion;
shortness of breath even at rest.

Iron deficiency anemia is accompanied by cephalalgia, which lasts perhaps even for a week. Appetite is reduced, the skin becomes pale, and sometimes acquire a greenish tint. Hair falls out, and angular stomatitis appears (cracks in the corners of the mouth that do not heal). Swallowing food is difficult, the stool becomes irregular, constipation is disturbing. The patient's taste sensations change greatly.

brain tumors

Cephalgia is manifested by dull pain that does not go away for a week. Such manifestations can occur due to a head injury, from exposure to contraceptives, or due to an infection that has entered the pituitary gland. Constant, dull pain, accompanied by a significant increase in body weight, hair growth throughout the body, sexual dysfunction, and double vision.

intracranial hypertension

Intracranial pressure can manifest itself for many reasons. The characteristic symptoms are varied. Clinical manifestations in adults are different from those in children. One of the leading signs of the disease is headache, which occurs mainly in the morning after sleep. Its localization is possible in any part of the head - temples, forehead, nape. It has a pronounced bursting or pressing character. Accompanied by a rare pulse, vomiting, drowsiness. Blood pressure may rise or fall. Throws in sweat and dizziness appears. Memory is impaired, it is impossible to concentrate. In connection with problems of the optic nerve, visual disturbances can occur up to the onset of blindness.

Headache Prevention

How to protect yourself from the occurrence of frequent headaches? The main task is to remember that cephalalgia does not occur from scratch, external causes are always present. It remains only to track them in time so as not to repeat such actions or circumstances in the future. For example, with weather dependence, you don’t need to set yourself up in advance for weather changes so that your head doesn’t hurt. It is better not to listen to any forecasts at all, but to constantly set yourself up for an optimistic wave.

Of course, one should not forget to cover one's head in cold weather, observe a daily routine that is comfortable for oneself, alternate working days with good rest, and be sure to find time every day for walks in the fresh air. With sedentary work, it is necessary to take breaks - five minutes not for a smoke break, but for performing several exercises.

There are many types of headaches of varying duration. characterized by an intense course, occurs more than 15 days a month and may portend a serious illness.

It is difficult to meet a person suffering from only one type of painful syndromes in the head. For some reason, pain may alternate or be mixed. Depending on the mechanism of occurrence and symptoms prolonged headache subdivided into the following categories:

Vascular. Pathology occurs with narrowing or expansion of blood vessels, with hypotension or high blood pressure, as well as with other vascular diseases: atherosclerosis, migraine. In this case, there are pulsating sensations in the temples and dizziness.
Muscle tension pain provoke stress, prolonged uncomfortable body position, diseases of the spine. A person feels squeezing spasms in the back of the head and around the head.
Neuralgia. Neuralgic diseases cause short-term attacks when touching the facial zone and may be the result of inflammation of the trigeminal or occipital nerve.
Liquorodynamic. Intracranial pressure, hydrocephalus, inflammatory diseases of the brain, various cysts of the brain are provoked by a disorder in the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid through the vessels.
Toxic. It manifests itself when the body is intoxicated with harmful substances, medicines. Poisoning can be the reason why headache for a long time.
Infectious. It is formed under the influence of viral infections, SARS, sinusitis, frontal sinusitis, meningitis and encephalitis.
Consequences of injuries brain or soft tissues. Symptoms may appear much later, so any bruises in the area of \u200b\u200bthe skull should not be left without the attention of a specialist.
Oncological. Prolonged headache is a frequent companion of tumors and neoplasms in the organs of the central nervous system. It is characterized by intensity, lack of relief when taking painkillers, impaired gait and speech of the patient.

The reasons

Reasons why my head hurts every day , there may be many.

Migraine

An attack can occur suddenly and last from 4 to 72 hours. In this case, photophobia, nausea, tearing, pulsating sensations from one part of the head, most often in the temple, are observed.

fluctuations in blood pressure

Hypertension often causes headaches for several days. Spasms are localized in the temporal and occipital region.

trigeminal neuralgia

Shooting sensations on the face are a symptom of neuralgia. Such soreness can occur frequently, but last no more than 1 minute, give to the ears or lower jaw.

Abscess

Purulent processes in the brain, accompanied by fever, can cause prolonged pain syndromes that occur in the temples and forehead.

Arteritis

Arteritis is an infectious disease complicated by fever, swelling in the eye area, and difficulty moving the head. Treatment of the disease is complex and may take several years.

Iron-deficiency anemia

adenovirus infection

Inflammatory diseases of the eyes and respiratory organs can lead to constant aching spasms in the head, high fever, tinnitus, and nausea.

Meningitis, encephalitis

Inflammatory diseases of the meninges are always accompanied by prolonged pain, chills, decreased vision and hearing, fainting and dizziness may occur.

Diseases of the spine, osteochondrosis

cerebral ischemia

It is a consequence of atherosclerosis or hypertension. Narrowing of small capillaries leads to oxygen starvation of the brain. As a result, prolonged painful symptoms in the head are formed.

Abuse pain

The development of abuse pain syndromes occurs with the abuse of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and analgesics.

Neoplasms of the brain

Liquorodynamic cephalgia

A change in intracranial pressure leads to persistent pain in the head, accompanied by pulsation, nausea, and vomiting.

External factors that provoke the development of prolonged pain symptoms in the head include:

First aid

No one can endure a headache for long. When a headache does not go away for several days in a row, a person is forced to consult a doctor.

Some diseases that provoke a long course of cephalalgia are amenable to therapy only at an early stage.

So, how can we help ourselves with long-term headaches in several ways:

As a rule, with chronic pain, drug treatment is directed to the cause that causes them. Depending on the type of pain and the mechanism of their appearance, they use:

medicines that stabilize blood pressure;
beta-blockers and nootropic drugs for oxygen deficiency;
carry out infusion therapy for poisoning.

Diagnostics

When contacting a specialist, you need to pay attention to the following factors:

When did chronic pain first appear?
duration of seizures;
presumed causes of occurrence;
accompanying symptoms;
in which parts of the head pain appears;
nature of pain.

Based on the patient's questioning, the doctor draws up a clinical picture of the disease and directs to
additional research:

magnetic resonance imaging;
electroencephalography;
Ultrasound of the vessels of the head and neck;
biochemical and general blood test;
consultations of doctors of other specializations: ophthalmologist, otolaryngologist, neurosurgeon, psychiatrist.

Treatment

If your head hurts for a long time, the most reasonable thing would be to go to the doctor. Further therapy will depend on the diagnosis of a specialist. The patient may be prescribed the following procedures:

Medicines used to treat chronic cephalalgia include:

antidepressants: amitriptyline, paroxetine, melipramine;
muscle relaxers: tolperisone, mephedol , tizanidite;
non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: ibuprofen, ketoprofen, naproxen.

Prevention

In some people, pain symptoms may recur after therapy. However, doctors do not advise getting involved in taking medications: this can provoke even more intense syndromes. Doctors' recommendations to prevent long-term pain in the head come down to simple tips:

Conclusion

"Headache won't go away" very often hears the doctor, taking patients. The success of therapy mainly depends on the person himself. A timely appeal to a specialist will help to avoid the negative consequences and the development of many head diseases.