Could Frequent Headaches be Rebound Headaches?

If a person has frequent headaches, that is more than 3 per week, and repeatedly takes over the counter medication for these headaches, the amount of over-the-counter medication they are taking could actually be causing the headaches. When this happens, the headache is referred to as a rebound headache. Frequent headaches can result from improper dosing of over-the-counter medicines as the overdosing can be the result of the medication interfering with the brains ability to properly sense pain. This worsens the headache pain, which in turn causes a vicious cycle of dependency and withdrawing.

Other Frequent Headaches

Other types of frequent headaches include transformed migraines, chronic tension headache, hemicrania continua, and new daily persistent headaches. As the name suggests new daily persistent headaches are headaches that occur in people who have had no previous history of headaches. These people may unexpectedly experience sudden pain daily or as a result of another illness such as a viral infection.

Hemicrania Continua

Hemicrania continua is a terrible chronic form of headaches that causes severe pain to one side of a persons’ face. These headaches have two separate sets of symptoms depending on the person. Some people have cold or allergy like symptoms accompanying these frequent headaches, while others have more of a migraine type reaction. These headaches often last for a day or more, while some people have symptoms for months at a time with pain free months in between episodes. The difference between these and transformed migraines is thought to be that hemicrania continua sufferers don’t usually have a history of migraines.

Transformed Migraines

Transformed migraines are often a migraine form of rebound headaches where overmedicating has caused a dependency withdrawal cycle which ultimately causes more frequent headaches and severe pain. The most effective solution to this problem is to seek a doctor’s assistance in slowly weaning off the medication and resuming a healthier dosing cycle. If not caused by medication, other physical or mental conditions may contribute to the daily reoccurrence of these frequent headaches.

Chronic Tension Headaches

Chronic tension headaches are often an evolved form of tension headache; the evolution can take place because of both mental and physical changes. An injury could have lasting daily effects on a person who already suffers from tension headaches, as can unusual amounts of stress, depression, or various other ailments could have the same lasting results. The rebound headache problem can also be related back to tension headaches, as over medicating begins to cause more problems. These frequent headaches are best addressed with a doctor to create the best plan for each individual.