Are Your Headache Drugs Causing Your Migraine?
When you feel the first niggling signs of a headache coming on, what is the first thing you do? Probably rush to your medicine cabinet and take a pill automatically. If you are like the majority of headache sufferers, you may even pop a pain med occasionally or even regularly, in anticipation of a stressful day or as a preemptive strike against a recurring headache.
Whatever the case, pause for a moment and analyze the pattern of your headaches. Do they seem to have become more frequent and more intense over time, requiring medication more often than before? If yes, then most likely you are suffering from what are called rebound headaches, which are simply medication overuse headaches.
The cycle goes like this. Your headaches prompt you to take pain relief products, more often or in greater doses than recommended or prescribed. The result is that each successive time you need a higher dose to combat headaches. And as you up the dose, the frequency and intensity of your headaches increases, so much so that headaches become a daily phenomenon. Some headache sufferers even find they wake up with a dull headache that never really goes away.
The effect is similar to what happens when at the slightest hint of a headache, you reach for your cup of coffee because coffee seems to cure your headache. You then become a more frequent coffee drinker, till one day, the situation reaches a point where, if you do not get your coffee in time, you start getting a headache. Over time, your coffee requirement increases and so does the resulting viciousness of the headache, when deprived of caffeine. So you drink more coffee. And the whole vicious cycle continues. It is the caffeine in your coffee cup that is the culprit here.
In addition to the usually headache symptoms, rebound headache symptoms also include irritability and restlessness. Although any pain pill can trigger rebound headaches, some are more likely to fuel them than others. Common over-the-counter medications that contribute to rebound headaches are aspirin, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, more so if they come in combination with caffeine. Rx drug culprits include most migraine medicines, opium-based medications, and those containing butalbital (Esgic, Fioricet, & Fiorinal). Get the details on your pain pill here.
Most people do not realize that over-the-counter pain relief products are meant to give quick relief from occasional headaches. They must not to be taken indiscriminately on a regular basis for recurrent headaches because medication overdosing can set off a vicious cycle of rebound headaches. And the only way to break this cycle is to withdraw the medication that is fuelling it. Period. It sounds simple enough, but is not always easy. Especially in the case of opium drugs, withdrawal must be closely medically supervised, because it is potentially dangerous.
For further rebound headache information, see Total Headache Relief or consult your doctor. Seek medical help if you:
- have a headache more than 3 times a week
- are regularly on pain meds
- your headaches seem to be getting worse despite medication and rest
Most natural headache remedies focus on prevention and ultimately, headache prevention is worth a pound of any headache cure. With a bit of attention, you can identify and avoid your headache triggers. Yoga, meditation, and other alternative therapies can improve your mental state and help control your stress. Even small lifestyle changes, can make big differences in stopping headaches before they start. So do little things like eat meals on time, exercise, get enough sleep and even stop smoking to prevent headaches.