Tension Headache

Feeling a throbbing pain across your head, as if a tight band is around it, generally means you are experiencing a tension headache, also known as a tension-type headache. However, this type of pain can also be felt as an annoying dull ache with pain centered around the eyes, the base of the neck, the jaw area or the entire face. Whatever the degree of pain or the area affected, a tension headache is the most common type of headache pain or discomfort.

Woman with a tension headache

The chance of you developing a tension-type headache sometime during your life is very high. Approximately 88 percent of woman and 69 percent of men experience this type of headache at least once and their headaches may recur often. Although these headaches happen to people of all ages, they are most frequent in those between the ages of 20 to 50. A headache can last from a half-hour to several days.

Classified by the International Headache Society, tension-type headaches are considered primary headaches along with migraines and cluster headaches. Primary headaches are generally harmless and account for more than 90 percent of the headaches seen by medical professionals. Headaches considered secondary are usually symptoms of illness or disease.

Although the name leads you to believe that tension causes a tension-type headache, many medical professionals do not believe this to be true in all cases. For many years, they thought that the cause of this type of headache was due to the muscles of the scalp, neck and face contracting in response to elevated levels of stress, tension or emotion. Many researchers now believe that tension-type headaches may be caused by a change in the chemicals of the brain including:

• Endorphins
• Dopamine
• Serotonin
• Enkephalins
• Norepinephrine

Because of the uncertainty of the exact cause of the tension-type headache and the ongoing debate and theories throughout the years, this type of headache also has many other names, such as:

• Stress
• Muscle contraction
• Depressive
• Psychogenic
• Essential
• Ordinary

Depending upon the person, various situations trigger tension type headaches.

• Environmental stress
• Internal stress
• Anxiety
• Prolonged muscle contraction of the neck, head and face
• Sitting or working in an awkward position for a long period
• Sleeping with the neck bent in an awkward position
• Holding the head in one position for a long period
• Using the computer
• Using a microscope
• Typing
• Intricate or fine hand work
• Sleeping in a room that is cold
• Eye strain
• Exhaustion, fatigue or overexertion
• Drinking too much alcohol
• Drinking an excessive amount of coffee
• Smoking excessively
• Illnesses such as the cold, the flu, sinus infection or nasal congestion

Many sufferers of tension type headaches describe the feeling of having a band of pressure going around their head. Others describe the pressure as the feeling of tightness, like a vice squeezing their head. Often the headache begins in the upper neck and back of the head and with the most pain being felt surrounding the eyes or above the eye brows. The pain can vary from a dull, mild feeling to a throbbing ache. It can be isolated to one area, such as around the eyes or the base of the skull, a band like feeling encompassing a portion of the head or a feeling of the entire face or head hurting.

Unlike a migraine, a tension type headache is not accompanied by sensitivity to light or sound. It also does not cause visual disturbances, aura, nausea or vomiting.

Tension-type headaches usually respond to over the counter medications. However, it is always best to check with your medical professional if you experience 15 or more headaches during a one month period for several consecutive months.

Seek immediate help for any of the following reasons.

• You experience an extremely severe and sudden onset headache that is not like any you have ever experienced.
• You have any stroke symptoms which include:
  • Paralysis, numbness or weakness of one side of your body affecting your face, leg or arm **Stroke can also affect both sides of the body
  • Trouble standing up or walking
  • A feeling of being clumsy or dizzy
  • Vision changes that are sudden
  • Sudden difficulty speaking
  • Sudden problems understanding statements that are simple
• The headache is accompanied by nausea, vomiting, a stiff neck or fever.

The most common type of headache, a tension headache is usually not a sign of an underlying problem. It is usually relieved with nonprescription medication or a massage of the affected area.

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