Headaches can occur two or more times a week and may even last for several months. And because, it can severely affect work attitude, companies lose millions of dollars from employees who fail to meet their production capabilities.
The most common type of headache, the tension headache, involves mild to moderate pain in the head area. Sometimes, the pain may even reach the scalp, the temples and the neck, often accompanied by tightness in the muscles of these body parts.
Unlike migraine headaches, which may occur in a localized area and in a longer duration, tension headaches are less severe and less long lasting. It however occurs more frequently and with no warning signs. People suffering from tension headaches will often feel tightness in their heads. These headaches are often exacerbated by physical and environmental factors such as noise, heat, light and other sensorial triggers.
Tension headaches can occur to anybody. Whatever your gender is, no matter how old you are, you can have one of those debilitating headaches. Still, these are most common in teens and adults as these are the stages where there is much stress and physical changes in the body.
There is a variety of reason why tension headaches occur. Specialists believe that the headaches happen when the muscles in the neck, head and scalp contract or are constricted. One cause of this is dislocation of the muscle area such as when a person spends hours not moving their heads or putting the head at an awkward angle.
Other possible causes of frequent headaches are stress, anxiety and even depressive conditions. Activities such as the use of the computers or the microscope can also contribute as fatigue in the eyes can also cause pain in the head. Another reason for headaches is coldness or extremely low temperature that the person is not used to. Alcohol abuse, excessive smoking, excessive drinking of caffeine, and overexertion can also cause headaches.
Other possible reasons are medical-related such as nasal congestion, colds, flu, and sinusitis. It is also possible that headaches may be a manifestation of underlying problems in the brain such as lesions and constriction in the veins. It is important that you consult with a doctor in case you feel that your headache is becoming worse.