Are you experiencing headaches caused by stress?

Stress used to affect me in many ways. One was my neck would get tight. This would often lead to the second way stress often affected me which was having a headache. These two responses to stress would then lead to other maladies like severe grumpiness and insomnia. So let me ask you, do you seem to get headaches frequently?  Not migraine headaches that incapacitate you, but common headaches that pound in your head and ruin your day. Companies that make pain relievers would tell us that all we need is another pill and our troubles will be all gone but all they do is mask the symptoms and your problem remains. So stop looking for another pill to pop and try to identify the source of these headaches, which, like mine, may be brought on by stress. The following are three sources of stress that can lead to chronic headaches 1. Stress and Tension – Like I told you, this was the one that got me. Stress has a way of building up. After a while, just like a sink that has a clog, eventually, it overflows and you begin to feel tension in your muscles. This tension spreads until your neck aches, your shoulders are tired and your head begins to throb. The physical explanation for this pain is actually decreased blood flow to you head, but that’s not the real cause. The real root cause is stress.  Any doctor will tell you that if you want to stop the tension headaches, you have to take time to relax. Every day schedule some time for a break or two from work. They are just as important to getting your work done as the time you spend doing the work. Studies show that they will help you focus and give you the energy you need to complete your work. So take a walk or get up and stretch. Just do something different for 10 or 15 minutes. It’ll do you a world of good.Try to leave work at work and don’t bring it home with you. Give yourself twenty minutes to unwind when you get home. If possible, lie down or recline in a comfortable chair. Put a cool gel pack over your eyes and think about anything except your to-do list and your problems of the day. You may prefer to use that time to meditate or pray. If you can’t take the time to relax when you get home, stop by a park or somewhere peaceful on the way home and take 10 to 20 minutes to decompress before arriving at home. Just give yourself time to transition so that you can enjoy your dinner and prepare for a good nights sleep. All of these things will help reduce your stress levels and tension headaches.2. Insomnia – When I was hyper-stressed a few years ago I hardly slept at all. At first I thought it was a good thing because I was getting so much done but after a while it just wore me out. What I found was you simply have to have a good night's sleep. That means at least 8 hours, not 5 and a half hours and a 10 minute cat nap. You need enough restful sleep to allow your brain to refresh and your body to repair itself from what you put them through during the day. If you aren't getting enough sleep or good quality sleep, then you are a prime candidate for headaches. And please, don't try to self-medicate with over-the-counter sleep aids. See your doctor or a mental health professional to find out the reasons for your sleep problem and do something about it.3. Undiagnosed Medical Condition – Sometimes a headache may be a warning sign that something is going on in your body that needs to be addressed. This is particularly true if you have not had headaches often in the past and suddenly you have them daily. If this happens then you need to get a medical checkup and find out why. Don't panic and think that a headache must mean a brain tumor, it’s probably not, but it could be. More likely it's a symptom of something less severe like a viral infection. Either way, you need to pay attention to the headaches and understand that your body is desperately trying to get your attention.Some other contributors to headaches are smoking, consuming too much alcohol and regularly partaking in illegal drugs. Your body doesn’t like all those chemicals and being treated with such disregard. Fad diets and highly restrictive diets can also throw your body out of balance so much that you start to get headaches.The long and short of this is listen to the message that your headache is trying to tell you and then do something to gain long term relief. You’ll live better and longer, and headache free. If you are experiencing stress and anxiety in your life I have a FREE stress reduction e-course.