Does anyone else have a semi permanent headache

[Colycola]

I have had blood tests, they are clear. I’ve had urine tests clear.

I just have an almost permanent pain in my head every day. I take pills and it goes. But next day wake up same thing.

The doctor I can’t get hold of, I’ve left messages with the surgery. Not today but in the week. I’m worried I’m taking too many pills and that is giving me a headache but don’t know what else to do.

@Colycola

I have had blood tests, they are clear. I’ve had urine tests clear.

I just have an almost permanent pain in my head every day. I take pills and it goes. But next day wake up same thing.

The doctor I can’t get hold of, I’ve left messages with the surgery. Not today but in the week. I’m worried I’m taking too many pills and that is giving me a headache but don’t know what else to do.

Medication overuse headache?

Blood pressure check.

How much water do you drink?

How much sleep do you get?

How stressed are you?

All those things are the things I would be checking first, OP. Those are the things that cause headaches for me.

Hope you feel better soon. It is awful!

Check you’re not clenching you’re jaw and grinding your teeth in your sleep. The more water thing I really think you have to do consistently to see a difference. Try going for an Indian head massage where they include your neck and shoulder too. See if all of those things make a difference.

Could be that you just hold tension in your jaw / shoulders unconsciously. Also check your posture - how are you sitting etc. That can make a difference as well.

Maybe check to see if it's Occipital Neuralgia ? I have this sometimes, for me it's to do with my posture and how I hold my neck while doing certain activities on my computer. I have a low grade headache with intermittent stabbing pain behind my right ear and jaw area.
I've just had it for the last 3 days but managed to calm it all down, with a head and neck massage and ibuprofen, even managed a run this morning.

Hope you get it sorted..

Yes, teeth grinding. Very common, especially amongst city dwellers (are you one?). Your dentist can check for signs and might prescribe a night guard.

These days many people experience constant low (or high) level stress in addition to their normal ever day stressors. It manifests in our sleep: tense shoulders, neck pain, teeth grinding, headaches first thing in the morning.

Have you had your eyesight tested recently , and a check-up at the dentist? Both worth doing.

Waking up with a headache is also a sign of sleep apnea.

Also look into intercrainal hyper tension. Does the headache get better if you lay down?

Are you clenching your jaw? Where's your tongue atm?

Among the other good advice here, turn off your internet at night and when not using it. It makes a difference to some people.

turn off your internet at night and when not using it

Do you mean the WiFi ?

I used to, but I didn't realise because it was normal to me. I only noticed when I went vegan and it disappeared.

Could be bruxism if you wake up with it. Do you have proper oral posture (i.e. tongue resting on roof of mouth, breathing through nose)?

Lots of good suggestions here you should check, I just wanted to say even if you don't drink much caffeine it is a possible trigger you should test. I've had chronic headaches for years and they've just gone completely after giving up caffeine, I've not had one since about 2 weeks after stopping, now 6 months since. But I was only having a cup of tea every morning then one when I got in from work in the evening, headache every afternoon: turned out to be caffeine withdrawal headaches every single day.

I had this regularly in my late 30's to 40's. I moved to Cornwall from London and commuted to work in a car on country roads. My headaches stopped, I was less stressed, I enjoyed work. I would have sworn I was a Londoner through and through but here I am in a village near the sea, large garden and content.

So I don't know why.

I suffer from teeth grinding & jaw pain.

Your dentist will be able to see the stress fractures and wear patterns.

Traditional mouth guards stop the mechanical wear but don’t stop the jaw pain/headaches from clenching.
Find a dentist that fits an NTI guard. These stop your teeth from meeting, so no physical damage and no clenching/biting down pain.

If the headaches are from this - it won’t just be morning pain/headaches. I find I clench during the day/driving.

Botox can help reduce the size of the masseter muscles. If you’ve been grinding and clenching for a long time, you may have enlarged masseter, which means you bite down even harder.

I also suffer from migraines. I’ve been prescribed beta blockers. I believe these have helped the migraines and also the clenching.

I've had daily headaches for a decade. Eventually realised I grind my teeth in my sleep and that's what causes it - all those muscles working throughout the night constantly. The only treatment that really works is Botox, and I needed so much that it's unaffordable. So I just cope.

Well, last time I suggested another solution for a health problem people called me a lot if dirty words, even though some of them had said their medication hadn't worked. Apparently suggesting it might be another illness equals claiming the other one doesn't exist. So disclaimer: this only works on tension headache! If you have tension headache, it will be a steady pain and not a throbbing pain and you might occasionally wake up with a headache. Stretching helps again tension headache. There are 12 specific exercises. Try googling them. I had to stretch twice a day at first, then once a day and now I only need to do it a couple of times a week. It usually takes 15 minutes.

High blood pressure? Dental problems e.g. jaw clenching/teeth grinding?

Could they be chronic migraines? You don't necessarily have to have visual any disturbance for headaches to be migraines.

Also, if you haven't already, get your eyes tested and see a dentist to rule out any problems there.

I used to have headaches all the time, at different points in my life. I now hardly ever get them...so can pinpoint what makes a difference:

Fresh air
Exercise (but too much gives me a headache!)
Water
Not eating too much crap
Not having my hair in a tight ponytail often, and not having loads of kirbies in my hair

In addition to the above, it can also be a symptom of a food intolerance. Although usually that is accompanied by other symptoms.

My dh had this wfh in lockdown, turns out he needs glasses for screen, near sighted, in addition to his usual glasses for driving, shortsighted, fixed it in days.

@hopeclearwater. Yes I mean turn WiFi off at night.

Have you had your hormone levels checked, OP? I've been on the pill since I was 17 due to low oestrogen levels. If I have a pill free week I notice the drop as the headaches kick in again like clockwork.