Everyone gets a headache every now and then, and while they are unpleasant, they mostly go away and you can get on with life. But some headaches happen on a regular basis, and people who suffer these chronic attacks of headache pain should visit an experienced healthcare provider for treatment. At NY Family Docs, our healthcare providers can help address your headaches and offer effective treatment. When you get a headache, you can get a same-day or next day appointments at any one of our ten neighborhood offices throughout Brooklyn and Queens by calling the office nearest you or schedule an appointment online.
Headaches Q & A
What types of headaches are treated?
Headaches are usually classified as either primary or secondary. Primary headaches are the usual kind and aren’t caused by another health issue. Secondary headaches happen because of existing health issues like swelling in the sinuses, tension, or even a head injury.
Types of Headaches
Tension
Cluster Headache
Migraine
Sinuses
Head injury
How are headaches diagnosed?
During your visit, a NY Family Docs provider completes a physical exam and reviews your medical history. By talking to you about your symptoms and identifying the areas where your head hurts, they can pinpoint the type of headache you have. Here are some headache examples:
Migraines:
Often cause throbbing, intense pain on one side of the head and can affect your speech, vision, and hearing. You can also experience nausea and increased sensitivity to light, sounds, and smells that makes you want to hide yourself in a dark, quiet room all by yourself.
Tension and stress headaches:
Can cause pain on both sides of your head. It ranges from a dull ache to intense, chronic pain. These common headaches usually happen because the muscles in your neck and back tighten up as you worry about something. Poor sleep, eye strain, bad posture, lack of exercise, not drinking enough water or missing meals can all make these headaches worse and prevent them from going away.
What treatments are available for headaches?
As a start, you can eat better, exercise a little more, and try to get more sleep. At NY Family Docs, we will offer information and coaching to help you improve your nutrition, get high-quality sleep each night, and add regular exercise into your life.
Over-the-counter medications can be useful to address headache pain and you could benefit from massage therapy to relax tense muscles and improve blood circulation.
If you suffer from chronic migraines, you’ll need to think about the same lifestyle changes mentioned above and take prescription medications to ease chronic pain. Medicine is also available to reduce your risk of repeated migraine headaches.
Based on your specific needs, your NY Family Docs healthcare provider can customize a treatment plan and work with you to manage your migraines and other frequent headaches.