Coping with Chronic Daily Headaches

Everyone has a headache every now and then. They are common to all of us, but to a small percentage-4 to 5 percent-of us have headaches every day or almost every day and they are called chronic daily headaches. Chronic daily headaches are classified into two groups: primary and secondary. Primary headaches occur in people that have frequent migraines. They manifest so regularly that they never seem to go away. The person has a headache almost every day. Secondary headaches are tension headaches caused by another disease process going on in the body. The frequency and intensity of these headaches makes them very difficult to cope with.

The signs and symptoms of chronic daily headaches vary according to the classification. The symptoms of the primary chronic daily headache include: daily or almost daily headaches, pain in the face, neck and on both sides of the head. There is nausea and sensitivity to sound and light that may fade over time. There also may be occasional migraines that hit and run-these are the ones that come on suddenly, but may not last as long. You can tell the difference between these migraines and the chronic headaches-and with chronic pain there is often problems sleeping, depression, anxiety and panic.

The types of chronic daily headaches include the chronic tension headache, daily persistent, headache, and hemicrania headache-involving one side of the head. The symptoms of the chronic tension headache include: daily or almost daily headaches that started out as only occasional headaches; pain in the back and both sides of the head, and neck; pain may feel like a band of pressure, or be a dull ache that lasts for days. The pain can be so prevalent that it never goes away.

The symptoms of the daily persistent headache include: the pain is described as achy, dull, throbbing, and may manifest in people after an infection. Prior to the infection they had no history of headaches. These headaches may last for several months or years before they go away.