What should you know about extreme stress headache?

Stress may tighten muscles around the scalp, jaw, neck, and shoulders. It can also disturb sleep, reduce regular meals, and make dehydration more likely. Generalised Anxiety Disorder may include recurrent worry with physical tension. Allergic Rhinitis, Chronic Sinusitis, a Common Cold, or COVID-19 can produce head or facial discomfort. Dengue Fever and Heat Exhaustion are also relevant possibilities when headache occurs with fever, body aches, heat exposure, or marked weakness.

Move to a quiet place, relax your jaw and shoulders, drink fluids, and eat if you have missed a meal. Gentle neck movement and a cool cloth may help. Use pain medicine only as directed and avoid taking it repeatedly without advice, as frequent use can perpetuate headaches. Note triggers, timing, sleep, fluids, and accompanying symptoms.

Seek emergency help for a sudden explosive headache, new weakness or numbness, trouble speaking, confusion, fainting, seizure, vision loss, severe fever with a stiff neck, or repeated vomiting. Obtain prompt medical advice for a new pattern, headache after an injury, worsening pain, or pain with fever after travel or significant heat exposure.

Ask how the headache pattern fits tension, migraine, sinus, infection, or heat-related causes, and whether an examination is needed. Tell the clinician about medicines, caffeine, sleep, stressors, recent illness, travel, and neurological symptoms.