Headaches

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marijuana for headaches
Most of us suffer from headaches now and then. But some headaches can be so chronic and debilitating they affect your ability to perform daily tasks or go to work. When living with these aches, you may be desperate to find an effective treatment when over-the-counter medications aren’t working for you. Studies are now showing medical marijuana for headaches may just be one of those treatments.

What Are Headaches?

Many individuals are familiar with the uncomfortable, distracting and throbbing pain of headaches. Nearly everyone gets a headache now and then. By the age of 15, almost two out of three children will get a headache. More than nine in 10 adults will get a headache at some point in their lives. It’s the most common type of pain, and one of the leading causes of missing school or work. When you leave chronic headaches untreated, they can get so severe they interfere with your day-to-day activities.

headache stats

Some headache types run in families. You may have vanishing headache episodes, only to experience a recurrence later in life. You can even have more than one headache type simultaneously.

Common triggers of certain headaches include:

  • Skipping meals
  • Alcohol use
  • Tension
  • Emotional stress related to work, school or loved ones
  • Changes in sleeping patterns
  • Depression
  • Excessive medication use
  • Back, neck or eye strain from poor posture
  • Sinus pressure

Types of Headaches

There are more than 150 types of headaches, including the following:

types of headaches

Caffeine Headaches

Caffeine affects your brain’s blood flow. Too much caffeine can cause a headache. At the same time, abruptly stopping caffeine use can also cause headaches.

Cluster Headaches

Cluster headaches cause chronic misery where you experience a piercing, burning or throbbing pain around or behind one eye.

Exertion Headaches

This type of headache occurs rapidly after you’ve engaged in intense physical activity. Running, weightlifting and even sexual intercourse can trigger an exertion headache.

Hormone Headaches

Women may get these headaches due to hormone level changes during their pregnancy, period or menopause. Birth control pills may also trigger hormone headaches.

Hypertension Headaches

You can get a headache from high blood pressure, signaling an emergency. Hypertension headaches come on when your blood pressure rises to dangerously high levels. Your headache may pulsate and is generally on both sides of your head. Activity of any kind can make these headaches worse.

Migraine Headaches

Migraines are intense headaches generating throbbing, pounding pain. A migraine can last anywhere from a few hours to a few days, and may come on several times a month. In addition to the pain, you may experience other symptoms with migraines, like sensitivity to noise, light or smells, loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting, belly pain and upset stomach.

migranes

Post-Traumatic Headaches

These headaches may develop after you’ve had a head injury. They feel like tension or migraine headaches, may become chronic and last anywhere from six months to a year after your injury.

Rebound Headaches

Rebound headaches come on from overusing medication. They may feel like a dull tension headache or a painful migraine. Overusing OTC pain relievers can make you more susceptible to rebound headaches.

Sinus Headaches

Inflamed sinuses lead to a constant and deep pain in your forehead, cheekbones and bridge of your nose.

Tension Headaches

Tension headaches are most common in teens and adults. They can come and go, cause mild to moderate pain and produce no other symptoms.

History of Headaches

Headaches have been around as long as humanity has. Due to their disabling effects and prevalence, headaches preoccupied the beliefs and emotions of ancient civilizations. Because of this, authors have been trying to figure out and classify the various types of headaches from the beginning of medicine.

Papyrus manuscripts found buried with a mummy in Thebes, as well as some surviving Babylonian writings describing migraines, date as far back as 3000 BCE. Both these cases detail accounts that are surprisingly close to the experiences today’s migraine sufferers have.

Symptoms of Headaches

As you’ve read, there are various headache types, and even though not all headaches are the same, they all cause pain, some leading to chronic pain. Other types of headaches, however, create other undesirable symptoms like:

  • Chronic fatigue
  • Nausea and vomiting
  • Difficulty falling and staying asleep
  • General muscle aches
  • Disturbed concentration
  • Irritability
  • Mild sensitivity to noise or light

While having a headache usually isn’t a symptom of a life-threatening condition, if you get headaches following a trauma to the head, you should give your physician a call right away. You’ll also want to contact your physician if you’re experiencing any of these symptoms along with your headaches:

  • Fever
  • Drowsiness
  • Slurred speech
  • Vomiting
  • Confusion
  • Facial numbness
  • Weakness in a leg or arm
  • Convulsions

You’ll also need your doctor to evaluate you if you have a yellowish-green nasal discharge and pressure around your eyes, which could indicate a sinus infection.

Effects of Headaches

Effects of headaches and migraines, according to the International Headache Society, include:

Migralepsy

Migralepsy is a condition where a migraine triggers an epileptic seizure. You’ll likely get a migraine first, then the seizure around an hour or so after. It’s a rare condition.

Migrainous Infarction

This condition links your migraine to a stroke. You’ll have a migraine headache with an aura lasting over an hour. The aura, in some cases, continues even after your headache goes away. Auras lasting more than an hour may suggest you have a brain bleed, and therefore, you’ll want to see your physician immediately.

Stroke

Individuals with migraines have around two times the risk of stroke, according to England’s National Health Service. Women who get migraines and also take oral contraceptives are also more susceptible to stroke.

Mental Health Issues

If you’re suffering from daily, chronic headaches, you’re at a greater risk of experiencing sleep disturbances, anxiety, depression and other physical and psychological problems.

You may also experience episodic syndromes with migraines, such as sleepwalking, teeth grinding, motion sickness and night terrors. Migraines can also lead to cyclical vomiting, vertigo and abdominal pain.

Headache Statistics

The Statistics Portal reports the following headache and migraine facts:

The Migraine Research Foundation reports the following about migraines:

  • Migraine headaches are incredibly prevalent neurological diseases affecting 1 billion individuals around the world, including 39 million American women, men and children.

Current Treatments Available for Headaches and Their Side Effects

Several factors will determine the type of treatment for your headaches. These factors include the frequency and type of headaches you have, and what is causing them. Your doctor will tailor your treatment specifically to your needs.

Medications

Pain relievers:

Medications like ibuprofen, acetaminophen and aspirin can help with mild headaches. There are migraine medications combining aspirin, acetaminophen and caffeine to help with migraine headaches. These medicines, however, may not be effective if you’re struggling with severe migraine headaches.

If you take these medications too often or for an extended time, they can result in gastrointestinal bleeding, ulcers, liver problems and medication-overuse headaches.

Triptans:

These relieve migraine headache pain and other symptoms effectively. They constrict your blood vessels and block your brain’s pain pathways. Side effects of triptans may include:

  • Nausea
  • Muscle weakness
  • Injection site reactions
  • Drowsiness
  • Dizziness

If you’re at risk of heart attacks or stroke, your physician may advise you to refrain the use of triptans.

Counseling

Counseling includes services like group therapy, one-on-one therapy or support groups designed to assist you in identifying triggers of your headaches and teach you coping strategies.

Headache Education

Headache education includes figuring out what triggers your headaches. Common headache triggers include:

  • Eating certain additives or foods
  • Lack of sleep
  • Environment
  • Caffeine
  • Not eating at regular times
  • Stress

Being educated on these types of things can help you avoid your headache triggers.

Stress Management

Manage your stress with relaxation techniques like progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing exercises, music relaxation or mental imagery relaxation.

How and Why Marijuana Can Be an Effective Treatment for Headaches

More than three decades ago, researchers found out marijuana’s bioactive ingredients mimicked your body’s endocannabinoids. These neuro-chemicals control your brain receptors responsible for balancing inflammation and pain.

Doctors have successfully indicated both non-photoactive and psychoactive types of cannabis-based medications for just about every kind of headache.

The idea of using marijuana for headaches isn’t new. Cannabis wasn’t illegal in the U.S. until the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937. Before that, patients used the herb to treat headaches of many types. Doctors commonly prescribed marijuana to treat these ailments.

Earlier findings noted in a study suggest an endocannabinoid system dysfunction or deficit in endocannabinoids may link to the development of migraines and other types of headaches. Your endocannabinoid system regulates different functions like sleep, mood, immune system function and pain response. Cannabidiol (CBD), tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other cannabinoids found in medical weed interact with your endocannabinoid system’s receptors, especially the CB1 receptor, to hinder the inflammation leading to headache pain.

What Side Effects and Symptoms of Headaches Can Medical Marijuana Treat?

Medical cannabis for headaches helps by:

  • Reducing inflammation
  • Relaxing tense and inflamed muscles
  • Reducing blood pressure and dilating arteries
  • Reducing pain center receptor nerve signals

It can also help with some of the other headache symptoms mentioned above, including:

  • Chronic fatigue
  • Trouble falling and staying asleep
  • Disturbed concentration
  • Irritability
  • General muscle aches

If you’re suffering from headaches — regardless of whether they’re simple tension headaches, or more severe headaches like migraines — marijuana can be an effective remedy.

Best Strains of Marijuana to Use for Headaches Symptoms and Treatment Side Effects

As you’ve probably figured out by now, medical pot is a highly effective headache treatment. However, there are specific strains of medical marijuana for headaches that may work better than others for treating your headache pain and other symptoms. Below are some of the best strains to use for headaches.

  • White Widow (hybrid): Although this strain is low in THC, it contains pain-relieving properties, while also producing euphoric sensations and feelings to combat tough headaches.
  • Green Crack (Sativa): An excellent strain for tackling a headache, Green Crack is fast-acting, offering immediate relief for your headache pain.
  • Lemon Kush (hybrid): Lemon Kush offers a fair amount of THC with some CBD. The two cannabinoids combined are what make this a useful headache-fighting strain.
  • Kryptonite (hybrid): This medical cannabis strain also has high levels of THC in it, which is perfect for treating pain — even headache pain.
  • Purple Urkle (Indica): A common effect of headaches is not getting enough good-quality sleep. If you’re not getting adequate sleep because of your headaches, this strain is your answer. It provides you with a potent mind and body high, leaving you instantly calm, relaxed and sleeping while it melts away your headache.
  • Purple Haze (Sativa): Purple Haze is another potent strain to tackle uncomfortable headaches. It’s a well-balanced medication, high in THC, making it perfect for dealing with headaches.

When suffering from headaches, no matter how severe, you can find relief with the strains above. However, there are many other options available to you for headache relief. Many already know these strains effectively treat headaches and are a good place to start.

Best Methods of Marijuana Treatment to Treat Side Effects and Symptoms of Headaches

You can separate cannabis and headaches consumption methods into three main categories:

  1. Oral techniques
  2. Inhalation methods
  3. Topical application

You can use other methods to take medical marijuana as well.

Oral THC administration reduces both experimentally induced and chronic pain, according to studies.

oral cbd oil

Oral consumption methods are those where you administer marijuana through your mouth. Some examples include:

  • Edibles
  • Beverages
  • Tinctures
  • Ingestible oils

Inhalation techniques appear to offer fast effects and eliminate migraine headaches almost immediately.

Examples of inhalation methods include:

  • Smoking
  • Vaporization, also known as vaping
  • Dabbing

Topicals are absorbed through the skin and may include:

  • Lotions
  • Creams
  • Transdermal patches
  • Salves

Today, more consumption methods are coming out all the time for medical marijuana to benefit patients’ varying needs for getting medical pot into their systems.

Take Your Next Step to Relieve your Headaches With Medical Cannabis

You don’t have to suffer from chronic headaches any longer. As more states legalize medical cannabis, you’ll find an increasing number of dispensaries opening up to fulfill your needs. However, with so many dispensaries to choose from, you’ll need to know which is the best place to get your medical marijuana. Thankfully, you can search for a medical marijuana dispensary or connect with a doctor all in one place with the support you need to make the right choice.

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Resources:

  1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMHT0024771/
  2. https://www.webmd.com/migraines-headaches/guide/migraines-headaches-basics#1
  3. http://www.ihs-headache.org/ichd-guidelines
  4. https://www.forbes.com/sites/nextavenue/2013/05/16/is-marijuana-booming-among-boomers/2/#392420734ad5