Random Headache cures that work?

[ShadowFireLance]

It happens to us all, don't deny it, so I'm asking, What have each of you found to work best?

[Worira]

Uh, painkillers?

[Emperor Ing]

Even if you're not thirsty, force-feed yourself some water, lemonade, milk, juice, some non-carbonated beverage. If those are not available, pinching the flap of skin between the pointer finger and the thumb can provide some immediate, if extremely temporary relief. And by "temporary" I mean "one minute, tops."

[DJ Yung Crunk]

If not painkillers.

Then, for me at least, music. No, I'm dead serious. Some Lil Wayne or Neil Young will clear that headache right up.

[factotum]

For a normal headache, painkillers. For a migraine, lying down in a dark room.

[mistformsquirrl]

Being a severe migraine sufferer I've a long list of headache-helpers. Note that none of these is perfect - you'll probably still have a headache, but it might be tolerable at least.

1) Drink water. COLD water specifically. I don't remember the precise reason it works, but when that icy cold water hits the back of your throat it does something and for at least 20 minutes after I've drank a glass I feel a bit better.

2) A very dark room - no lights at all if you can manage; have a nap. Sometimes I take a benadryl to help me sleep (and ease some of the pressure from my allergies too)

3) If it's purely a sinus headache, spicy food. It'll be unpleasant, but eat something really hot and it'll clear your sinuses, and when that happens usually the headache lets up. Note this ONLY works for sinus headaches - so be sure that's what it is before employing this method.

4) Hot shower - Less effective than some other methods, but I've sometimes found that a good shower really clears my head. That said, don't do this if you're feeling dizzy so you don't slip and fall - this is mostly for "ugh, the pain' type headaches' not "I want to get a drill to bore into my brain" level headaches. (Yes that's how the scale goes.)

5) Distract yourself with something funny - this depends on the severity of the headache mind you; really bad ones this goes into the other list; but for more mild headaches I've found watching funny videos or reading something amusing can be a great distractor. It doesn't remove the pain, but if I'm not concentrating on it I don't notice it so much.

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Things to avoid:

1) Drinking milk if you have a sinus headache. I don't remember the precise reason for it (I think it increases mucus production); but yeah, it just makes for greater pain.

2) Flashing lights (ie: videogames) - while I can't say I haven't done it many times; if you've got a bad headache usually this isn't something you want to be doing.*

3) Alcohol, Caffeine, carbonated beverages - They'll dehydrate you, and dehydration can amplify an existing headache. For that matter it'll cause a headache if you didn't have one. Always stay hydrated.

4) If you have allergies, be careful with them - they can cause sinus headaches or even trigger a migraine. (Combination Migraine-Sinus headaches are something I get a LOT. I hateses them.)

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If all else fails and no painkiller is touching it, consider going to a doctor; there's various things they can do to reduce the symptoms or even eliminate them depending on what kind of headaches you have.

Other than that hrm... rest, that's the big one really.
*Sometimes however it hurts to close my eyes, when that happens I tend to think "Screw it, it's going to hurt no matter what I do, may as well play."

[TSGames]

1) Drink water. COLD water specifically. I don't remember the precise reason it works, but when that icy cold water hits the back of your throat it does something and for at least 20 minutes after I've drank a glass I feel a bit better.

3) If it's purely a sinus headache, spicy food. It'll be unpleasant, but eat something really hot and it'll clear your sinuses, and when that happens usually the headache lets up. Note this ONLY works for sinus headaches - so be sure that's what it is before employing this method.

4) Hot shower - Less effective than some other methods, but I've sometimes found that a good shower really clears my head. That said, don't do this if you're feeling dizzy so you don't slip and fall - this is mostly for "ugh, the pain' type headaches' not "I want to get a drill to bore into my brain" level headaches. (Yes that's how the scale goes.)

I can vouch for each of these methods and am glad that drinking water is listed as #1. I have not found a more effective method at curing headaches than drinking a lot of water.

The other methods seem good too, but I have only noticed a significant and direct correlation between my headache going away and using these methods.

[Weezer]

Actually, caffeine is a good cure for headaches, it's even one of the three ingredients in Excedrine (and the generic versions). What it does is act as a vasodialator, increasing blood flow in the brain and in the end helping to reduce pain.

Also, the myth of caffeine having a dehydrating effect is just that, a myth, with no studies able to find evidence for that effect.

[shawnhcorey]

Over-the-counter painkillers.
Spicy food; the capsaicin in them causes your brain to release endorphins that reduce the pain.
Comedy; watching something funny will distract you from the pain.

[Howler Dagger]

I've found that in situations when I've been outdoors and getting a headache, hydrating doesn't help. Getting out of the sun into a cool room, along with some painkillers tends to help more. An ice pack on the head tends to reduce the pain as well.

Also, I agree that caffeine helps. I don't tend to get noticeably dehydrated from it, and as Weezer said, it is an ingredient for painkillers.

[Don Julio Anejo]

Advil. If that doesn't help, most likely my headache is caused by a lack of coffee. Therefore, also coffee.

[Eldest]

I just use asprin, or an odd mental trick to convince myself there isn't a headache. Asprin is the preferred method.

[WarKitty]

I've found slapping the person responsible hard helps.

[Ravens_cry]

Caffeine is tricky. Some headaches are caused by constricted blood vessels and some are caused by dilated blood vessels. Caffeine helps the latter, but less so on the former. In fact, it can make the former worse.
One random headache cure I know of is, well, of a rather personal nature.
Not so much a cure as a rush of dopamine blocking out the pain for awhile.

[Bulldog Psion]

Aspirin.

Sleep.

[KillianHawkeye]

Whiskey is the cure for all my pains. :smallbiggrin:

[Eldan]

I'm classifying my headaches into four kinds. Pressure on the entire left side of the head, pressure on both temples, stining pain just behind the forehead on both sides and drilling into the eyeholes.

For pressure headaches, coffee helps me a lot. For the other two, it's downing at least a liter of cold water, applying something cool and then lying down.

[Rolling Thunder]

For me: Pain-killers and lots of water. Also take an electrolyt potion or if this is not avaiable, substitute by half a litre of water with one Multivitamin and one Magnesium pill (the sizzles and desolves in water kind, I don't know how it's called in english). I am very sensitiv to changing atmospheric pressures (before a thunderstorm e.g.) and some electrolytes and an Aspirin are the only things that help me.

[nedz]

It depends upon the cause of the headache ?

Eating some food and going for a walk can help with some.

Resting/sleeping in a quiet dark room can help with others.

[Raddish]

Also, the myth of caffeine having a dehydrating effect is just that, a myth, with no studies able to find evidence for that effect.

Even if the caffeine dehydrates it's still going to be easily negated by the water and/or milk in most caffeinated drinks.

When I get a headache I just lay down for half hour to an hour and it eases up enough.

[Xuc Xac]

Caffeine is in most over-the-counter painkillers for two reasons:
1. Most painkillers cause drowsiness so caffeine is added to counter that;
2. Most headaches are caused by caffeine withdrawal so putting caffeine in headache medicine is a really easy and effective "cure" for the drug companies to produce.

If you drink a lot of tea, coffee, or other caffeinated beverages and you find yourself with a headache, ask yourself when your last caffeine intake was. If you always have a big cup of coffee in the morning but you skipped it on the day of your headache, then the mystery is solved.