When to Worry About a Headache: 10 Most Serious Symptoms
If there is a symptom that is common out there, one which most of us, if not all of us, have experienced at one time or the other, then it is headaches. There are broadly two types of headaches; primary headaches and secondary headaches. Primary headaches are the type that are most commonly experienced and are basically those headaches that happen without any underlying injury, illness or health condition. These are the headaches you may experience when you are feeling stressed, or those you experience after a long day of work and so forth. In most cases, such headaches are nothing to worry about and you can have them controlled through rest and over-the-counter meds. Secondary headaches on the other hand are those that are due to an underlying injury, illness or health condition or issue and are the ones that can have serious consequences as they could be as a result of serious and life-threatening conditions such as strokes. This means that there are times that you really need to worry about your headache. Thankfully, there are a number of symptoms that will let you know when to worry about our headache and this article will look to highlight 10 of the most serious symptoms.
- One of the most serious symptoms as far as headaches are concerned is if you are experiencing a headache as well as signs of stroke. These include drooping on one side of your face, inability to lift one or both arms as well as problems with your speech such as slurred speech. If you are experiencing such symptoms to go with your headache, then you should call 911 immediately as time is of the essence here. You need to get treatment as soon as possible as the more time that passes, the more damage your brain suffers.
- Another set of serious symptoms that show that you need to worry about your headache is if you are experiencing a headache as well as a stiff neck and fever. This could indicate that you have meningitis, which is an infection of the meninges, which are the membranes that surround your brain and spinal cord. This should be taken very seriously as meningitis, bacterial meningitis in particular, is very serious and is life-threatening if not treated as soon as possible as is covered in detail over at the excellent frontlineer.com
- Yet another serious symptom as far as headaches go, one that should definitely have you worried is if you begin to experience a sudden and very intense headache or if you are experiencing severe or sharp headache for the first time. This is usually reason to worry about your headache as it could be a sign of a number of worrisome health conditions including brain aneurysms, blocked veins in your head, leaking spinal fluid among others; all of which should be attended to as soon as possible.
- If you are experiencing a headache as well as signs of severe dehydration, then this is yet another reason to worry about your headache. Some of the red flags to look out for as far as severe dehydration is concerned, as is covered in detail over at the excellent frontlineer.com include extreme thirst, fast heart rate, fainting, little to no urine, drowsiness among others and should always be taken very seriously. If you have severe dehydration, call 911 as soon as possible.
- Yet another instance when you should worry about your headache is if you suspect you may have been poisoned. This may be as a result of touching, ingesting or inhaling a substance that is potentially poisonous or getting stung or bitten by a poisonous animal, such as scorpions or snakes; or getting stung by a poisonous plant. The same should apply if you develop a headache after getting bitten by a domestic animal such as a cat or dog as it may be a sign of capnocytophaga infection which should also be taken very seriously.
- If you are experiencing a headache after having suffered a head injury, then you also need to worry about it as it may be a sign of a concussion or a mild injury to the brain. Some of the red flags to look out for include drowsiness, nausea or vomiting, blurred vision among others as covered in detail over at frontlineer.com
- Yet another set of symptoms that you need to worry about as far as your headache goes is if you are experiencing a headache accompanied by pressure in the back of your head. This should be cause for concern as this could be a sign of a brain tumor and as such you need to go get assessed as soon as possible.
- You should also be worried about your headache if you are experiencing sudden, severe headaches when coughing. This, as per the subject matter experts over at frontlineer.com, may be a sign of problems inside your brain such as a brain tumor, a defect in the shape of your skull, a defect in the cerebellum among others and should be assessed as soon as possible.
- You should also worry if you begin to experience an unexplained headache in third trimester of your pregnancy. This is because this could be a sign of preeclampsia which is a condition that causes high blood pressure in pregnant women and can have some very serious consequences hence should be taken very seriously.
- If you are experiencing a headache and you suspect severe heatstroke, then you should also be worried. Severe heatstroke can be quite serious and as such you should seek medical attention as soon as possible in such a situation.
Hopefully the above tips will help you know when you need to worry about your headache, with more on this as well as on other related topics to be found by checking out the ever reliable frontlineer.com
