Headaches can be a pain...

Headaches are, at best, annoying, at worst, quite debilitating. I know all about them. I used to get headaches on a daily basis. I always put it down to my eyes, or my sinuses, or lack of sleep or muscle tension due to stress. There could've been any number of reasons but I never looked too deeply into it. I did what any normal person would do, I reached for the panado or the nurofen without any further thought. Anything to take the pain away.

Just over a century ago, before Aspirin was invented, in 1897, and finally released in pill form in 1915, popping a pill was the furtherest thing from anyone's mind when they were inflicted with a headache. If it was a man, he was likely to ignore it and probably have a drink to wash away the pain. It wasn't considered very manly to succumb to a headache. If a woman had a headache it was quite normal for her to take to her bed for a day or two. The local physician might even be called in and he would probably make her a herbal blend to ease the pain or help her sleep.

There are so many different types of headaches that it's often difficult to find the actual cause, and that can make it difficult to treat. It is SO easy to simply pop a pill and move on. The concern there is that you haven't actually gotten to the root of the problem. You've only treated the symptom and that guarantees that the headache will be back. I know because it kept happening to me.

I remember, years ago, I had had a splitting headache for about 9 straight days and I was at the point where I was taking 8 painkillers a day! What I didn't realise was that, the headache had STARTED because of something else, but it was sticking around BECAUSE of all the pills I was taking to try and get rid of it.  I think it was my sister who actually mentioned something she'd heard from her doctor about over-the-counter headache pills actually CAUSING headaches. As an experiment, I stopped taking the pills and pushed through the headache for a few days and it eventually went away!

That doesn't mean to say that I learnt much from that experience! I still thought that my only option with a headache was to take pills. I just stopped taking so many and I changed to something I considered less strong. I was the person who ALWAYS had a strip of compral or panado or nurofen in her handbag just in case I had a headache and everyone knew to ask me if they needed a painkiller.

I can hardly believe I am the same person that I am writing about! I've changed A LOT since then. Two years ago, when I decided to cut out chemicals and go organic, I also cut out all medication from my life. THAT was a hard one considering all the headaches I suffered from, not to mention the once-a-month, agonising period pains. The first time I had a headache, I thought, "I MUST be insane! Just take a pill Mel. Give in and take a pill!" I didn't though. Instead I tried to work out WHY I had a headache.

When I first went organic, I got many headaches. I cut out a LOT of chemicals in my life.  The biggest ones were caffeine, and headache pills. It was only natural that I was going to detox and boy, did I?! I had stomach pains and headaches from hell. But I knew that it was because I was detoxing and I needed to try and get through it. If I took a pill, it would ease the withdrawal but the headache would come back the minute I started detoxing again. I drank loads of water and tea and waited it out.

I got through it ok and these days, I don't get many headaches! If I do, it's never the little aches I used to get. It's almost like my body is saying, "Ok, seeing as you don't have lots of little headaches, we are going to give you a whopper to make up for it!" But it's ALWAYS for a reason and that reason usually involves me falling off the organic fruit basket, or if I'm sick;) I can't drink much these days because my body hates chemicals. That means I suffer BADLY with hangovers. One glass of wine is enough to do it. I also get hangovers from eating chemical-laden food BECAUSE my body is so clean. In the old days, I'd simply take a pill and 20 minutes later I'd be good to go. Now that I spend more time thinking about the root of the cause, I treat it for what it is. I drink a LOT of water, I make a pot of herbal tea (the primary ingredients being milkthistle and stinging nettle and you can read why, here!) and I wait it out. I KNOW my discomfort is caused by dehydration, the alcohol and chemicals poisoning my chemical-free system and putting strain on my liver and I know that, as soon as my body manages to correct the balance, I will feel better. Meanwhile I try to make the process as easy for my body as possible by fixing the cause of the problem, rather than the symptom.

Let me guess, THIS picture resonates with some of you;) I find it very telling that a fast-food joint and an over-the-counter headache pill would join forces... At first glance, this picture is amusing. Most of us have been there right? But look at what this advert is encouraging: Do whatever you want, you can always take a pill afterwards. And they even promote it further by saying it's the GP's choice. I find it a bit scary to think that a GP would actually condone simply taking a pill and masking the symptoms of the abuse your body is taking, and yet that's what a lot of them do.

As I said, there are so many different TYPES of headaches. If you can figure out the cause, you can cure it. Finding the cause is often easier said than done and there have been times when the only relief I can find, is sleep. It's always gone by the morning. A good idea is to start trying to identify the triggers. If you smoke or drink a lot, I'm pretty sure you won't have to look too far to find your triggers. But food can be trickier. Common food triggers are dairy and caffeine and sometimes chocolate (which contains both so no guesses as to why!) Triggers can also be a bad night's sleep or no sleep at all. You may be grinding your teeth or clenching your jaw at night and that will definitely cause headaches. I always get a headache if I skip a meal and that's probably low blood sugar. Dehydration can cause a terrible headache. Emotional trauma can bring on a headache as can a stressful experience. If you can understand your headache, you can fix it.

Here are a few options to consider if you DO have a headache and don't want to simply take a pill:

• Drinking a few glasses of water sounds so simple and yet, often, headaches are caused by dehydration. Try that for a start and see how you feel in about half an hour.
• Sometimes just eating a wholesome, nutritious meal can ease a headache.
• Tension headaches can be eased by a gentle shoulder, neck or head massage if you have someone on hand willing to help out!
• Peppermint oil helps to relax the muscles in your head and neck. Just rub some on your hairline gently.
• A cool cloth will also have a similar effect to the peppermint oil without messing up your hair;)
• A bath with epsom salts and lavender oil can also soothe a headache.
• I am a great believer in the power of herbs. Feverfew is really helpful for migraines. Lemon balm can ease less painful headaches as can chamomile. Ginger tea is anti-inflammatory. Buy a fresh ginger root, crush it up and add boiling water. Drink with honey and lemon to make a delicious, healthy drink.
• If it is a sinus headache, steam your sinuses with some mint tea.
• If it is close to bedtime, perhaps skip the pill and simply get into bed. Your headache will likely be gone by the morning and your body will thank you for staying away from the chemicals!

As I said, you will be better equipped to heal your headache if you know the cause. If you suffer frequently, the first step is to cut out headache pills for a few weeks. Your body will need to detox. If the headaches stop, you more than likely were giving yourself headaches by taking the pills! If they don't, start experimenting by cutting out certain foods. As I said, dairy and caffeine are major headache triggers and good ones to start with. Wheat and dairy are commonly associated with sinus problems, which can cause horrible headaches.

It sounds complicated, but if you HAVE started cleaning up your diet, you will have already started cutting out processed and refined foods. I'd bet that they were also contributing to your headaches. Continue to cut out foods, one by one, to try and find the root of the problem. I bet you will find that a clean diet sorts out your headache problem once and for all, like me:) Just always remember to allow your body time to detox. You can help THAT headache along by drinking a lot of water and milkthistle tea. 

Before you reach for the panado, stop and think for a minute about WHY you might be in pain and then try to target THAT cause. Your body will thank you by not giving you another headache the next day!