why do I get a headache when I cry. Crying is a pure response to a robust emotion, why does crying give you a headache
Crying is a pure response to a robust emotion — like watching a tragic film or going by means of a very painful breakup.
Sometimes the feelings you’re feeling while you cry might be so intense that they result in bodily symptoms, like a headache.
How crying might trigger headaches isn’t clear, however intense feelings, like stress and anxiousness, appear to set off processes within the mind that pave the way in which for headache pain.
Non-emotional or optimistic tears don’t appear to have the identical impact. . Only tears tied to damaging feelings have this impact.
Read on to be taught extra about how these headaches current and what you are able to do to search out reduction.
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What are migraine and tension headaches?
Migraine and tension headaches are two of the most typical headache sorts:
Migraines trigger extreme, pounding pain — typically simply on one side of your head. They’re typically accompanied by symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and excessive sensitivity to gentle and sound.
Tension headaches trigger an aching pain and stress that may really feel like a band tightening round your head. Your neck and shoulders might also ache.
In one 2003 examine, researchers discovered that anxiety-provoking and hectic conditions had been the largest triggers for migraine and tension headaches. They noticed crying as a probable and customary however much less well-known set off worthy of additional examine and dialogue.
What I are able to do for why do i get a headache when i cry
Medication can help prevent tension and migraine headaches in addition to relieve symptoms as soon as they begin.
I might be able to why do i get a headache when i cry in its tracks with:
Over-the-counter (OTC) pain relievers, akin to aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil), and acetaminophen (Tylenol), could also be sufficient to alleviate delicate headache pain. If your symptoms are extra average, search for a pain reliever that mixes acetaminophen or aspirin with caffeine for optimum impact.
Triptans change blood circulate within the mind to bring down inflammation. They will help with extreme migraine pain. Sumatriptan (Imitrex) is accessible OTC. Frovatriptan (Frova), rizatriptan (Maxalt), and different triptans can be found by prescription solely.
If you get common migraine or tension headaches, your physician might prescribe one in every of these medication to help prevent them:
Cardiovascular medication deal with hypertension and coronary artery illness, however they also forestall migraine headaches. This contains beta-blockers like metoprolol (Lopressor) and calcium channel blockers like verapamil (Calan).
Antidepressants forestall each migraines and tension headaches. This contains tricyclics like amitriptyline and selective serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) like venlafaxine (Effexor).
Anti-seizure medication, akin to topiramate (Topamax), can cut back the variety of migraine headaches you get. These medication might forestall tension headaches, too.
What are sinus headaches?
Your feelings and your sinuses are extra carefully linked than you might suppose. More than 20 p.c of the peopleTrusted Source with continual sinus issues report feeling depressed. This could also be as a result of each situations stem from irritation.
Inflamed sinuses might also contribute to melancholy by interfering with sleep and decreasing high quality of life.
Crying bouts are widespread in people who find themselves depressed.
Other symptoms of a sinus downside embody:
stuffed nostril
pain round your cheeks, eyes, brow, nostril, jaw, and enamel
thick discharge out of your nostril
dripping behind your throat (postnasal drip)
cough
sore throat
What you are able to do
OTC and prescription-strength nasal corticosteroids can bring down inflammation within the sinus passages.
Popular choices embody:
beclomethasone (Beconase AQ)
budesonide (Rhinocort)
fluticasone (Flonase)
mometasone (Nasonex)
Corticosteroids are also obtainable in oral and injected varieties.
If you’ve got extreme sinus symptoms that don’t enhance with drugs, your physician might advocate surgical procedure to open up your sinus passages.
What are dehydration headaches?
Both your physique and mind want the best stability of fluids and electrolytes to work correctly. If you don’t drink sufficient fluids, otherwise you lose them too rapidly, you possibly can grow to be dehydrated.
When your mind loses an excessive amount of fluid, it shrinks. This discount in mind quantity could cause headache pain. Dehydration might also set off or extend migraine headache assaults.
People who’ve skilled a dehydration headache say the pain feels like an ache. It might worsen while you transfer your head, stroll, or bend down.
Other indicators of dehydration embody:
dry mouth
excessive thirst
much less frequent urination
darkish urine
confusion
dizziness
fatigue
Crying may be very unlikely to dehydrate you, until you haven’t been ingesting sufficient fluid. Dehydration is normally the results of:
extra sweating
elevated urination
diarrhea or vomiting
fever
What you are able to do
Oftentimes, the pain will go away after you’ve got a glass or two of water or an electrolyte drink, like Gatorade.
You shouldn’t take pain relievers or different medication that include caffeine. They can enhance fluid loss.
When to see your physician
You ought to search instant medical consideration when you’ve got a headache and expertise:
bother seeing or speaking
confusion
vomiting
fever of 102°F (about 39°C) or greater
numbness or weak point on one side of your physique
It might also be a good suggestion to see your physician in case your headache symptoms don’t enhance inside a day or two. Your physician can affirm the underlying trigger and advocate extra focused therapy.
You ought to also speak to your physician when you cry typically otherwise you recurrently really feel down. This may very well be the results of an underlying situation like melancholy.
Other indicators of melancholy embody:
feeling hopeless, responsible, or nugatory
dropping curiosity in belongings you as soon as liked
having little or no power
feeling extraordinarily drained
being irritable
having bother concentrating or remembering
gaining or reducing weight
eager about dying
Antidepressant medication and remedy will help relieve your melancholy — and with it, your crying bouts.