Lynne Geweke, M.D., director of the Headache Clinic at UI Hospitals and Clinics, says almost everyone has suffered a mild headache at some point in his or her life. A migraine, the most common severe headache, is two or three times as common in women, and peak age for migraine is around the late 30s.

"A migraine is a particular kind of headache;" says Geweke, "It is pounding, often on just one side of the head, and accompanied by nausea and extreme sensitivity to lights and noises. Someone with a migraine is often in bed with all the lights off and a bucket at the side of the bed, while someone with a regular, "tension-type" headache will be up and around, if a little crabby."

Anyone who suddenly has a new or different headacheŃa "first or worst" headacheŃshould see a doctor right away to make sure it"s not something worrisome says Geweke. "For most headache sufferers, though, it"s a matter of how much the headaches interfere with life. If headaches are severe enough to cause repeated work or school absences, interfere with caring for the home or family, or just make it hard to plan and live normally, it"s definitely worth seeing what your doctor can offer."

Many people start treating headaches by trying to avoid things that trigger headaches, "but that can be tough, says Geweke. "Some triggers are obvious, like red wine, but others can"t be avoided, like weather changes. Lifestyle is important; regular meals, regular sleep, regular moderate exercise, and maintaining a healthy weight are all critical.

"Most people who come to the Headache Clinic want a medicine to get rid of a headache when they get one, and we have some great drugs available. But," says Geweke, "this can backfire, because taking too many pain pills, even simple over-the-counter things like aspirin, can actually increase headaches over time and make them harder to treat.

"So, if someone has frequent headaches, we also usually use preventive medicines, drugs that are meant to be taken every day to try to prevent the headaches from starting in the first place," she says.

Since peak age for migraines is around the late 30s, many people do improve as they head into old age, although we don"t know exactly why that is, says Gweke. "Hormone changes of menopause probably are part of it, but men improve as they age too. There isn"t currently a cure for migraine; headache specialists like to say that migraine is not a curable disorder, but it is a controllable disorder."

For more information:

Lynne Geweke, M.D.

Headache Clinic