Headaches in kids and teens are normal, but headaches can be caused by much more than the common cold or lack of sleep. While over-the-counter medications can help headaches go away, learning about headaches in kids will help parents know when to seek treatment for headaches.
Headaches cause headaches for everyone when they are not treated! It is essential to seek out treatment if headaches don’t go away even over-the-counter medications. Acute recurrent headache pain should not be dismissed as a regular part of growing up.
Early detection means headaches in kids can often be treated and prevented.
Child’s Symptoms: What to Look For?
When headaches become chronic or interfere with daily activities, it’s time to get medical professionals involved. Some headaches are caused by other medical problems like sleep apnea, allergies, and sinus infections.
Cluster headaches in children and adolescents
Cluster headaches are uncommon in children under 10 years of age. Cluster headaches: occur in groups of five or more episodes, ranging from one headache every other day to several a day and often involve sharp, stabbing pain on one side of the head that lasts less than three hours.
Is it Normal For Teenagers To Get Headaches?
Headaches in teens should never be shrugged off. Teenagers may experience headaches from hormonal fluctuations, but when headaches occur frequently or interfere with daily activities, it’s time for an intervention. Most headaches in children and adolescents subside within a few hours on their own, or sooner if you use pain relievers.
It’s important to note that headaches can also be signs of other health issues like migraines, sinus infections, sleep apnea, and caffeine withdrawal.
Teenagers Consuming Caffeine and Headaches
While headaches in teens may be caused by caffeine, headaches from caffeine withdrawal are not normal for people under eighteen years old. Caffeine should never be used as a “tool” to treat headaches – it’s important to pay attention to headaches from caffeine withdrawal, as this could be a sign of caffeine addiction.
Are Headaches a Symptom of Puberty?
When headaches seem to come out of nowhere, it might be a sign hormones are changing. While headaches during puberty may not be serious, they can indicate an underlying medical condition. Usually, teens describe this type of headache pain as a tension-type headache, leaving them with neck pain and can develop into severe migraine headaches.
What’s the Difference Between a Migraine and a Headache in Children and Adolescents?
Migraines in children and adolescents can be very serious and need to be treated. Migraine headaches can cause intense pain that lasts for hours or even days, while the head pain from headaches subsides in a few hours.
Migraine headaches can have symptoms like light sensitivity, feeling stabbing pain, and may also be accompanied by muscle tension in the neck muscles and jaw. Also watch for dizziness, blurred vision, fever, stomach upset, and even vomiting. They may be very sensitive to smells, and noise and want to sleep when experiencing a migraine.
Keep track of your teen’s migraine triggers in a headache diary; such as lack of sleep, certain foods, environmental changes, or stress. If you know what triggers them, you can help your teen try to avoid getting a migraine.
Headache Triggers: Allergies and Headaches in Kids
Headache symptoms in kids can be hard to pin down, but chronic headaches in the spring and fall could be allergies. When headaches are preceded by nasal congestion, sneezing, tearing eyes, and itching skin, these types of headaches may also have been triggered an allergic reaction.
See also: Holistic Treatments for Kids Suffering From Headaches
Chiropractic Care Can Relieve Your Child’s Headache Issues
While headaches are common, headaches caused by other medical conditions, allergies, or lack of sleep should be treated immediately. Holistic treatment is often the best way to treat headaches in children because chiropractic care aims to remove the root cause of headaches in children. After headaches are gone, chiropractic treatments can also help prevent headaches in kids from occurring in the future.
Chiropractic manipulation of the spine helps relieve headaches because once the spine is aligned the blood flow is improved to all areas of the body. This manipulation is very gentle, about as much pressure as you would put on an avocado to see if it is ripe.
Treating headaches with holistic therapies is often more effective than over-the-counter medications because it treats the root cause instead of just the headaches themselves. If your child is suffering from headaches, we want to help! Give us a call at 262-596-7108 or schedule online so we can help relieve the pain and stress of frequent headaches.
