We doctors have to go into statistics even though most of us think it’s the most stone deadly boring subject that ever existed on the face of any planet. Statistics of disease help us in the differential diagnosis of a symptom or a sign and steer us to decipher the most likely cause of a particular ailment. With time, however, it is the experience gained from the field that becomes the better guide – both in the diagnosis and treatment of most afflictions – especially for those of us who actually find the time to really listen to and get to know the full history around that ailment, instead of resorting to the ATM method of dishing out a medication simply on the mention of a sign or symptom.
Without doubt recurrent headaches are one of the most common symptoms that general practitioners see on a day-to-day basis. I will not go into the various types of headaches, their diagnosis and treatment as I will otherwise run into the imminent risk of giving you the discomfort myself. However, there is an aspect of this ailment which might be worth discussing since in my opinion it is the most common cause of this affliction and it is also so controllable if the individual is aware of it and adequate advice is given.
It is a well-known fact that if one had to stare hard at one object in a roomful of a myriad of others, the former will become the focus of that person’s attention with the others fading away in the background. This figure-ground phenomenon is a central concept to perception and awareness of the mind and helps the individual to filter what is actually important at that particular space in time. The downside of this ideation, however, is that at times certain important aspects of the background are missed if too much unnecessary focus is given to the figure. This, in my opinion, forms the foundation of our lifestyle today and the root of most of our ailments and social problems.
The basis of a healthy lifestyle lies in the balance of a certain amount of hours at work with the rest being spent in restful activity, a good diet, enough hours of sleep and functioning interpersonal relationships with each becoming figure at different times in our lives. Unfortunately, however, if the lifestyle of most of us is dissected, one would find the tips of the balance sorely tilted in favour of one activity to the detriment of the rest, despite them being just as important. I am sure most of us are aware of how much more hours we give to work than to healthy eating and sleep, how much of our restful activity involves us surfing the internet instead of a sea wave or playing a video game instead of practising a sport or going out for a walk in the countryside or along the coast.
Unfortunately, this imbalance in our lifestyle is very often overlooked by both patients and doctors alike as a cause of headaches which leads to many of them being mistreated by a cacophony of different medications. Uncannily, with time, the medication itself can become the actual cause of the headaches resulting in the symptoms getting worse and occurring on a more regular basis, sometimes even daily. This analgesic induced or drug-rebound headache can only be controlled if the medication is stopped altogether under the doctor’s close surveillance. This state of affairs can be very easily avoided if a detailed history of the patient’s lifestyle is taken and many of its factions analysed and discussed.
From my experience, the most common causes of headaches are bad postures of the neck, insufficient sleep, a bad diet and emotional or any kind of stress for that matter. Incorrect positioning of the neck is an insidious habit, especially for those of us who pass long hours in front of the computer screen or tinkling away at computer or video games, watch television or read in bed or sleep on the most shapeless of pillows. This usually leads to undue stretching and tension on the very strong neck muscles with the resulting spasm spreading to the nearby structures, namely the head and shoulders. Lack of sleep, especially if regular, can also result in undue tiredness and tension in all body muscles especially the neck area. Going for long hours without eating lowers the blood sugar and causes headaches and so does food high in preservatives, which is so characteristic in our diet today. Stress, emotional or otherwise can cause headaches through any one of the factors above or more than one together.
Oscar award-winning British actor and author Peter Ustinov believed that “unfortunately, the balance of nature decrees that a super-abundance of dreams is paid for by a growing potential for nightmares”. If we could control the presence of one of these nightmares, which is certainly what recurrent headaches are to anyone who suffers from them, by finding a decent degree of balance within us, then I believe most of us could be happier and more fulfilled in our daily existence.

Source: Weekender, March 21, 2009