Tension headaches are as common as they are debilitating. It’s difficult to get anything accomplished with constant pain in your head, and the headaches can last for months. Now you can do something about them: search for a headache center near me and then visit Dr. Amr Hosny of the Advanced Headache Center, with eight locations from Midtown Manhattan to Paramus, New Jersey. Dr. Hosny is a Harvard-trained pain management physician specializing in easing headache pain and teaching you how to avoid tension headaches in the future. Call the nearest office today to schedule your consultation.
Are Tension Headaches Common?
Tension headaches are the most common form of headaches. In fact, nearly half of the adult population suffers from some level of tension headache every month. Even more alarming perhaps is that one in 30 adults are diagnosed with chronic headaches that continue for three to six months. In these cases, the sufferers have to bear the pain for at least 15 days during those months.
Headaches can be debilitating, interrupting your day-to-day routines and working life. As a primary headache and cluster headaches and migraines, tension headaches require treatment from a headache specialist like Dr. Amr Hosny. At the Advanced Headache Center, with eight office locations across Midtown Manhattan and Bergen County, New Jersey, you can find a headache doctor near you.
What Causes Tension Headaches?
Tension headaches occur more frequently in middle-aged women than men. It isn’t uncommon, though, for teenagers to complain of such headaches as well. Stress and anxiety are the biggest culprits behind developing a tension headache.
Anxiety and stress aren’t the only causes linked to tension headaches. Other triggers that may put you at risk for these headaches include:
- Skipping meals, especially breakfasts, can lead to hunger pangs
- Bad posture
- Dehydration
- Bright sunlight
- Squinting
- Loud noises
- Very little or absolutely no physical activity
- Strong smells, such as perfumes or gasoline fumes
What Symptoms Can I Expect from Tension Headaches?
While tension headaches aren’t life-threatening, they cause you discomfort while increasing your stress levels. Most of these headaches can last for 30 minutes up to seven days. They don’t cause nausea or bouts of vomiting, unlike migraines, which do often cause these troubling symptoms.
Consulting a tension headache specialist like Dr. Hosny early on, when your symptoms first start, is the best way to get the most effective treatment. After he reaches his diagnosis, confirming that you’re suffering from tension headaches, he personalizes your treatment plan to accommodate you.
Your symptoms may include:
- Pain that develops slowly over time
- Headaches in the morning, which are usually the mildest of the day
- Pain on both sides of your head
- A feeling like there’s a tight band around your head or that your head is held in a vice grip
- Pain that’s usually dull and constant
- Pain at the back of your head, as well as in your neck
- Pain that’s usually mild to moderate
- Pressure behind your eyes
What Types of Headaches Are Similar to Tension Headaches?
Since it’s possible to suffer from both a tension headache and a migraine simultaneously, diagnosis can be challenging. That’s why you need to rely on a headache specialist like Dr. Hosny from the Advanced Headache Center in NYC and northern NJ. With the latest medical technology and the most up-to-date medical knowledge.
Finding the right diagnosis for your headache depends on your symptoms and medical history. You may need to take some diagnostic tests to help Dr. Hosny confirm the cause of your pain.
He has to rule out all the other types of headaches, including:
- Sinus headaches
- Allergy headaches
- Spinal headaches
- Thunderclap headaches
- Post-concussion headaches
- Cervicogenic headaches
- Chronic migraines
- Hemiplegic migraines
- Basilar migraines
- Optical migraines
- Occipital neuralgia
- Trigeminal neuralgia
- Status migrainosus
Read more: Common Types of Headaches to Worry About
How Are Tension Headaches Treated in Midtown & Manhattan?
For tension headaches, your doctor may recommend home remedies first if your pain isn’t too severe. You can try applying a cold or hot compress to your head and neck. You can also take over-the-counter painkillers, like ibuprofen or acetaminophen, for relief. Still, you can’t take these medications for more than 10 days, as long-term use leads to medication overuse headaches.
I really enjoyed my experience and highly recommend this physician. Dr. Hosny is extremely knowledgeable and knows how to diagnose a severe headache. His treatments have been the most successful treatment to date to relieve my severe headache. The office staff is very friendly and cheerful, and highly qualified as well. Thank you very much for all your care
Dr. Hosny uses a multimodal approach, meaning he prescribes more than one modality often at the same time to address your condition.
A list of alternative treatments include:
- Drinking more water
- Head massages
- Yoga and meditation techniques
- Acupuncture
- Physical therapy
- Chiropractic care
- A change in your diet
- Eating meals on a regular schedule without skipping any
- Sleeping more as part of a normal sleep routine
- Trigger point injections help to relax strained muscles, giving you immediate pain relief.
- Cognitive-behavioral therapy to help you manage your stress levels
- Decreasing alcohol and caffeine intake to prevent dehydration
- Practicing good posture while walking, standing, and sitting
Read more: Understanding and Managing Your Tension Headache
To get the best tension headache treatment for permanent relief, turn to Dr. Hosny at the Advanced Headache Center. With eight locations across Manhattan and throughout Bergen County, NJ, you can find a qualified headache physician near you. Contact the practice today to schedule your initial consultation. Defeat your pain with tension headache treatment from a specialist.
Dr. Hosny is an Ivy League Trained, UCNS-accredited, board-certified headache specialist who offers the latest preventive and abortive treatments to provide safe and effective head pain relief. As an active member of prominent organizations and professional societies that advance headache science, education, and management, such as the National Headache Foundation, Dr. Hosny specializes in diagnosing and treating a wide range of head pain disorders, including tension headaches, migraines, and cluster headaches, to name a few.
Dr. Hosny's reputation for enhancing headache care quality through the use of the most effective and technologically advanced treatment options for persistent primary and secondary chronic headaches has been acknowledged by Castle Connolly and Healthgrades, where he has received over 200 positive reviews. Dr. Hosny is also recognized as a distinguished New York City physician and headache specialist by New York Magazine.
More about Dr. HosnyNew York, NY 10003
(646) 763-2222