With some headaches, you’re still able to function, although the throbbing in your head may distract you a little. With others, you’re in agony: nauseated, dizzy, feeling like you can’t possibly carry on your normal activities. There are different types of headache, each with different characteristics, and they need to be treated accordingly or you won’t find much relief. So how do you know what type of headache is plaguing you – and what can you do to soothe it?

Types of Headaches

When trying to describe such a pain, “I have a headache” is a pretty broad statement. There are many different kinds, each a nuisance in its own right. Each is brought on by something different, and therefore require different methods of treatment.

Cluster Headaches

Cluster headaches are aptly named, because the attacks come in groups – a.k.a. “clusters.” This type of headache can hit you like a Mack truck, seemingly coming out of nowhere with no advanced warning. This has been described as the worst type of headache pain, more severe than any others. During a cluster period, a sufferer may have up to four headaches per day, each episode lasting anywhere from thirty to forty-five minutes.

Cluster headaches affect far more men than women – about five to one. They usually begin between the ages of 20 and 45. They occur most often during the spring and fall, which makes people tend to associate them with allergies (but this is a misconception – they aren’t caused by allergens). Unfortunately, about ten percent of cluster headache sufferers have headaches year-round.

They come on most commonly in the morning or late at night. Sufferers can have this sort of headache for days, even weeks on end; this is called a cluster cycle. When a cluster cycle is over, a person may not get this type of headache again for months or even years.

Clusters are normally unilateral, only occurring on one side of the head, and the side doesn’t vary from cluster to cluster; if you get one on the right side, it will most likely be on the same side again next time. The pain may begin in or around one eye, and that eye may be bloodshot or watery.

The nostril on the side of the headache may also begin to run. The pain usually radiates from the eye to the forehead, temple, and cheek. It’s so excruciating, sufferers say, that they can’t even sit still and sometimes are even compelled to bang their heads against something.

Experts know very little about the exact causes and factors influencing cluster headaches. Unlike migraine headaches, which we’ll discuss later, clusters aren’t the product of heredity. Sufferers of clusters do tend to have a couple of things in common: a history of chronic smoking, and the use of alcohol.

There may be a link between histamines, which dilate or expand the blood vessels, and cluster headaches; the levels of histamine in the blood and urine increase during an attack. But histamines aren’t thought to be the leading cause of the headaches, just an influence. Antihistamines aren’t an effective treatment.

There are two types of treatment for any type of headache: preventative – which, as the name implies, helps to stop headaches before they begin – and abortive, which helps stop a headache in progress. Preventative care includes taking prescribed medications according to direction, avoiding the known causes of headaches, and learning self-help measures. Abortive care just involves getting rid of the headache you already have.

For cluster headaches, the following medications are prescribed: