Table of contents:
- The main triggers for hormonal headaches in women
- 1. Menstruation
- 2. Combination birth control pills
- 3. Menopause
- 4. Pregnancy
- How do I know if my headache is due to hormones?
- How to prevent hormonal headaches during menstruation?
- Medication to cure hormone headaches
- 1. Estrogen therapy
- 2. Anti-migraine drugs
- 3. Continuous birth control pills
Did you know that most headaches in women are caused by hormones? This may be able to answer the question of many women who often feel headaches, even migraines, at certain times without an obvious cause. But what exactly causes these hormonal headaches, and why do they occur so often in women?
The main triggers for hormonal headaches in women
1. Menstruation
According to experts at the National Migraine Center, more than half of women who regularly experience migraines will experience more severe migraines before or during menstruation.
These experts found that migraines usually appear between the two days before your period, to the first three days of your period. This is due to decreased estrogen levels at this time. Menstrual migraines, which are actually hormonal headaches, are usually more severe than migraines at other times when you're not menstruating, and may even appear two or three days in a row.
2. Combination birth control pills
Some women find their headaches get better after taking birth control pills, and other reports say that headache attacks become more frequent during the “off” pill, when estrogen levels drop.
3. Menopause
Hormonal headaches usually get worse the closer you get to menopause. This is because your hormonal cycle begins to be disturbed and often fluctuates.
4. Pregnancy
Hormonal headaches will usually strike in the early weeks of pregnancy, but will improve and even disappear completely after the first trimester. Take it easy, these hormonal headaches are not harmful to babies.
How do I know if my headache is due to hormones?
The best way to detect hormonal headaches is to record your headaches. Mark on the calendar any time you have a migraine attack, and also mark the days on which you have your period. Keep this record for three months to see if these migraine attacks always come before and during menstruation. If so, it is likely that the headache is caused by hormones.
How to prevent hormonal headaches during menstruation?
After taking notes and you find that you do suffer from hormonal headaches every period, there are a number of things you can do to prevent migraines from striking during your period:
- Eat more often, with smaller portions. Don't forget to also snack on healthy snacks between meals to prevent your blood sugar levels from dropping. Not eating for a long time can trigger a headache attack. Also, don't miss breakfast.
- Keep your sleep schedule regular. Avoid sleeping too long, especially too little.
- Stay away from stress. Do what you like for relaxation and stress relief.
Medication to cure hormone headaches
You can use some of these remedies to treat and treat hormonal headaches so they don't recur.
1. Estrogen therapy
If your menstrual cycle is regular, menstrual migraines can be prevented by adding estrogen before menstruation and in the first two days of menstruation. This can be done with a doctor-prescribed estrogen supplement, usually a gel that is applied to the skin, or a patch that is applied. Avoid hormone therapy in tablet form because it is feared that there is a risk of triggering headaches.
2. Anti-migraine drugs
This medicine is usually taken before menstruation. Does not contain hormones, but can stop the development of headaches. These drugs usually contain triptans and mefenamic acid.
3. Continuous birth control pills
If you are taking birth control pills that have “days off” where you don't need to take the pill, ask your doctor to replace it with a continuous pill, to prevent migraines from striking on days when you are not on the pill.
