
In ancient Greece, headaches were
considered powerful afflictions. Victims prayed for relief from Asclepius,
the god of medicine. And if pain continued, a medical practitioner would perform
the best-known remedy— drilling a small hole in the
skull to drain supposedly infected blood. This dire technique, called trepanation, often replaced the headache
with a more permanent condition. Fortunately, doctors today don’t resort
to power tools to cure headaches. But we still have a lot
to learn about this ancient ailment. Today, we’ve classified headaches
into two camps— primary headaches and secondary headaches. The former are not symptomatic of an
underlying disease, injury, or condition; they are the condition. But we’ll come back to them in a minute because while primary headaches
account for 50% of reported cases, we actually know much more
about secondary headaches. These are caused by other health problems, with triggers ranging
from dehydration and caffeine withdrawal to head and neck injury, and heart disease. Doctors have classified
over 150 diagnosable types, all with different potential causes,
symptoms, and treatments. But we’ll take just one common case
—a sinus infection—as an example. The sinuses are a system of cavities that spread behind
our foreheads, noses, and upper cheeks. When our sinuses are infected, our immune response heats up the area, roasting the bacteria and inflaming
the cavities well past their usual size. The engorged sinuses put pressure
on the cranial arteries and veins, as well as muscles in the neck and head. Their pain receptors, called nociceptors,
trigger in response, cueing the brain to release a flood
of neuropeptides that inflame the cranial blood
vessels, swelling and heating up the head. This discomfort,
paired with hyper-sensitive head muscles, creates the sore,
throbbing pain of a headache. Not all headache pain comes from swelling. Tense muscles and inflamed,
sensitive nerves cause varying degrees
of discomfort in each headache. But all cases are reactions
to some cranial irritant. While the cause is clear
in secondary headaches, the origins of primary headaches
remain unknown. Scientists are still investigating
potential triggers for the three types of primary headaches: recurring, long-lasting migraines; intensely painful,
rapid-fire cluster headaches; and, most common of all,
the tension headache. As the name suggests, tension headaches are known for creating
the sensation of a tight band squeezed around the head. These headaches increase the tenderness of
the pericranial muscles, which then painfully pulse
with blood and oxygen. Patients report stress, dehydration,
and hormone changes as triggers, but these don’t fit
the symptoms quite right. For example, in dehydration headaches, the frontal lobe actually
shrinks away from the skull, creating forehead swelling that doesn’t match the location
of the pain in tension headaches. Scientists have theories
for what the actual cause is, ranging from spasming blood vessels to overly sensitive nociceptors, but no one knows for sure. Meanwhile, most headache research is
focused on more severe primary headaches. Migraines are recurring headaches, which
create a vise-like sensation on the skull that can last from four hours
to three days. In 20% of cases, these attacks are
intense enough to overload the brain
with electrical energy, which hyper-excites sensory nerve endings. This produces hallucinations called auras, which can include seeing flashing lights and geometric patterns
and experiencing tingling sensations. Cluster headaches,
another primary headache type, cause burning, stabbing bursts
of pain behind one eye, leading to a red eye, constricted pupil,
and drooping eyelid. What can be done about these conditions, which dramatically affect
many people’s quality of life? Tension headaches and most secondary cases can be treated with
over-the-counter pain medications, such as anti-inflammatory drugs
that reduce cranial swelling. And many secondary headache triggers, like dehydration, eye strain, and stress, can be proactively avoided. Migraines and cluster headaches
are more complicated, and we haven’t yet discovered reliable
treatments that work for everyone. But thankfully, pharmacologists
and neurologists are hard at work cracking these pressing mysteries
that weigh so heavily on our minds.
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1:26
Him: "Mom I have a headache."
Mom: "What by?"
Him: "my period"
Mom: "."
Excuse me , where we can download videos?
I hve got sinusss infection ahhhh it hurtsss
Advil to the rescue
Why does migraine make you throw up
Dam i have exactly like migraine. Thank god the only cure for it is get a sleep
Me:mom I have a head ache
Mom: your jus hungry go eat ur salad
Who else Is here because they have a headache? 👀
Well, this gives me HEADACHE.
Man: I Can't Withstand Headache
Psyduck: Amateurs
MY HEAadaches were caused by food allergies
😂😂😂 look at the man
4:29 triggered me… now i hv headache… 😑
The intro music in your videos give me headache.
I think I have a headache now
I have the cure for all kinds of headaches
Sleep well eat well drink more water and exercise more. Period.
And most importantly, don't study too hard, work too hard, or push yourself too hard. Have a work life balance and remember to take a breather every now and then.
Longest 5 minutes of my life
TED-ed, the best way to practive my english and, at the same time, learn about very interesting topics. Thank you for this valuable content!
Being married
Marijuana cured my migraines!!!!!
Watching this gave me a headache
I get a headache in my forehead in various places every day but I simply walk it off because I get it so often and it only hurts if I apply pressure onto said area :/
School
I am 19 year old and I don't have an headache in this 19 years why is that is that a disease amigo
I saw this vid while on a headache.
Watching this with a sinus infection hhh
What if it feels like a throbbing sensation inside of my brain?
I think it's school
im watching because i have a headache
Medicine to all pains: Dolo 650
brexit
I have a masive headache and this popped out in my recommendations..! YouTube is a voodoo 🤦♀️😂
Shame on you for not mentioning cluster headaches are preventable with magic mushrooms once a month.
Magnesium and vitamin b2 have reduced the severity of migraines for me.
I'm getting headache just by watching this video
I got a headache watching this
I get sinus infections a lot 😥 I’m also allergic to all four of my pets… (three cats and a dog)
So you mean to tell me migraines can in a way open the door to the 5th dimension? Hmm.
TED-Ed: what causes headaches
Me: that’s a pretty easy question, basically everyone at school lmao
My head hurts if i sleep too much…
Sir plz tell me how to solve these problems
Had the most annoying ad before this video. That. That’s what causes headaches.
Is headache the same as migraine?
I have migraine symptoms and I am most of the time cured with disprine tablates available in India
Did anyone else get a headache while watching this
The info on this video are wrong. The main reason of head ache is EMPTY WALLET.
This is simple,
My wife
Me: MOOOOM MY HEAD HURTS
Mom : stress
What causes headaches?
Women.
This makes headaches seem way worse than I thought they were.
I suffer from small headache almost every day but I solved it. I've started to supplement magnesium bisglycinate and headache was gone. So guys.. your body can miss some minerals.
Migraines aren't only on one of the head. I get them on both sometimes at the same time. I hate them though and even with botox, i still get multiple migraines a week.
1:29 I've had a terrible sinus infection that gave me massive headaches that didn't go away with regular pain meds. It was not pleasant. The pain was so incredible and I was so dizzy that I was close to passing out.
Moms be like “It’s because of that goddamn phone”
Drink more water
Toxic people cause headache lol
Is I get every single bloody headache on here
having a headache rn and watching this
4:15 todoroki?!
Doctor : it's just headache.
Mom : it's just headache my dear.
Dad : it's just headache.
Google : you'll die..
EVerybody Is thinking about PINK PAnTHer DuDE And Im thinking about Little ceasers pizza Dude..
Im having an headache now
Doctors actually do still use drills and holes in the head to relieve headaches for those with a bad head injury or with hydrocephalus which is an excessive amount of fluid in the brain (like me) but they will usually also implant a pressure relief valve (shunt) to allow cerebral spinal fluid to drain when the pressure gets too high.
Am i the only one feeling really bad for the cartoon man experiencing so much headaches?
is it just me or do the characters look like the guy from pink panther that hated pink panther and owned that annoying dog
4:02 This should've had epilepsy warning!!!
Poor animation had to sit through all this and worst of all could not say something back
Who else has headache watching this?
I had headache almost 4 times a week
The only time i get headaches is from not drinking enough water. I suffered from headaches for about 7 years and it was because i only drank like 1 or 2 cups a day. My pee was super dark and my mom always told me to drink water but i never listened. Now i drink like 10 tall cups a day and my headaches are cured. I also dont get muscle cramps or a dry mouth. I think a lot of people underestimate how much water they actually need. Im telling you now, drink water!
Watching this with headache 🙂
I’m 16 and have never had one……🤜🏿🤛🏻
Animations are more scary than headache.
Ive got a terrible headache right now. Laying in bed with Vick’s vapor rub on my forehead and some ibuprofen 😖😩
Why include description of the headaches or their symptoms? This video should be about causes.
Who else watching this with headache
Can you do migraines now…just migraines.
Who else has a headache right now? 🙋🏻♀️🤕
My head hurts and I come across this vid
Video Caption: What causes headaches?
Narrator: We are still unsure. do you viewers have any idea?
Me: hits my head with hammer
Mom: what is going o- OMG
Me: I have a headache
Not true, we know that mushrooms can treat cluster headaches with great success.
Why did this clear my headache?
Eating. If I don’t have a filling breakfast or if I don’t have breakfast at all I’ll get a bad headache and even if I eat after the headache starts it’ll probably last the rest of the day. I used to have really bad headaches every day and I was really confused and I FINALLY found what it was after like a year
1:22 the fourth guy tho…
My migraines are caused by arrested hydrocephlaus! Which occur for many different reasons! I have migraines almost every other day!
Kid, mommy mommy daddy just threw up!
Mom, o my God what should I do?
Kid, give me a spoon, jr.s getting all the big pieces.
Me: Trying to figure out why my head feels pregnant
TED-Ed video: You see these bright flashing colors on the screen??
I have headaches that feel like a pulse pain. But at the top-front region. The left region to be specific. It is not that bad however they last the entire day. By 8:00-9:00 PM I get crazy with the pain. It feels like a lot painful than what it used to feel when it first began.
I have none but three remedies.
1. Taking a good 3-6 hour nap
2. Waiting until the pain is unbearable and puke whatever went inside my stomach. Everything. (Including breakfast, medication etc.)
3. Have some pharmaceutical drugs.
hello to all the people who fell down a ted-ed hole at 2am and now know unnecessary knowledge
I can't relate to this cuz i never had a headache :/
My head now hurts.
wild they didnt mention the fact that trepanation worked and had a higher survival rate than you'd think
i've heard of great results through the use of low doses of psilocybin mushrooms (magic mushrooms) for cluster headaches and migraines, but until then if it gets bad enough – here in Australia we can buy prochlorperazine (Stematil/Compro) over the counter or get metoclopramide (Maxolon) with prescription 🙂
Who’s watching this with a headache? That intro made my headache worst
Potato Face suggest putting ice on the painful area XD
I have really bad migraines sometimes on only one side of my eye, sometimes the right and sometimes the left. It comes after I start seeing a crescent pattern in the centre of my eye, preventing vision near the edges and start expanding until I can't see it. Followed by the intense pain and nausea. Usually, it ends shortly after I vomit the food/drinks I ate/drank.
Who else watched this video because they have a headache right now
1:23
(In deep, masculine voice)
"WELL JOHN, I KNOW I'M A GUY AND ALL, BUT I'M ON MY PERIOD"