What causes menstrual headaches? Are your headaches severe?

Women feel uncomfortable during their menstrual period every month, and often experience nausea, chest tightness, fatigue, irritability, etc. before their period. Some women also have headaches. What causes this? Will it be harmful to the body? Is this a normal reaction? Let’s take a look together below.

Menstrual headaches occur before, during, or after your period. The characteristic of the headache is that it starts on one side of the temporal region and quickly spreads to both sides, presenting as a stabbing or distending pain, accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Each headache lasts from 30 minutes to two hours, and the headache worsens when the mood is bad. Some patients also have headaches accompanied by irregular menstruation, scanty and dark-colored menstruation, blood clots, pain in the lower abdomen, flanks, and breasts, and warmth. Studies have shown that 63% of women’s headaches are related to menstruation, and the onset of headaches is most closely related to menstruation. Therefore, menstrual headaches should be the focus of prevention and treatment of women's headaches.

Migraines during menstruation occur in cycles, lasting from a few minutes to an hour. During an attack, there is a throbbing pain on one side of the head that gradually intensifies until nausea and vomiting occur, and then the feeling begins to improve. Headaches are relieved in a quiet, dark environment or after sleep. The pain may be localized in a certain area or extend to the entire half of the body. When the headache is severe, there may be a feeling of blood vessels pulsating or the eyeball popping out. The pain usually reaches its peak within 1-2 hours and lasts for 4-6 hours or more than ten hours. In severe cases, it can last for several days.

Neurological and mental dysfunction may occur before or during a headache. According to studies, migraine sufferers are more likely to suffer local brain damage, which can lead to stroke, than ordinary people. The more migraines they have, the larger the area of ​​the brain that is damaged.