How Can You Tell if it's a Migraine or Sinus Headache?

Did you know that only one out of every thirty people that claim to be suffering from a sinus headache actually are? Surprisingly, those other twenty-nine are actually suffering from a migraine.

As a migraine sufferer, I spent many years of my life being told by my parents and school nurses that my headaches were sinus-related and that over-the-counter sinus medication was the course of treatment. However, during a migraine with an over-the-counter sinus medication is next to impossible, yet millions of people worldwide are treating their headaches in this way, not realize that their headache is actually something more serious.

You may be wondering why what you take to cure your headache matters. After all, a headache is a headache, right? It's painful and annoying and anything to relieve it is good. Wrong. When you know what kind of a headache you have, it is easier to take the proper action to battle it. In some instances, you might just cure your headaches completely.

The Differences

Sinus headaches are usually easy to spot. The pain you feel in these headaches is usually the worst first thing in the morning. You'll experience a pain in the back of the forehead, around the eyes, and in the cheeks, often accompanied by fever, a stuffy nose, swollen lymph nodes, and usually nasal discharge. These are signs that pinpoint a sinus headache. Though most of the time, this can be cured with a simple over-the-counter sinus medication or something specially formulated for sinus headaches, your fever and other indications could be symptoms of a sinus infection, which needs to be treated by your physician.

Migraines are harder to diagnose than a sinus headache. Many things can trigger a migraine, including some of the very things that trigger sinus headaches. Migraines are more severe in pain, though the pain is often in the same areas as with a sinus headache, and are often accompanied by a sensitivity to light and sound, nausea, and a sensation referred to as an "aura," which for many comes about as a tingling sensation on the fingertips, toes, and lips, or seeing spots much like being "blinded" by a camera's flash. These aura symptoms often occur before a migraine begins, sort of as a warning sign for sufferers. Unfortunately, not all migraine sufferers get the aura symptoms and even those that do get them don't get them every single time a migraine hits.

Treating your migraine with sinus headache remedies will be unlikely to cause you any problems, but you'll find that it probably won't treat your headache as effectively as a treatment specifically formulated for migraines. In fact, taking sinus headache medication for migraines can lead to recurring or "rebound" headaches, which can be just as painful as the first headache pain.

It is important to catch your headache immediately as it begins to hit, as a migraine, left untreated can last anywhere from a few hours to several days. Checking your symptoms is also a great way to figure out if what you're suffering from is really a sinus headache or a migraine. If you're still unsure, consider making a visit to your doctor.

If you've been suffering from a sinus headache for too long, maybe it's time to look into it a little more closely. It may not be a sinus headache at all! It may be a migraine! The sooner you know for sure, the sooner you'll get relief!