Rebound headaches are also known as medicine overuse headaches and are caused due to over intake of painkillers or analgesics. If you happen to be taking pain killers for more than three times a week and you still can’t get rid of your headache, you might actually be causing them instead of curing them. People who tend to take pain killers too often in order to relieve their headache are at an increased risk of developing rebound headaches.

Pain killers that cause rebound headache:

Rebound headache canz occur by taking any general pain killers including medications for preventing migraines such as triptan. The most common drugs that are known to cause this type of headache are NSAIDs, antihistamines, decongestants, OTC (Over the counter) medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen, paracetamol, tylenol, advil, motrin etc, prescription drugs such as fioricet, imitrex, vicodin etc and analgesic combinations such as excedrin and narcotic medicines.

Frequency of rebound headache:

Rebound headaches can occur quite frequently and on a daily basis. They might even transform episodic headaches into chronic daily headache over a period of time. Patients suffering from migraine are most susceptible to developing this type of headaches.

Symptoms:

Rebound headache is accompanied by severe pain, anxiety, nausea, depression, insomnia, inability to concentrate and restlessness.

Treatment:

In order to get the right treatment it is essential for you to go to a doctor and get diagnosed. Some of the medications recommended for the treatment of these headaches include anticonvulsants, antihistamines, antihypertensives and antidepressants.

When to see your doctor:

Occasional headaches might be quite common among individuals all across the globe, but rebound headaches might lead to the development of many ailments. Therefore, it is necessary for you to consult a doctor before taking any medications on your own. You must see a doctor when you experience a headache that is sudden and severe, when it is accompanied by an illness, if it occurs after a head injury, if there is no improvement after taking pain killers, if the headache occurs three times or more in a week, if the pattern of your headache changes quite frequently or if you feel the urge to take more than the recommended dose of OTC drugs.