Coping With Holiday Headaches

Make Your Season Merry and Bright

The holiday season is a time full of great things -- family, friends, food, fun events. But it can also be a time of headaches. Stress can add to our list of “holiday headaches,” but there are some real reasons migraines and other headaches can get worse late in the year. Taking time out to figure out where your pitfalls may lie can go a long way to a more enjoyable season.

Stress

Meal preparations, travel arrangements, family visits, shopping, and gift giving are only a few of the many reasons people get stressed during the holiday season. Research suggests that people who undergo major life changes are more likely to develop chronic daily headaches (CDH). While not on par with moving or taking a new job, the holiday season could definitely be considered a time of “change.” Even life events that exert “minor stress” can trigger headaches. And if nothing else, the holidays can be a collection of minor stresses.

Dietary Considerations

Overeating is not the only thing about which you need to be careful. Headache sufferers also need to be mindful of the types of things they are eating and drinking. The biggest culprit is tyramine, a substance produced from the amino acid tyrosine, which is present in a number of foods. Aged cheeses (like cheddar, brie, and camembert), chocolate, alcohol, some nuts, and smoked meats are some of the biggest culprits. Many of these offenders show up on a holiday snack tray or at dinner parties. While a little indulgence may be permissible, reckless abandon is surely a set-up for problems later. For an enjoyable holiday season, try to follow the low-tyramine diet.

Alcohol itself can cause a headache, and I’m not just referring to a hangover. Some alcoholic beverages contain tyramine, which can cause a headache. Also, alcohol has an inflammatory effect on the body. This can affect the blood vessels in the head and brain. Alcohol tends to dehydrate people, too. So, be sure to drink water to counteract this effect.

Coping With Holiday Headaches

The first step in avoiding the holiday headaches is to relax and learn to simplify. Since this can be a difficult task, you can also take the time to review both typical prevention and treatment strategies for headaches. Whatever you do, try to see the joy in the holiday season. And you’ll probably find everything gets a lot easier to handle.

_Sources:

De Benedittis G, Lorenzetti A. “Minor stressful life events (daily hassles) in chronic primary headache: relationship with MMPI personality patterns.” Headache, 1992 Jul;32(7):330-4.

“Low-Tyramine Headache Diet.” National Headache Foundation. Retrieved: November 17, 2008.

Scher, AI et al. “Major life changes before and after the onset of chronic daily headache: a population-based study.” Cephalalgia. Volume 28, Issue 8, pp. 868 – 876.