Headaches are one of the most annoying, naturally occurring aspects of the human body to ever exist. Although manageable throughout everyday life, they can make daily tasks feel 10x more challenging than usual. Headaches often interrupt your thoughts, comprehension, and even conversation! Despite there being a variety of over-the-counter painkillers that you can take to combat this issue, taking them too often can sometimes lead to a tolerance build-up, rendering them unhelpful in the long run. Luckily, there are a number of natural ways to ease the pain of a headache, as well as preventative measures to avoid the pain altogether. How else do you think people of the past took care of their aches and pains before the invention of modern medicine? Either way, let us save you the “headache” of trying to find ways to relieve your pain—here is a list of ways that you can get rid of and prevent these pesky brain pains naturally!

Drink Water

Staying hydrated is one of the most important things we can do on a daily basis. If you find yourself experiencing a terrible headache, ask yourself how much water you’ve had to drink that day. Dehydration is a very common cause of this dilemna and upon drinking a full glass of water, you’ll find that the pain has dissipaited within 30 minutes to three hours. However, water should not just be used as a “cure” for your headache alone. In order to prevent more dehydration headaches from occurring, you should actively drink water throughout the day. Headaches caused by dehydration is your body’s way of telling you that the amount you’re consuming is not enough. Most recommend drinking eight 8-oz glasses of water a day—it may sound excessive, but you’ll soon enough find that it’s exactly what your body is looking for.

Muscle Relaxation

If your body is experiencing other kinds of muscle pain, there’s a chance that this sort of stress can contribute to a tension headache. Taking a warm bath can help you feel relaxed, relieving both your muscle tension and the tension in your head. When some parts of your body are unrelaxed, it can make the others unrelaxed as well. Because headaches can bring about a lot of stress on you, one of the best things you can do to help yourself is to destress in warm water.

Take Magnesium

There is evidence that suggests that people who have a magnesium deficiency are likely to experience frequent migraine headaches. An easy way to combat this issue is to take magnesium supplements. The magnesium mineral has proved to be a safe and efficient remedy for pain relief when it comes to migraines. it is reccomended to take magnesium in smaller doses because in some people, magnesium can cause digestive side effects such as diarrhea. You can easily find magnesium supplements online or at your local vitamin shop!

Reduce Electronic Use

It’s pretty common in today’s society for almost everyone to own a smartphone or some other kind of electronic device. What many may not know, however, is that gadgets like smartphones, tablets, and laptops produce blue light, which can prove harmful in the long run. Blue light surrounds us daily, both indoors and outdoors; the sun produces blue light and our electronic devices only produce a fraction of the sun’s blue light. You may be thinking “If the sun produces more blue light, can the blue light from our electronics really be that bad?” The answer is: overtime, yes. Although the sun’s exposure of blue light is presumably bigger, the amount of time you spend in front of an electronic device is oftentimes much longer, while being much more closer to your body, increasing your risk as time goes on. If you’ve ever found that you tend to get headaches after spending too much time in front of a screen, blue light is to blame. The best way to help this issue is to try and avoid spending so much time in front of an electronic screen. The easiest way to keep track of this is to check your “screen time” hours in the settings on your smartphone to become aware of just how much you use your device. Reduce your blue light exposure and you’ll see your headaches begin to decrease!

Get Better Sleep

There is such a thing as too little and too much sleep. Getting less than six hours of sleep and more than nine can not only leave you feeling extremely tired, but it can also cause severe headaches. Doctors recommend you get between seven and nine hours of sleep a night, otherwise you’ll find it hard to perform your daily tasks as well and you may experience frequent headaches. Once you improve your sleep schedule, frequent headaches will become a thing of the past!

Try Using Essential Oils

Essential oils are often used to promote relaxation, relieve stress, and reduce tension. If you have an essential oil diffuser, you can try using peppermint or lavender essential oils as they’ve shown to be helpful in reducing tension headache and migraine symptoms. You can easily find essential oils online or in stores.

Use a Cold Compress

Applying a cold or frozen compress to your head can help reduce headache symptoms. The cold decreases inflammation, constricts blood vessels, and it slows nerve conduction. Not to mention, applying cold to pain always brings a feeling of ease! There are a variety of cold compress methods you can use such as ice packs, cold gel packs, or store brand hot/cold reusable compresses.

Drink Caffeinated Beverages

If you’re a tea and coffee fan then this poses as the perfect remedy for you! Caffeine has been shown to increase alertness, constrict blood vessels, and even improve mood. Additionally, if you take ibuprofen or acetaminophen, caffeine can help increase the effectiveness of the medicine. One thing to look out for however, is being overly reliant on caffeine. If it is a frequent part of your routine, you may experience caffeine withdrawal when going without it. This withdrawal symptom can be a main source of headaches, so It’s important to be mindful of your caffeine intake and only do what’s good for you!

Headaches can truly be a pain in the butt. A lot of the time, your headache comes from your lifestyle choices, so the simple solution is to reduce the problem. On the other hand, when a headache is random and unexplainable, it’s helpful to know there are a variety of natural solutions out there. We hope that these tips work just as good for you as they have for others!