• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
NHS has shared official advice on when to seek help if you have a headache that won't go away

Home> News> Health

Published 18:43 10 Dec 2024 GMT

NHS has shared official advice on when to seek help if you have a headache that won't go away

You might want to get the once over off of your GP if you're experiencing persistent pain in your head

Olivia Burke

Olivia Burke

Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Photos

Topics: NHS, UK News, Health

Olivia Burke
Olivia Burke

Olivia is a journalist at LADbible Group with more than five years of experience and has worked for a number of top publishers, including News UK. She also enjoys writing food reviews (as well as the eating part). She is a stereotypical reality TV addict, but still finds time for a serious documentary.

X

@livburke_

Advert

Advert

Advert

Feeling under the weather in any aspect isn't fun for anyone, but when your head is pounding incessantly, it's a whole different ball game.

It might be a common ailment which usually subsides within a short period of time, but occasionally, it seems as though they are never going to go away. And as a lot of us simply cannot think straight when our foreheads are thumping in pain, headaches can be quite the inconvenient occurrence.

The NHS explains that headaches can last 30 minutes, several hours, or sometimes several days - so you never know how long it could take to get rid of one.

But most of the time, they go away on their own and are not a sign of something more serious.

Advert

There's nothing worse than being struck down by a hellish headache (Getty Stock Photo)
There's nothing worse than being struck down by a hellish headache (Getty Stock Photo)

Why do we get headaches?

There are a myriad of reasons why you might get a headache - such as stress, illness, bad posture, issues with your eyesight, missing meals and hitting the booze too hard.

Brits who seem to be getting them on a regular basis are advised to keep a 'headache diary' to try and help work out their triggers.

But don't panic and rush to book a GP appointment if you've randomly got a banging headache one day, as it's often nothing sinister.

Advert

Drinking plenty of water, getting some rest, avoiding stress and dosing yourself with some painkillers can do you the world of good when a headache is giving you hell.

However, the NHS says that you should check in with your doctor if you fall into any of these following categories and the pain just won't budge no matter what you try.

You should see a GP if:

  • your headache keeps coming back
  • painkillers do not help and your headache gets worse
  • you have a bad throbbing pain at the front or side of your head – it could be a migraine or, more rarely, a cluster headache
  • you feel sick, vomit and find light or noise painful
  • you regularly get headaches before or during your period
The NHS shared advice for Brits to follow if their pain won't budge (Getty Stock Photo)
The NHS shared advice for Brits to follow if their pain won't budge (Getty Stock Photo)

Advert

These symptoms could indicate that something more concerning might be going on inside your body - so put your mind, and hopefully your head, at ease by going to the doctors.

If you are also experiencing jaw pain when you are eating, blurred or double vision, sore scalp or numbness in your arms and legs, you need an urgent appointment with your GP.

But in some specific headache-related circumstances, you should call 999 or head straight to A&E instead.

For example, if you have a head injury or a headache that came on suddenly and is extremely painful, it's best to get checked out as soon as you can. You should head to the hospital if you also start having communication problems, loss of vision, a very high temperature, drowsiness and confusion, too.

As well as this, the NHS states that if you are experiencing a headache and the white part of your eye is red, you should head to A&E to confirm everything is hunky dory.

Choose your content:

24 mins ago
an hour ago
2 hours ago
  • BBC
    24 mins ago

    Mum of autistic volunteer ‘sacked’ from Waitrose after she asked for him to be paid shares more details

    The incident has since gone viral on social media

    News
  • SDO/NASA via Getty Images
    an hour ago

    'Potentially hostile alien threat' will soon reveal its origin as it passes by the sun

    The comet 3I/ATLAS, which many still believe to be a form of alien spacecraft, may reveal its origin as it passes behind the sun out of view

    News
  • Getty Stock Image
    an hour ago

    UK health body issues ‘wear mask’ warning as four nasty illnesses surge nationwide

    Brits are being advised to consider wearing a mask when going outside

    News
  • GoFundMe
    2 hours ago

    All signs and symptoms of bowel cancer explained as mum who died following diagnosis shared ones she ignored

    Krystal Maeyke, 39, admitted she didn't think her symptoms were 'anything sinister'

    News
  • NHS has list of nine questions to work out if you drink too much alcohol
  • NHS issues advice about what to do if you see blood while blowing your nose
  • Soaring cases of HMPV in UK as NHS asks people to stay away if they notice the symptoms
  • NHS share official advice on what to do if you notice ‘silent killer’ show up in your house