Why do pregnant women have headaches and what to do about it?

When to call an ambulance

Urgently dial 103 or 112 if you have a sudden and severe headache and observed the following symptoms:

• consciousness gets tangled, or you feel like you’re about to lose it;
• pain intensifies within 5 minutes;
• speech has become slurred, words are drawn out;
• arms and legs become weaker, cramps begin;
• blood pressure increased (especially if this happened for the first time);
• body temperature has risen above 38.5, and this is accompanied by sensitivity to light and sound, nausea or vomiting, pain in the neck, inability to bend the head to the chest;
• increased heart rate at rest;
• severe shortness of breath appeared;
• the child pushes without stopping or suddenly calms down;
• My lower abdomen hurts, as if contractions have started.

Why pregnant women may have headaches

Headache during pregnancy is not always life-threatening. But you need to tell the doctor about it in any case. If the symptom appears for the first time and does not hurt much, postpone the conversation until your scheduled visit. If your headache is recurring or worsening, it is best to make an appointment as soon as possible. The gynecologist will decide what needs to be done or refer you to another doctor.

There are many causes of headaches. According to statistics, in pregnant women in 57% of cases it is primary, that is, not associated with other diseases. Most often these are migraines and tension headaches.

Everything else is a secondary headache, which is caused by various pathologies. Usually these are high blood pressure and infections. But there are also more dangerous reasons.

1. Stress and fatigue

A pregnant woman’s body experiences increased stress, because it must work for two. If at the same time the expectant mother is exposed to stress, strong emotions or sleeps little, she has appears tension headache.

Unpleasant sensations last from 30 minutes to several days. Headache in the forehead, back of the head, and both temples. But there is no feeling that you are wearing a tight hoop or helmet. The pain does not get worse when bending, walking or climbing stairs, or due to bright lights or sounds.

What to do

Tension headaches may go away on their own: enough go out into the fresh air or sleep. Sometimes pleasant emotions help and distract from worries.

If the pain persists for 2-3 days in a row, you should consult a doctor. He will select painkillers that are safe for the child.

2. Taking medications

Any medication that enters the stomach or bloodstream can cause headaches, even if the correct dosage is taken. In pregnant women, this often happens due to medications for high blood pressure, heart disease, antibiotics, and anticonvulsants.

If you take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for headaches for a long time, you may to appear the opposite effect: when the pills do not remove the symptoms, but provoke symptoms.

What to do

If your head hurts a few hours after taking the medicine, you need to see a doctor to change the medicine. You should not take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for more than 3-5 days. If they do not help, you need to tell the doctor about it.

3. Love or refusal of coffee

Headaches during pregnancy can be caused by taking or, conversely, refusing from coffee. Each body reacts to caffeine individually: the drink can provoke both a tension headache and a migraine, and for some, a cup of coffee can stop a migraine attack.

What to do

You should not abuse coffee during pregnancy. But if you are an avid coffee drinker, then it is better not to suddenly give up the drink. Try slow reduce amount of coffee and try other caffeinated drinks such as tea.

4. Infection with fever

In acute viral (usually ARVI) or bacterial (for example, streptococcal sore throat) infections, the body temperature rises and a headache appears. This is a normal reaction to foreign microorganisms.

But for pregnant women, any infection dangerous. It can cause fetal defects, delayed development, and even miscarriage. And with meningitis, especially listeria, there is a threat to the mother’s life.

What to do

If you have a headache with fever, you should call a doctor. He will prescribe safe medications or give a referral to the hospital if a severe infection is suspected. In this case needed strong antibiotics, IVs to maintain the body and sometimes hormones.

5. Preeclampsia and preeclampsia

After 20 weeks, pregnant women are at risk of developing gestosis. This diseasein which one of three symptoms or a combination of them may appear: high blood pressure, swelling and protein in the urine.

Without proper treatment, gestosis progresses to preeclampsia. The pressure rises sharply, the head and lower abdomen hurt unbearably, the baby pushes unusually hard or, conversely, suddenly goes quiet. Preeclampsia can lead to placental abruption, damage to the liver and other organs, bleeding, and even seizures. Without urgent medical care, the fetus and mother die.

What to do

When the first signs of gestosis appear, the pregnant woman is hospitalized to select treatment. After this, she is discharged home under the supervision of her gynecologist.

But if the state of health worsens, the doctor refers the woman again in hospital, where she is prescribed medications to lower blood pressure and special droppers to maintain the functioning of the body. If improvement does not occur within 24 hours, a caesarean section is performed.

6. Migraine

To understand whether you have a migraine or not, you should answer three questions about your headache:

Question 1: Has your headache limited your activities for a day or more during the past 3 months?
Question 2: Do you experience nausea or vomiting during headaches?
Question 3: Do lights or sounds bother you when you have a headache?

If two out of three answers are positive, then it is probably a migraine.

Migraine headaches are very severe and become even more intense with physical activity. It is often provoked by cyclic fluctuations estrogen levels. Typically, in 50–70% of women, migraine without aura improves during pregnancy. Migraine with aura becomes easier in approximately 40% of patients. Improvement occurs after the first trimester, starting from the 12th–14th week of pregnancy. This is due to the fact that by the beginning of the second trimester, estrogen levels increase sixfold, and its fluctuations stop.

What to do

Any medications for migraines during pregnancy should be prescribed by a doctor. In some cases they use drugs from the group of beta blockers.

Research showedthat migraines in pregnant women are often associated with a lack of magnesium. The doctor will help you choose the appropriate vitamin and mineral complex and its dosage.

7. Cerebrovascular diseases

In some pregnant women, due to problems with hormones, blood clotting increases, and this increases risk thrombosis, stroke or meningeal hemorrhage. These conditions are very dangerous: a woman can die within a few minutes or remain disabled.

Vascular damage is always accompanied by several symptoms:

• sharp headache on one side;
• nausea and vomiting;
• blurred vision;
• loss of consciousness;
• convulsions.

What to do

Call an ambulance immediately. The pregnant woman must be laid down or seated so that she does not hit herself when she falls. You can’t give medicine! You can only open the window so that there is more air in the room.

What treatment will appoint doctor, depends on the specific disease. These may be drugs that reduce blood clotting and dissolve blood clots. In some cases, urgent surgery is needed.

8. Brain tumors

Research showthat progesterone and estrogens during pregnancy can provoke or accelerate the growth of tumors in the brain. Symptoms of the disease appear slowly, over several months, and depend on the size and location of the tumor.

The headache may gradually intensify, then vision, speech, hearing deteriorate, limbs go numb and convulsions appear. Sometimes it is difficult for a woman to maintain balance.

What to do

If a pregnant woman often has a headache or she forgets what she wanted to buy in the store and how to cook her favorite borscht, or gets confused on the way home, you need to go to a neurologist. First, he will prescribe standard treatment, simple and safe medications, rest, and proper sleep.

If this does not help, the symptoms do not disappear or get worse, you will need a deep examination. The pregnant woman will be sent for an MRI of the brain. This procedure is safe for the fetus. If the diagnosis is confirmed, surgery may be required.

What to do if the doctor cannot find the cause of the pain

If you have been examined, and the doctor cannot say why your head hurts, and diagnoses “vegetative-vascular dystonia,” this is a reason to be wary. There is no such disease.

Look for another doctor. Perhaps he uses new diagnostic methods that will help determine the cause of the problem and select treatment.

How to avoid headaches during pregnancy

Specialists recommend following:

• Avoid triggers. For example, if you notice that certain foods, smells or situations cause headaches, try not to encounter them.
• Protect yourself from stress, don’t worry about trifles.
• Move more. During pregnancy, walk outdoors every day and do special exercises for expectant mothers.
• Right eat. Try to eat a lot of vegetables and fruits, dairy products, and drink at least 2.4 liters of liquid. Every day the menu should include fish, poultry or lean meat. It’s better not to buy sweets, fast food and other unhealthy foods.
• Observe daily regime. You need to sleep at least 8 hours a day and go to bed no later than 22-23 hours so that melatonin is produced normally.
• Learn to relax. Learn simple meditation techniques or breathing exercises.