Many headaches, especially severe migraine or those caused by underlying medical conditions, are caused by factors outside your control. Though, there are often steps to take to reduce or eliminate the pain, the causes are not a matter of choice. But in some cases, the triggers that produce a headache, or at least up the odds, are in your direct control.

Posture is one of the most common contributors to headache pain, if not the actual cause, and one of the easiest to control. Though it requires self-reminding and discipline, it’s possible to make long-term changes to optimize posture and minimize headaches. Good posture helps keep muscles from tensing at the wrong time and in the wrong ways. It supports the skeleton and allows for efficient movement.

When standing, avoid standing for long periods with more weight on one foot than the other. A balanced stance allows for freedom of movement in any direction and avoids selective tension that can cause spinal misalignment. That misalignment is a common contributor to the causes of headaches.

Similar considerations apply to sitting. Sit up straight, but not so straight as to be over-tense. If working at the computer, keep the forearms straight ahead and the shoulders squared, with both feet flat on the floor. If you tend to have one foot up on the chair base, at least switch feet from time to time.

Stretch regularly. Keep the muscles loose and blood flowing well by gentle stretching on a regular basis throughout the day. In the morning, when muscles are more likely to be cold and stiff, ease into it especially slowly. Blood carries in nutrients and takes away used biochemical products. Warm, limber muscles helps optimize that process.

Stress is another major contributor to headaches. Even when not the direct cause, it can up the odds of getting one and worsen an existing headache. Before reaching for the drugs, practice some simple methods for minimizing stress.

Keep in mind that stress is a combination of internal and external factors. It isn’t just potentially unpleasant events that produce stress, but the evaluation of your own ability to deal with them. Stress is neither ‘all in the mind’, nor solely due to external circumstances. So the solution isn’t ‘mind over matter’ nor avoiding all potentially unpleasant situations.

Regular exercise and a good diet help reduce existing stress and decrease the odds of it occurring. Meditation techniques are helpful to many, though even just a few minutes of quiet deep breathing and focus on a peaceful memory can help considerably.

Lack of sleep is one of the potential triggers of migraine and other forms of headache. Get plenty of rest. Sleep deprivation can accumulate over time and it contributes to and heightens stress as well. Sometimes it’s necessary to push, but a lifestyle that precludes adequate sleep is unhealthy. Headaches are one inevitable result.

Depression, even in mild form, is another trigger. It also exacerbates headaches. Keep it at bay by working to keep an optimistic outlook. Just as in the case of stress, very few external circumstances are cause for prolonged depression. Everyone feels sad from time to time, but depression is a longer term negative outlook combined with a belief in one’s inability to cope. It can be altered over time with the proper philosophy.

Stay healthy in mind and body and headaches will be a rare and short-lived event.

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