Overview

Medication overuse headaches — also known as rebound headaches — are caused by the long-term use of medicines to treat headaches such as migraines. Pain relievers offer relief for occasional headaches. But if you take them more than a couple of days a week, they may trigger headaches.

If you have a headache disorder such as migraine, most medicines you take for pain relief can have this effect. However, this doesn’t appear to be true for people who have never had a headache disorder. In people without a history of headaches, taking pain relievers regularly for another condition such as arthritis hasn’t been shown to cause medication overuse headaches.

Medication overuse headaches usually go away when you stop taking pain medicine. This can be challenging in the short term. But your health care provider can help you find ways to beat medication overuse headaches for the long-term.

Symptoms

Symptoms of medication overuse headaches may vary. They can depend on the type of headache being treated and the medicine used. Medication overuse headaches tend to:

• Occur every day or nearly every day. They often wake you in the early morning.
• Improve with pain medicine but then return as the medicine wears off.

Other symptoms may include:

• Nausea.
• Restlessness.
• Trouble concentrating.
• Memory problems.
• Irritability.

When to see a doctor

Occasional headaches are common. But it’s important to take headaches seriously. Some types of headaches can be life-threatening.

Seek immediate medical care if your headache:

• Is sudden and severe.
• Occurs with a fever, stiff neck, rash, confusion, seizure, double vision, weakness, numbness or trouble speaking.
• Follows a head injury.
• Gets worse despite rest and pain medicine.
• Is a new type of headache that’s persistent, especially in someone older than 50.
• Occurs with shortness of breath.
• Occurs when you’re upright but goes away if you’re lying flat.

Consult your health care provider if:

• You usually have two or more headaches a week.
• You take a pain reliever for your headaches more than twice a week.
• You need more than the recommended dose of nonprescription pain medicines to relieve your headaches.
• Your headache pattern changes.

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