Many people find it difficult to tell the difference between tension headaches and migraines.
The most notable differences lie in the quality of the pain, accompanying symptoms, and triggering factors. Migraines are often more intense and accompanied by additional symptoms such as nausea and light sensitivity, which are not typical for tension headaches.
Read more about migraine or tension headache.
If at least 2 of criteria 1-4 and the accompanying symptoms are present, it is likely a migraine.
As can be seen from the table, there are many different levels of severity for both tension headaches and migraines, both in terms of pain intensity and accompanying symptoms. For the individual, the episodes can also vary from time to time. So, even if you experience both mild and severe headache attacks, you do not necessarily have both tension headaches and migraines.
Migraines and tension headaches can be triggered by different factors in some people. The triggers experienced vary from person to person; the most common triggers are listed below
If headaches are frequent, severe, or accompanied by other symptoms such as visual disturbances or numbness, it is important to seek medical help for a correct diagnosis and treatment.
Read more about when you should seek medical help here.
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