Why Does My Head Hurt There? Different Types of Headaches and How to Get Rid of Them

If you’ve ever wondered why headache relief that works for your friend does absolutely nothing for you, the answer is probably this: you have different headache types, and they need completely different fixes.

Knowing your type of headache is the actual shortcut. This post breaks down every major headache type by where (or when) it hurts, what’s causing it, and exactly how to get rid of a headache based on what you’re actually dealing with.

No generic advice. No “just relax.” Let’s get into it.

The Forehead Squeeze: Tension Headache Relief

Where: A tight band across your forehead, sometimes wrapping around to the back of your skull. Like someone put a headband on two sizes too small.

When it hits: After staring at screens for hours, during a stressful workday, or when you’ve been clenching your jaw and didn’t even notice.

What’s causing it: Muscle tension in your neck, scalp, and shoulders. Your trapezius muscle (that big one between your neck and shoulders) is basically pulling on everything above it.

How to get rid of this headache:

Press your thumbs firmly into the two small divots at the base of your skull (the suboccipital points) and hold for 30 seconds. Release slowly. Repeat twice. This is one of the most effective pressure points for headaches and it works fast.
Apply a warm compress to the back of your neck, not your forehead. The tension lives back there.
Take 400mg of magnesium glycinate. Tension headaches are often a magnesium deficiency in disguise. You can find a good one here.
For something instant: Tiger Balm on your temples and the back of your neck. The cooling sensation interrupts the pain signal and gives you that headache relief instant feeling that ibuprofen alone takes too long to deliver. Grab Tiger Balm here.

For a deeper dive into natural remedies, check out How to Get Rid of a Headache: 12 Natural Remedies for Fast Headache Relief.

The Eye Stabber: Cluster Headache Type

Where: Behind or around ONE eye. Usually the right or left, never both. It can feel like something is trying to escape through your eye socket.

When it hits: Often at the same time every day, sometimes waking you up in the middle of the night. Cluster headaches are weirdly punctual. They tend to come in cycles of weeks or months, then disappear completely.

What’s causing it: Nobody fully understands cluster headaches yet, but they’re linked to the hypothalamus (your brain’s internal clock), which is why they’re so eerily timed. Alcohol and strong smells can trigger them during an active cycle.

How to relieve this headache:

High-flow oxygen therapy is the most effective option. If you get these regularly, ask your doctor about it. It’s not dramatic; it can stop an episode in 15 minutes or less.
During a cluster cycle, cut alcohol completely. Even one drink can trigger an episode within an hour.
Apply an ice pack directly to the eye area. Cluster headaches respond to cold, not heat, which is the opposite of most headache types.
Melatonin at 10mg before bed has shown real promise in reducing cluster frequency. You can find it here.

If you’re getting these regularly, see a neurologist. There are very effective preventive treatments available that your regular doctor might not think to offer.

The Throbbing Side: Migraine Headache Relief

Where: Often one side of your head, deep behind the eye or temple. The pain is pulsing, not constant. Sometimes it shifts sides, and sometimes it’s both.

When it hits: Right before your period. After a night of bad sleep. When the weather changes. After one too many glasses of wine. When you skipped a meal and then had coffee on an empty stomach.

What’s causing it: Migraines are a neurological event, not just “a really bad headache.” They involve a wave of electrical activity across the brain followed by changes in blood vessels. Hormonal shifts, dehydration, blood sugar crashes, and sleep disruption are the main triggers. For everything you need to know about this specific headache type, The Ultimate Guide to Migraine Relief has you completely covered.

The thing most people don’t know: Migraines come with a warning phase called the prodrome, which can show up 24 hours before the pain hits. You might feel unusually tired, crave specific foods, yawn constantly, or feel emotionally off. If you catch it here, you can often stop the migraine before it starts.

How to get rid of a migraine:

At the prodrome stage: Take ibuprofen with a full glass of water and a small snack. Lie down in a dark room for 20 minutes. Catching it early can mean skipping the whole thing.

Once it’s already happening:

Excedrin Migraine (an aspirin, acetaminophen, and caffeine combo) tends to kick in faster than ibuprofen alone for many people. You can find it here.
Put an ice pack on the back of your neck and a warm pack on your feet at the same time. It sounds odd, but it works by redirecting blood flow away from your head.
A dark, cold, completely quiet room. Earplugs if you have them. Even 20 minutes of this can take the edge off enough to function.
Peppermint essential oil applied to the temples is a genuinely effective natural headache reliever; clinical studies show pain reduction comparable to acetaminophen for mild to moderate migraines. This is one of the most popular essential oils for headaches for a reason (check out my post on essential oils for headaches for oils recommended according to your type of headache!).
Find peppermint essential oil here.

For prevention: Magnesium, Riboflavin (B2 at 400mg per day), and CoQ10 are the three supplements with the strongest evidence for reducing migraine frequency. Give them three months before deciding they don’t work.

Some people also use a piercing that helps with migraines. Check out my post on daith piercings if you are curious about it.

The Sinus Pressure Bomb: Sinus Headache Remedy

Where: Across your cheekbones, behind your nose, sometimes your forehead. The pressure feels like your face is completely full. Bending forward makes it noticeably worse.

When it hits: During allergy season, after a cold, in dry weather, or when you fly.

What’s causing it: Inflammation and congestion in your sinus cavities. The air pressure inside your sinuses can’t equalize and it pushes on everything surrounding it.

Important: Most “sinus headaches” people self-diagnose are actually migraines. True sinus headaches come with congestion, colored mucus, and sometimes a low fever. If you have those symptoms: it’s sinus. If you have light sensitivity and nausea: it’s migraine. The headache remedy is completely different for each.

Home remedies for actual sinus headaches:

Neti pot with warm saline solution. Yes, it feels strange the first time. Yes, it works almost immediately. Use distilled or boiled water only, never tap. You can find a neti pot here.
Steam inhalation: fill a bowl with just-boiled water, add 3 drops of eucalyptus oil (one of the best essential oils for headaches caused by sinus pressure), drape a towel over your head, and breathe for 10 minutes. Your sinuses will open up.
Press on your sinus pressure points: the bridge of your nose, just below your eyebrows at the inner corner, and the cheekbones directly below your pupils. Hold each spot for 30 seconds with firm circular pressure.
A humidifier in your bedroom if you live in a dry climate. Dry air is a silent sinus headache factory running every night. Find a good bedroom humidifier here.

The Morning Skull Crusher: Dehydration Headache Relief

Where: Usually all over, or at the base of the skull. Dull, heavy, and already there before you’ve even opened your eyes properly.

When it hits: First thing in the morning, before you’ve had anything to eat or drink. Sometimes after a night of drinking. Sometimes, frustratingly, after sleeping too long.

What’s causing it: You just went 7-9 hours without water. Your brain actually slightly pulls away from the skull lining when you’re dehydrated, and that tension is your headache. Alcohol makes this dramatically worse because it’s a diuretic.

How to stop this headache fast:

Before you even sit up: drink 500ml of water. Start keeping a water bottle on your nightstand tonight.
Add a small pinch of sea salt and a squeeze of lemon to that water. Electrolytes help your cells actually absorb the water rather than flushing it straight through. Electrolyte packets make this really easy.
Eat something with protein and a little sodium within 30 minutes of waking. Your blood sugar is low after a night of fasting and that compounds dehydration headaches significantly.
If it’s a hangover headache: ibuprofen with food, coconut water, and a banana. Repeat water every hour until it shifts.

It Starts in Your Neck: Cervicogenic Headache Type

Where: Starts at the base of your skull, radiates up one side of your head. Sometimes reaches behind one eye. It’s always one-sided and not symmetrical.

When it hits: After sleeping in a strange position. After hours at a desk with your screen too low. After scrolling on your phone with your neck dropped down (text neck is completely real and very underrated as a headache cause).

What’s causing it: This headache type is actually coming from your cervical spine, not your head. The nerves at the top of your neck refer pain upward into your skull, which is why it feels like a head problem when the root cause is in your neck.

How to relieve this headache:

The chin tuck exercise: sit upright, pull your chin straight back (like you’re making a double chin on purpose), hold for 5 seconds, repeat 10 times. This resets the top of your cervical spine and is one of the most underrated pressure points for headaches of this type.
Ice to the base of the skull for 15 minutes, followed by slow neck stretches: ear to shoulder on each side, held for 30 seconds.
A cervical contour pillow for sleeping. If you consistently wake up with this headache, your pillow is probably the problem. Find a cervical support pillow here.
A physical therapist who works with cervicogenic headaches can often resolve them in 3-4 sessions. Worth it if this is a chronic pattern for you.

The 2 PM Wall: Afternoon Energy Crash Headache

Where: Temples or behind the eyes. Shows up at roughly the same time every single day, usually between 2 and 4 PM.

When it hits: Like clockwork, every afternoon. You can feel it building before it actually arrives.

What’s causing it: One of three things, or all three at once: caffeine dependency (your morning coffee wore off), a blood sugar crash from lunch, or accumulated dehydration through the day. The 2 PM window is also when cortisol naturally dips, which lowers your pain threshold.

How to get rid of this headache fast:

Check whether the headache lands about 6 hours after your last coffee. If yes, you’re dealing with a caffeine dependency headache. The fix is either a small afternoon coffee (half a cup, not a full one) or slowly reducing your morning intake over two weeks.
Eat a lunch with protein and fat, not just carbs. A big bowl of plain pasta will spike and crash your blood sugar, and the crash arrives right on time at 2 PM wearing your headache like a hat.
Set a water alarm for noon. Most people drink well in the morning and completely forget through the afternoon. By 2 PM they’re already significantly behind on hydration.

The Start-of-Period Headache

Where: One side of your head, sometimes both. Throbbing and deep, often paired with cramps, fatigue, and the distinct feeling that the universe is against you.

When it hits: Right at the start of your period, usually day 1 or day 2.

What’s causing it: This one is almost entirely hormonal. Estrogen drops sharply in the 24-48 hours before your period begins, and that sudden drop is a direct migraine trigger. Prostaglandins (the inflammatory chemicals responsible for cramps) also spike at the start of your cycle and can independently trigger head pain. It’s essentially a double hit: your hormones crash and your body is inflamed at the same time.

How to get rid of this headache:

The single most effective move is preemptive ibuprofen. Take it the day before your period is due, with food. Starting it before the prostaglandins fully kick in means you’re ahead of the pain rather than chasing it.
Magnesium glycinate in the week leading up to your period is one of the best natural remedies for this specific headache type. It stabilizes the nervous system response to estrogen drops. You can find magnesium glycinate here.
Stay hydrated and keep your blood sugar stable on day 1. Skipping meals when you’re already hormonal and cramping is a fast track to a much worse headache.
A cooling eye mask in a dark room goes a long way as a quick headache remedy when the pain has already started. Find a cooling eye mask here.
If these are debilitating every single month, it’s worth asking a gynecologist specifically about menstrual migraines. There are targeted options available that make a real difference.

For more on managing everything that comes with your cycle, The Ultimate Guide to Period Cramps Relief is a good companion read to this one.

The Period Exit Headache: Menstrual Migraine That Lingers

Where: Usually one side of your head, throbbing and deep. Often comes with fatigue, lingering bloating, and a general “I thought this was supposed to be over” energy.

When it hits: Around day 4 of your period and continuing for 2-3 days after your period ends. This is the one most people don’t see coming and can’t explain.

What’s actually happening: Most people expect period headaches at the beginning of their cycle. But the day-4-and-beyond wave is a different beast. After estrogen bottoms out at the start of your period, your body starts bringing it back up. If that estrogen rebound is too fast, too slow, or unstable, your nervous system reacts. The headache isn’t from your period anymore; it’s from the hormonal fluctuation on the way out of it.

This is extremely common. It is also extremely under-discussed.

What’s causing it specifically:

The estrogen rebound on the tail end of your cycle is unstable and the nervous system is sensitive to it
Low iron from blood loss by day 3-4 means your brain is getting slightly less oxygen than usual
Prostaglandin levels stay elevated for several days past the start of bleeding

How to relieve this headache and stop it from taking over your week:

Start tracking your cycle and your headaches together using an app like Clue or Flo. Mark every headache day for two to three months. Once the pattern is visible, you can actually get ahead of it.

Before day 4 hits:

Begin preemptive ibuprofen with food the day before you usually get the headache. This approach, called mini-prophylaxis, can significantly reduce severity or prevent the headache entirely.
Add iron-rich foods every day during your period: pumpkin seeds, dark chocolate, lentils, spinach. Low iron by day 3-4 is a major silent trigger. An iron supplement with vitamin C helps with absorption.

Once it’s already happening:

Magnesium glycinate is your best natural headache reliever for estrogen fluctuation headaches. Take it the moment you feel it building. Find it here.
A castor oil pack on your lower abdomen while lying down with an ice pack on your neck. It reduces prostaglandin-driven inflammation and genuinely takes the edge off the whole thing. Castor oil packs are easy to find here.
Avoid red wine, aged cheese, and processed meats entirely during your period week. These contain tyramine, which amplifies estrogen fluctuation headaches fast.
If you’re on hormonal birth control and still dealing with this, ask your doctor about formulations designed to keep estrogen more stable through the cycle.

The headaches that linger 2-3 days after your period ends usually peak on the last day of bleeding and the day after.

Managing iron and magnesium consistently through your cycle tends to make these tail-end headaches significantly milder. If they’re debilitating every month, a gynecologist or neurologist who specializes in hormonal migraines can prescribe targeted options for your specific cycle window. This is not a “just deal with it” situation.

The One Thing Behind Almost All of Them

Magnesium deficiency is quietly behind more headache types than most people realize; tension headaches, migraines, hormonal headaches, even some cluster patterns.

Most adults are deficient because we don’t get enough through food alone, and stress depletes it fast. Taking 400mg of magnesium glycinate before bed is one of the highest-leverage natural remedies you can try if you get headaches more than twice a week. You can find a good magnesium glycinate supplement here.

Give it six weeks. Your headache frequency will tell you everything.

This post is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. If you experience severe, sudden, or frequent headaches, please consult a healthcare professional.

More Ways to Get Rid of Headaches

Whether you’re dealing with one specific headache type or just want to go deeper on headache relief remedies and natural remedies that actually work, these posts have everything you need:

Save this guide to headache types!