Headaches are indeed troublesome, especially for moms. Your headaches might come and go throughout the day, week, or even the month. Trying to corral little ones, and dealing with those daily mom tasks may be the cause of your headaches.
The daily mom grind may be keeping your headaches around longer than you would like as well. Let’s face it, moms with young children are sleep-deprived, stressed, and in a multitasking spiral.
All of which can put you at risk for more headaches than usual. Let’s focus on causes and some at home solutions to get those headaches to subside.
Is it Your Vision or Children Causing Daily Headaches?
There is no denying that your children are probably not completely innocent when it comes to your headaches. However, your vision could be the problem instead. Maybe you have been too busy to get to the eye doctor for a new prescription, thus causing headaches.
Moms are extraordinary humans, but their own physical and mental health may be neglected for the care of their child. If you are one of these moms, carving out time to see your family optometrist is vital. Those old eyeglasses or contacts could be causing your headaches.
Daily Headaches Could Put You at Risk for Poor Mental Health
The daily routine of keeping your kids safe and entertained can make you prone to headaches. And those headaches can transform into serious vision problems. In fact, you may be putting your mental health at risk.
Your headaches could turn into full-blown migraines over time if left to fester. And your brain may pay the price. Migraines are a serious medical issue that can lead to stroke and white lesions in the brain.
Researchers at Leiden University Medical Centre in The Netherlands discovered a rare, but possible connection between migraines and long term mental health issues. The study, published in academic journal Headache (2008) found migraines to be the cause of “silent brain damage.”
The Mom Catch-22 for Headaches and 4 Simple Solutions
Though being mom is part of the headache conundrum, your vision and eye health plays a role as well. And headaches can also put you at risk for other vision related health problems. It is simply a catch-22 for moms. But there are solutions you can put into action to help quell those bothersome daily headaches.
Relax and loosen your neck. Your head and eyes are constantly tense as you chase your little ones around the house or park. A stiff neck could be causing those daily headaches. To relax your neck and keep it loose, slowly tilt your head back while sitting until you are staring straight up. You can easily do this while breastfeeding if you’re a new mom as well.
Eat some food. There are just not enough hours in the day for moms to get everything done. You may be getting ready for bed and realize you hadn’t eaten all day. Low blood sugar may be causing your headaches, so eating small meals while being a mom is very important to keep headaches away.
Carve out time to exercise. Exercise is essential to your physical and mental health, and these are essential elements to being a good mom. Get to the gym if possible and get in aerobic activity to battle daily headaches. You can even speed up those stroller walks and get some much-needed exercise.
Have a coffee. Recent research suggests that a few cups of coffee per day are healthy. In fact, for most Americans, coffee is the highest source of antioxidants in the daily diet. A cup of coffee could be a simple and delicious solution for your headaches, but drink responsibly.
Understanding the source of your daily headaches is the best first step. It may be a vision issue, or it could be a combination of daily mom responsibilities causing those headaches. Don’t neglect your eye health, because your kids will need you sharp for years to come.
About the Author
Tara Heath is a 37 year old health professional and works as a freelancer writer in the evenings. Her writing focuses mainly on health, such as skincare and how to live a healthy lifestyle overall. She lives in Burbank, Ca. with her husband and two beautiful daughters ages eight and twelve.
My 13yo is slowly beginning to realize on her own that many of her headaches come from not wearing her glasses/contacts. Silly girl…
Thank you for sharing this. My son is complaining of headaches, and I didn’t even think about checking his vision.