“Sleep is nature’s way of treating almost any headache disorder,” Roger Cady, MD, said during a recent National Headache Foundation chat room. But what happens to that headache disorder when sleep is disrupted by insomnia, fidgety legs or difficulty breathing?
Just as painful headaches can keep a person awake at night, a lack of sleep or disrupted sleep can trigger headaches. To achieve better sleep and decrease associated headaches, it is important to first understand the underlying sleep disorders that could be triggering your headaches.
4 Sleep Disorders that Trigger Headache
Research shows that many common sleep disorders are associated with headaches:
INSOMNIA is considered a risk factor for tension-type headache. Research suggests this is also a bidirectional phenomenon: the pain of a nighttime headache or the use of sleep at odd hours to relieve a headache could keep sufferers from sleep at nighttime; conversely, that inability to sleep at regular intervals could lead to new headaches.
PARASOMNIAS, characterized by events during sleep that do not disrupt sleep (e.g., snoring, sleep-walking and sleep-talking), are more common among children with migraine and headache than children who do not experience headache. This connection has been observed, though researchers have not yet studied the reasoning behind this connection.
RESTLESS LEGS SYNDROME, characterized by a crawling or fidgety sensation in the legs during rest, is more prevalent among migraineurs. Researchers have proposed a number of theories for this connection, blaming the relationship on iron deficiency or comorbidity with depression, among other aggravating factors.
OBSTRUCTIVE SLEEP APNEA involves the collapse and obstruction of airways during sleep. People with sleep apnea frequently complain of morning headaches and, rarely, of headaches during sleep. But research suggests the condition could also trigger cluster headache; chronic paroxysmal hemicrania, a severe, frequent, one-sided headache; and hypnic headache, a regular headache that may awaken the sufferer from sleep and generally affects elderly people.
For people with sleep disorders and headache, treating the underlying sleep disorder could help improve an associated headache condition.
5 Tips for Better Sleep
- Schedule eight hours in bed every night and commit to a regular bedtime.
- Turn off devices at least one hour before bed.
- Avoid eating within four hours of bedtime.
- Don’t sleep in.
- Treat sleep disorders.
Reference:
1. Mitsikostas et al. “Sleep and Headache: The Clinical Relationship.” Headache. 2010;50(7):1233-1245.
