Self Help

Although headaches are not life threatening, they are extremely troublesome both emotionally and financially. Even an occasional mild headache is disturbing enough to make work more difficult or to take the enjoyment out of your favorite leisure activity.

A severe headache can be completely debilitating, preventing the sufferer from doing any work or routine activity. In addition, depression and irritability frequently accompany chronic headaches, which may impose a burden on the patient’s family and lead to a significantly decreased quality of life.

Chronic headache disorders cause much greater impairment of function than had previously been suspected. The reality is that patients with chronic headaches may be able to function physically, but they function at a level considerably below their capabilities.

The level of impairment in terms of lost in productivity or the ability to take care of everyday needs is similar to that of patients with heart diseases. Many studies have been conducted to assess the overall impact of headaches on today’s society, including medical costs, lost work time, family relationships, and overall quality of life. Although results vary widely due to different methods of gathering data and evaluation, even the most conservative estimates confirm that headaches present a big problem whose burden cannot be underestimated.

Below are some astounding statistics:

1. It is estimated that between 5 to 10% of North Americans occasionally seek medical help for relief from disabling headaches.

2. A survey conducted in Denmark in 1987 determined that 19% of adults had suffered from at least one headache during the fourteen-day period before the survey. A survey in the United Kingdom revealed similar results in 1971.

3. Nearly 10 million people in the United States suffer from regular migraine headaches; and 40% of people in North America have occasional migraines.

4. A study in Nigeria concluded that 60% of university students have recurrent headaches.

5. On average, 55% of migraine sufferers miss two workdays per month. In addition, 88% of sufferers work more than five days per month despite having a migraine.

6. Approximately 85% of female migraine sufferers and 77% of male migraine sufferers see a physician at some point for their migraine headaches.

7. According to a 1989 survey of a sample population in the United States, 95% of women and 91% of men suffer from headaches at some point during their lifetime.

8. In the United States, headaches cost an estimated $50 billion each year. The cost to business in lost productivity is approximately $6 billion to $17 billion a year.