Nothing can ruin your day faster than getting a bad headache at work. Headaches make it difficult to focus and can thus make the workday feel endless. Anyone who has experienced head pain at office understands how debilitating even a mild tension headache can be. Fortunately, there are many headache remedies that can provide relief and help you make it through the day. Let’s take a look at a few things you can do to prevent painful headaches at the office. Offices are full of potential headache triggers. If you’ve been dealing with headaches while at work, learn some great remedies anyone can use.

Get plenty of sleep

It’s hard to overemphasize the value of getting enough sleep. Unfortunately, in today’s culture, many people have adopted lifestyles that promote poor sleep habits. Headaches are often your body’s way of telling you it needs a break. When you get busy and resist taking adequate time to rest, your body will suffer and the potential for developing a migraine increases. Try to make it a priority to get 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. A tired mind and body will tend to break down, causing aches and pains that proper rest will help eliminate.

Drink plenty of water
 
Staying hydrated is important even when you haven’t been drinking alcohol. In fact, headaches are one of the primary signs of dehydration. Get in the habit of drinking plenty of fluids through the day. How much is enough? It’s recommended for adults to consume an average of 11 to 15 cups of water each day. After all, approximately 60 per cent of the human body is made up of water, thus hydration is vital for maintaining good health.

Dim the office lights

Many people aren’t aware of how much impact the lighting in your workspace can have on your eyes. This can include bright or flickering overhead lights, and even your computer screen. These light sources cause eye strain, and thus often result in tension headaches or migraines. There are a variety of solutions for this problem. Dim the overhead lights if possible. Cover the windows with blackout curtains during the day. Change the bulbs in your overhead lights to daylight-spectrum fluorescent bulbs. Dim the light on your computer screen, or add an anti-glare screen to your computer. You’ll be amazed at how much difference simple changes like reducing sources of eye strain can have on the number of headaches you experience in your workspace.

Practice relaxation techniques

Because stress is such a significant source of headaches, one of the more effective ways to reduce the occurrences of this sort of discomfort is to learn to relax your body. It’s important to learn relaxation techniques to use both at home and at the office. Techniques such as meditation, yoga, as well as progressive muscle relaxation exercises, help to clear your mind and bring your attention back to your breathing. Learning to centre yourself is healthy for both mind and body. Practising yoga at home helps to leave the stress of the day at the office, while meditation is ideal for reducing tension without leaving your desk. Mediation is quick, simple, and extremely effective.

Get an air purifier

The quality of the air in your office can greatly impact your health. Dust, dirt and other things too small to see with the naked eye get breathed into your body on a daily basis, which can cause a number of health-related issues. This probably sounds unpleasant, because it is. The good news is that placing an air purifier in your workspace is an effective way of reducing this issue.

Drink some caffeine

Believe it or not, caffeine is actually quite effective at preventing a full-blown headache from developing if you’re able to catch it early enough. Have some coffee, tea, or something else that contains caffeine. But try not to overdo it because most of us are very aware that caffeine withdraw can often result in a headache all on its own.

Try using a heating pad or a cold pack

It really all depends on the type of headache you have. Migraines tend to respond best to placing a cold pack on your forehead. Wrap some ice cubes in a towel or use a bag of frozen peas, and hold the cold compress on your head, alternating off and on in 15 minutes increments. For a tension headache, you’ll want to place a heating pad on the back on your head or on your neck. And for a sinus headache, use a warm cloth or try taking a warm shower to reduce the pain. So the next time you feel a headache coming on at work, try one of these remedies and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the results. 

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