Lots of folks make light of the fact that their partners turn down sexual activity due to headaches.
But a headache after sex is no laughing matter.
Specifically if you have recurrent headaches either during or after sexual activity.
Headaches related to sexual activity are infrequent, with research in the general population showing account for between one and 1.6 percent of people.
Many individuals in their 40s experience this issue, regardless of gender.
As you get more excited, aroused, and just about to climax, the ache can become more intense, and the pain then reaches its peak when you orgasm.
If this type of pain is something that you can relate to, then you have come to the correct place.
We formulated a functional guide that will aid you in comprehending a sexual headache. Moreover, we included helpful wellness guidance on how to address the issue.
Here is all the relevant information regarding headaches that may occur during sexual climax.
What Is an Orgasm Headache?
A headache caused by sexual or self-stimulation can be known as an orgasm headache. The positioning of the headache will differ. However, usually, it affects both sides of the head. Those affected tend to have throbbing or pounding aches.
There are two primary kinds of headaches correlated with sex, one being post-orgasmic and the other pre-orgasmic. Around four-fifths of headaches that occur during sexual activity are post-orgasmic, while one-fifth are pre-orgasmic.
Patients may experience intense or sudden headaches during or prior to having an orgasm. The headache caused by the peak of a situation can endure for anything between a few minutes and several hours or days. Studies have indicated that, while headaches can be experienced by both genders, the majority of those complaining of discomfort after climax are male.
It is typically not a cause for concern. However, the headache may be a warning sign of problems relating to the blood vessels. It is the case with a thunderclap headache. This rare condition appears suddenly, like a loud crash of thunder, thus its name.
It reaches its peak in about 1 minute. This is a serious medical issue that is usually associated with hemorrhage occurring in the brain or around it. If you experience intense headaches, which are accompanied by vomiting or nausea, it is recommended to reach out to a medical expert.
It is estimated that around one-third of individuals find that sexual activity can trigger or worsen migraine headaches. In approximately half of the cases, the cluster headaches could become more severe.
What Do Sex Headaches Feel Like?
A headache during climax can feel intense. Patients describe the mounting anticipation as if they had been hit on the back of the head with a bat of some kind.
A very severe headache after ejaculation can be such that it feels like a blood vessel has burst. However, it is actually impossible for sexual headaches to harm or injure the brain.
The headache at the beginning of ejaculation may be particularly intense. But, it tends to dissipate with time. The aches could be as short as a minute. Or they could stretch on for hours. People who are suffering may be remarkably sensitive to sound and light during that time.
Pre-orgasmic headaches, however, are slightly different. They appear when you begin feeling aroused. The pain could build up. Instead of striking suddenly, these headaches feel as if they are a continued, weak hurt.
Both pre-and post-orgasmic headaches are benign headaches. It implies that an illness being suffered from is not the reason for the issue.
A severe headache when reaching climax can also happen. The pain intensity can vary from person to person. The intensity of headaches is caused by an expansion of blood vessels in the brain due to a rise of blood pressure right before or during climax.
Who Gets Sex Headaches?
A person can experience a painful headache either before or following an orgasm. Many individuals who are experiencing the repercussions are between their late thirties and early forties. Men are significantly more likely to have this issue compared to women, being 3-4 times more likely to encounter it. Including those with a family history of migraines.
Around a quarter to almost one-half of those suffering from headaches caused by sexual activity are afflicted with migraines. Migraine patients can experience repetitive bouts of headaches that can last for a considerable amount of time, ranging from weeks to months. Patients without migraine tend to have shorter orgasm headaches.
Causes of Orgasm Migraine
A variety of reasons can result in headaches, including not drinking enough fluids or going through worrying life experiences. The operation of the heart and blood vessels has a large impact on both headache intensity and sexual activity. It is essential that all three components are functioning properly in order for climaxing to occur. If any one of the elements is not working correctly, headaches can be triggered.
Headaches are generally reported by people during sexual intercourse and they tend to be located on both sides and at the back of the skull. They can be categorized into two:
- Pre-orgasmically feels like a dull ache during mounting sexual excitement.
- Orgasmically, felt like a sudden, even explosive headache during or just before orgasm, then followed by throbbing sensations.
Orgasms involve extremely high levels of brain activity. People who are predisposed to headaches or are particularly sensitive to them may experience their headaches more intensely than usual during an orgasm, even if they do not usually feel them at any other time. The normally insignificant headache symptoms may become more pronounced and can be felt more strongly than when the person is not experiencing an orgasm.
Determining which elements are not involved in a headache associated with orgasm can aid in understanding what is and isn’t causing the discomfort.
Neuro-Musculoskeletal Issues
The one thing that all orgasms have in common is that they result in a combination of rhythmic, uncontrolled muscle spasms in the pelvic area, then followed by a period of reduced activity in the muscle fibers. The intensity of the contractions may fluctuate depending on the person and such contractions can occur almost anywhere on the body without any prompting.
Headaches brought on by a lot of neck tension can worsen during times of heavy sexual arousal prior to climax.
The throbbing and anguish might not be sensed until after intercourse because when someone is sexually active, there is an increase in dopamine and opiates which reduces agony. The more intimate the activity becomes, the less you are likely to pay attention to any small feelings of tension in your body because your attention would be more focused on the sexual encounter.
The contentment experienced in the pursuit of pleasure can hide the muscular and skeletal pain that would otherwise be a sign to work less, not more.
Cardiovascular Causes
Experiencing sexual arousal is similar to doing cardiovascular exercise in that it evaluates the flexibility and strength of your arteries. This is especially true of organs such as the penis and vagina, which have a tendency to become engorged with blood for a more lengthy amount of time.
It makes sense to assume that if cardiovascular difficulties are causing or intensifying headaches at the time of orgasm, then similar headaches would occur with cardio workouts.
It appears that the effort exerted during sex could serve as a catalyst for exertional headaches in people who are at risk of getting them.
Naturally, the level of exhilaration changes markedly throughout the sexual buildup, and achieving a climax is much more than a constant surge in your heart rate. The majority of sexual activities involve varying degrees of effort, alternating between intense exertion and taking deep breaths through the diaphragm.
Orgasms involve both a sense of restfulness and excitement, suggesting it is a combination of both.
In addition, especially among men (who almost always ejaculate during orgasm), the highlight of the orgasm is associated with the parasympathetic nervous system, and the erection of genital tissue is sympathetic.
The level of your aerobic functioning plays an important role in being able to achieve a pleasurable orgasm and then relax into the post-orgasmic feeling of freedom without putting an excessive strain on your vessels. Diminishing stress during intimate interaction not only relieves pressure on the brittle muscles of your neck and head (as gone over in the former section), but it also makes it easier for your cardiovascular system to adjust to the fluctuating requirements that are being asked of it.
Dietary Considerations
Making sure that you are sufficiently hydrated is a basic and essential action to take to make sure your body is ready for increased cardiac activity. The body produces more hormones and fluids when sexually aroused, yet it is less likely for someone to be diverted from their state of pleasurable trance because of this increase in bodily needs. Therefore, it is necessary to drink more water while experiencing sexual pleasure.
Don’t be afraid to take a break and grab a drink of water during intercourse, particularly if it’s going to last a while.
Eating habits are also a factor, and the food you have recently consumed can affect the way your body adjusts to the various levels of cardiovascular demand.
For instance, when engaging in vigorous physical activity, blood flow to the gastrointestinal system decreases by as much as 80%, so it’s probably wise to not eat while engaging in sexual activities. Instead of eating before the activity, it would be preferable to enjoy a meal afterward.
Having an adequate cardiac reserve is very important in order for your body to handle the sudden circulation changes that come with engaging in sexual activity. Your blood vessels need to be able to stretch and constrict to keep up with the quick changes in your blood flow. The appearance of headaches may be linked to limited circulation and certain sorts of spasms in one’s brain.
Sexual Fitness
When viewing sexual activity in the same way as an aerobic workout, it is unsurprising that people who stay fit usually have better enjoyment of sex.
It was commonly known that the Olympic Committee began to supply condoms to athletes in recent years, as they had come to realize that someone in peak physical shape was more likely to have a stronger libido.
It would be wise to think about the same things before you engage in sexual activity as you would before doing an endurance exercise. However, this does not need to take away from the romantic experience.
As well as consuming little food before sex, it is beneficial to have a brief time of light exercise to get the body accustomed to higher cardio needs. One way to boost heart rate before having sex is to do some form of physical activity beforehand. One can create more excitement in the bedroom by taking time for a slower, more drawn-out buildup through extended foreplay.
It is important not to rush in order to try to squeeze sex into a busy schedule. It might be necessary to set stricter limits to issues causing stress, if they are preventing you from having moments of not being tied down by obligations.
The link between cardiovascular health and migraines is well-established. One way to cope with orgasm-induced headaches is to focus on improving heart health for a greater gain in well-being and longer life instead of only for pleasure.
It was observed that those who experienced migraines with aura had a greater connection between migraine pain and heart-associated issues than those without this accompanying symptom.
Nutritional Considerations
Researchers speculate that migraines may be linked to high concentrations of homocysteine in the blood and that vitamins B6, B12, and folic acid could help to reduce it.
Riboflavin, a type of Vitamin B2, could potentially be a factor in the emergence of migraine due to its potential to impair the normal operations of mitochondria. Research has demonstrated that people dealing with migraine can experience improvement due to this treatment.
Interest has been piqued in the area of utilizing coenzyme Q10 for the potential remedy of migraines, as faults in mitochondrial functioning could be essential in explaining the origin of migraines. Research has suggested that there could be advantages in this setting, however, further extensive studies must be undertaken.
When to See a Doctor
Speak to your medical practitioner if the discomfort caused by the pressure disrupts your intimate life. A neurologist could be consulted to discover the optimum course of action. Be prepared to discuss all your symptoms during your appointment, such as how long they have been affecting you and how strong they are.
Make a list of all the things you have done to try to ease a headache and other health complaints that you have. If you recently had surgery or a very stressful experience, make sure to mention that.
Stressful things are the most impactful migraine triggers. They can cause headaches and keep it going.
Compose a list of any nutritional supplements or alternative treatments to reduce the pain you have experimented with. This can facilitate the doctor’s ability to determine what advice to provide in order to control the orgasm headache.
How Are They Diagnosed?
Prior to determining the issue, physicians will pose a set of queries to you. How quickly the headache set in after climaxing. What is the origin of headaches, and are there any factors exacerbating them? They can then suggest brain imaging. Such as a CT scan, MRI, or MRA.
If you have been experiencing a headache for less than two to three days and then have imaging done, a CT scan could determine if there is a blood clot, infection, or tumor. MRI can be used to determine the source of the issue, while MRA enables us to view every blood vessel in the head and neck area.
Treatment
Managing the headache depends on what’s causing the problem. An over-the-counter pain reliever may provide the necessary relief. Particularly indomethacin and ibuprofen. Your doctor can also prescribe as-needed or daily medication.
Some prescription meds could include beta-blockers and triptans. But, if the orgasm headache is linked with neurological complications, like vomiting, you might be having:
- Coronary heart disease.
- Side effects from the meds you are taking.
- Inflammation.
- Brain hemorrhage.
- Tumor.
- Aneurysm.
Your doctor will recommend the ideal management tactic. This could involve ceasing or beginning medications, having an operation, or receiving radiation therapy, etc.
Can You Prevent Sex Headaches?
Your doctor can recommend medications you can take on a regular basis which may help to avoid getting sex headaches in the future. Besides that, there isn’t much else you can do to stop them. You can attempt to discontinue having intercourse prior to the orgasm or take on a more sedentary role.
Conclusion
Not all orgasm headaches are the same. Some subside quickly, and others last a while. This headache should not create any danger to you if you are not living with any previous medical issues.
To revamp your sex life, talk to a specialist. They can assist you in dealing with any discomfort and provide useful advice on how to have pleasurable intercourse.
