School can be a real pain in the brain. In fact, approximately 60% of adolescents get headaches and almost ten percent experience migraines (“National Center for Biotechnology Information”). Research suggests that typical headaches for students range from a myriad of factors such as stress, tiredness, lack of sleep, and other triggers.
Migraines are a big cause of why many kids miss school because maybe they are unable to get out of bed or can’t cope with the pain at school.
According to a study on the National Library of Medicine website, “Children with migraine miss more school than their peers and have impaired school performance and impaired quality of life, similar to that of children with rheumatoid arthritis or cancer. This disability is complicated by the fact that migraine is a silent disease; no outward findings are visible, so the child’s report of pain may be doubted, leading to shame and frustration” (Szperka).
In an Eye of the Gale questionnaire, several students provided input into the issue they have with headaches. LHS senior Sam Welch agreed that headaches are a big problem and hard to deal with during school days.
“I get migraines. It feels like a hammer is digging into my head most of the time. Depending on how bad, the pain level isn’t high. But most times, it’s so had, I’ve had to leave school early,” said Welch.
LHS junior Kathryn Burdsal has the similar challenges dealing with headaches. She said that she experiences a range of pain levels.
“I get migraines. A typical day would be a constant pressure that doesn’t really hurt, and can be ignored, so a 2/10. my worst was during school where I almost cried from pain, so 8/10. The bad ones either feel like a throbbing pain in one spot or an all over pressure that feels like my head’s going to explode,” said Burdsal.
LHS sophomore Isabella Smith said her headache pain is often localized in one specific spot and that the pain levels she experiences fluctuate based on the cause of the headache.
“I usually get headaches on the daily, in part to my meds, and in part from the stress from school and home. They’re usually behind my eyes and around my sinuses, or at the base of where my spine meets my skull,” said Smith.
LHS sophomore Leola Littrell said that the pain she feels can be debilitating.
“I have migraines; they can be very extreme to the point I can pass out from them,” she said.
If the headaches get so bad people can have symptoms like vomiting or getting light headed and dizzy. Smith faces those symptoms when they get so bad and makes it extremely hard for her to get through the school day.
“I usually get dizzy and nauseous along with them, so school becomes less about the work and people, and more about not passing out or vomiting mid-class. I have chronic pain so my levels are warped, but the headaches are usually around a 7/10, 10 being the most pain ever,” said Smith.
“When I have a headache, it often leaves me unable to focus, and sometimes, unable to even sleep, because of the pain. They’re much more frequent in summer or hotter months due to heat. Oftentimes, I do lose time, especially if I’m sleeping,” said Welch.
“An 8/10 headache will stop me from getting any work done. One day I had to just lay my head down the whole period until it went away. I was unable to focus at all and was barely paying attention to my surroundings. Because I’m on medication now, I haven’t had a migraine quite so bad and bad days are down to around once a month. A 2/10, which is about everyday, will only make me lose focus once every two hours or so for a few minutes,” said Burdsal.
Adolescents struggling with headaches often go to their primary care doctor or neurologist that specialize in headaches. While most headaches in children and teens are benign and rarely from serious diseases or physical problems, they should consult a doctor if the pain is not manageable.
