Headache while hiking. If not dehydration, then what?

Hey folks,

Frustration: On any given typical 4k footer, I seem to get a headache about halfway through the day. It is driving me nuts, slowing me way down, and I can't figure out the cause. I am hoping someone here can help shed some light on what this could be.

I am careful about eating well (ie., apple, hummus or pb on bagel, odwalla or luna bars, gorp, lightly salted spelt pretzels, etc) and staying hydrated enough so that I have to "go" every 2 couple of hours.

I sweat like crazy, but I make every effort to avoid any potential dehydration. I also eat carefully (balance of protein, carb, fat) and drink tons especially in the days leading up to a hike.

What else could be causing my headaches? They hate motion, especially sudden or jarring motion, and respond somewhat to ibuprofen, but I need to figure out the root of the problem. They're making hiking way less lovable than it is supposed to be. Would love any ideas.

Thanks in advance!
Peace,
Unstrung

Does it happen in cold weather also?

Is your BP OK? You can check this yourself at many drug stores/Wal-Mart, etc.

Do you do anything unusual just before the hike, like hose yourself down in DEET?

I haven't pushed myself that hard in cold weather lately, but this winter I will find out! (Or, hopefully, not find out.) BP was fine as of several months ago.

I use only a tiny bit of DEET if any, I usually use Lewey's Buzz Off which is DEET free and works quite well.

You're not messing with your caffeine intake, are you?

Well, I don't drink coffee, and if I drink tea it's usually herbal or a low-caffiene green. And I don't think I've ever done that before a hike...

Echoing Sentiments...

from your other thread. Don't look for answers here. Go see a doctor. It could be something as simple as allergies or something as bad as aneurisms. Don't mess with it. Get a professional opinion. You're part of this family now and nobody wants to see you hurtin'. Get it checked out!

KDT

Sleep.
Water.
Electrolytes.
Training.
Nutrition.
Limiting alcohol.

cushetunk said:

You're not messing with your caffeine intake, are you?

Click to expand...

Totally unclear.

Do you mean taking too much caffeine, or not enough

I appreciate the concern. No one seems to believe me, but these threads actually aren't related!

I can take an Advil or two and the headaches are somewhat manageable, but I posted looking for info, in case someone else has had a similar issue and figured out the cause of it.

My other post is a joint-pain post! I'm just all about pain research tonight, what can I say. Dun worry, Maw, I'm fine.

una_dogger said:

Limiting alcohol.

Click to expand...

Oh come on, Sabrina! That's just crazy talk!

I sometimes get this, too, and usually it's shoulder tension working its way up my neck and into a headache. Check the top/back of your shoulders for tension and see if a little point massage relieves the pain. Some thoughts:

• Do you wear a hat/sunglasses on a sunny day?
• Is your pack well-adjusted? Sometimes I'll mess with the straps a bit to put more weight on the hips for awhile, then more on the shoulders for awhile, just for a change.
• Do you do any core-developing exercises: situps, crunches, powerlifts? If your torso is weak, simply maintaining posture and holding up the pack can cause a lot of stress.
• How are your shoes/insoles? Supportive enough? Some cushioning, but not gooshy? Unhappy feet can travel all the way up.
• Do you use trekking poles? Have you adjusted length/technique to keep from banging your shoulders around?
• Do any running? Getting your body to adjust to the pounding may help.

Juniper said:

Oh come on, Sabrina! That's just crazy talk!

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ha ha!! I knew that would be controversial!!

Just wait until you get into your forties, your tune will change!!!

una_dogger said:

Sleep.
Water.
Electrolytes.
Training.
Nutrition.
Limiting alcohol.

Click to expand...

Sleep -- I TRY, honest! And I'm improving.
Water -- hella.
Electrolytes -- EmergenC brand, plus I've experimented with various amounts of salty foods.
Training -- Yes'm, trail running!
Limiting alcohol -- Don't ostracize me, but I actually don't drink!

I too was getting a lot of headaches. I found that if I was over exerting myself, or if I was over heated that it would happen more often. I felt I was drinking enough water, but still got the headaches. Apparently what I needed were the electrolytes. I now always carry a nalgene with a tab of Nuun. It seems to be working thus far anyway.

The Unstrung Harp said:

S
Limiting alcohol -- Don't ostracize me, but I actually don't drink!

Click to expand...

You won't get any brow beating from me! Good for you. I like my occaisional beer or wine, but I also know the serious health risks that alcohol poses, something like a 30% increased cancer risk for women -- not to mention that my body and mind feel like crap the day after and that's no way to spend a day off!!!

Sleep is a difficult one. Definatley for women as we age....sleep is harder to come by. I feel amazingly better after 8 hours of sleep, but if I am not careful about what I eat, am under hydrated, or drink alcohol too close to bedtime, my blood sugar goes hay wire and I wake up at 2am.....

D: If this is shoulder tension, I'm never going to get rid of it. >_< My life is shoulder tension. I do massage 'em -- Pain is a great way to keep yourself awake when driving at night. Who knew.

I don't wear hat or sunglasses, as it doesn't seem heat-related... but maybe...

Pack doesn't have a lot of adjustment options but is comfy, and I carry mostly on hips.

I do crunches religiously. You'd never know it >_> but I do. Plus I work on a farm so my work is active, I don't sit at a desk all day. Perching on a stability ball a the moment in fact.

I have used several different boots of varying newness/oldness, trail runners, and tried Smartfeet(?) all with varying levels of success, but none affect ze noggin.

I like and use trekking poles and they are adjusted as per directions and I lengthen them on downhills.

I am an enthusiastic but not particularly gifted runner! Definitely a good thing for any hiker. Yoga too. I don't seem to get headaches when I run, then again, I run to relax and more than for exercise, so I work up a sweat but it's not as intense as hiking. Maybe I'll try to go like crazy tomorrow and see what happens...

jniehof said:

I sometimes get this, too, and usually it's shoulder tension working its way up my neck and into a headache. Check the top/back of your shoulders for tension and see if a little point massage relieves the pain. Some thoughts:

• Do you wear a hat/sunglasses on a sunny day?
• Is your pack well-adjusted? Sometimes I'll mess with the straps a bit to put more weight on the hips for awhile, then more on the shoulders for awhile, just for a change.
• Do you do any core-developing exercises: situps, crunches, powerlifts? If your torso is weak, simply maintaining posture and holding up the pack can cause a lot of stress.
• How are your shoes/insoles? Supportive enough? Some cushioning, but not gooshy? Unhappy feet can travel all the way up.
• Do you use trekking poles? Have you adjusted length/technique to keep from banging your shoulders around?
• Do any running? Getting your body to adjust to the pounding may help.

Click to expand...

Mohamed Ellozy said:

Totally unclear.

Do you mean taking too much caffeine, or not enough

Click to expand...

I meant both; I was intentionally vague. I was just thinking that if someone is used to a certain level of caffeine on a daily basis (whether none at all or 8 cups over the course of the day) changing that up on a hiking day might have unpredictable results.

Get it checked out.
There are many causes fo headache from the annoying to the potentially catastrophic. Please don't ignore headaches that are not helped by painmeds.
On the other hand, a little caffeinecan help. I carry excedrin migrane (from the other thread, I am a mobile drugstore) Excedrin Migrane contains tylenol, aspirin and caffeine. It is an awesome headache med. It may make you a bit jittery if you are a caffeine-free person, but sometimes a little kick in the butt helps when hiking!!
See a Doctor.
Sandy

Believe it or not, you may actually be drinking too much water. The rule of thumb that I've seen (especially from thru-hiking guides/info books) is that you should have to take a bio-break about every 4 hours or so.