Headache from behind - what could be the causes?

Who gets headaches most often?

Both adults and children may experience discomfort in the neck and head. Often, pain in the neck area is caused by an incorrect and inactive lifestyle. Physical inactivity is the main cause of the development of osteochondrosis and similar problems with the spine. Office workers are most susceptible to serious musculoskeletal diseases. People who spend a lot of time sitting often complain of pain in the spine and neck. Soreness occurs due to physical inactivity and systematic tension of the body muscles. Due to hormonal changes in the body of people of retirement age, they often have a headache on the left back. In adulthood, blood vessels lose their elasticity and can no longer function fully.

Causes of pain in the occipital part of the head on the left

There are many reasons for the development of pain in the left half of the back of the head. They are determined by your doctor to prevent the development of constant headaches. The reason may be destructive changes in the spine, inflammatory processes, cardiovascular disorders, the appearance of malignant and benign tumors.

Neuralgia is an inflammatory disease of the nerves, accompanied by severe pain. The myelin sheath is destroyed, which contributes to the development of the inflammatory process. This causes pain in the back of the head on the left side.

nerve compression;
bacterial infection;
irritation;
systemic disease.

The sensation manifests itself in attacks, radiating behind the ear and into the neck. Patients describe them as an electric shock. Pain occurs when sneezing, coughing, turning the head. In advanced cases of the disease, the attack occurs suddenly.

Osteochondrosis is a disease of the spine accompanied by its destruction. With the development of the cervical form, acute pain occurs in the occipital region. It subsides and appears again. The main causes of the condition are:

lack of physical activity;
passive lifestyle;
alcoholism, smoking;
obesity;
rachiocampsis.

The first sign of the disease is pain in the back of the head. If there is a load on the nerves located on the left side, the unpleasant sensations are localized there. Over time, they do not go away, but only intensify.

This type of pain appears after active physical activity. This occurs due to the massive entry of enzymes into the human blood. Spasmed muscles put pressure on blood vessels and nerves.

Overstrain can be physical and emotional. The latter option occurs during stress, due to which pressure increases and pulsation occurs in the back of the head. The intensity of the pain attack increases with physical activity. Nausea, a feeling of malaise, and dizziness appear.

If during tension there is pain in the back of the head on the left, this indicates increased pressure and muscle spasm on this side.

Cervical migraine is the most common cause of pain in the back of the head on the left and right. The following symptoms appear:

nausea,
photophobia;
lack of appetite;
paroxysmal pain;
pulsation in temples.

Painful sensations arise suddenly for no reason. Before an attack, the patient becomes irritable and nervous. Dizziness and dots appear before the eyes.

Migraines cannot be cured with medications. The attacks are temporarily stopped. They appear due to a disruption in the transmission of nerve impulses. More of them enter the brain than necessary, so increased irritation of the nerve fibers occurs.

With head and neck injuries, pain occurs that does not go away without treatment. The following types of damage are distinguished:

bone fracture;
bruise of soft tissues, brain;
nerve damage;
shake;
hemorrhage in the brain.

If the injury occurs in the back of the head on the left side, sharp pain and dizziness appear. With accompanying concussion, vomiting occurs. The headache begins to ache at the moment of injury or after a few hours.

If the patient’s condition does not improve after treatment, the headache continues to hurt, and complications may develop:

bleeding;
high blood pressure;
swelling that compresses nerves and blood vessels.

When blood pressure increases, complications arise. More often the condition is accompanied by throbbing occipital pain. It occurs due to increased tension in the vascular wall. Over time, the sensation spreads to other areas of the head. Pain in the back of the head is accompanied by weakness and symptoms of malaise.

The tone of the vessels is disturbed, they become mobile. Nerve receptors are irritated. Impulses about the violation are constantly transmitted to the brain. This causes throbbing pain.

If a person has pain on the left side of the back of the head, vascular disease may occur. The most common cause is the development of atherosclerosis. This is the deposition of cholesterol in the walls of blood vessels. Permeability to blood decreases, pressure increases.

Impaired blood flow is fraught with hypoxia (oxygen starvation). Not enough oxygen reaches the brain, causing neurons to die. Symptoms of nervous system disease develop:

dizziness;
headache;
nausea;
loss of consciousness.

If left untreated, the vessels become injured and hemorrhage occurs. If it is insignificant, hematomas form. With severe bleeding, a person dies without emergency intervention.

When benign and malignant tumors appear, pain in the head appears. This is due to the fact that the tumor increases in size.

It gradually compresses blood vessels and brain tissue. This causes throbbing pain.

Back injury

Neck and head pain often occurs due to spinal injury. People who traveled by public transport could experience severe inconvenience due to sudden braking or acceleration of transport. Due to even a slight impact or rotation of the passenger, this phenomenon can provoke a spinal injury. Some people do not pay attention to this, but after a month the patient feels discomfort in the spine. If one of the symptoms of the disease appears, it is important to immediately contact a specialist and undergo a comprehensive examination. If the head hurts on the left back, this may indicate that the person has injured his back.

Non-hazardous factors

Before you start worrying about your health, you should definitely consider the safe causes of headaches. If a symptom occurs rarely, or during certain periods, then it may be provoked by an external factor.

Possible reasons:

Having bad habits. If a person abuses alcohol or smokes, he may often suffer from headaches in the back of the head.
Physical or mental fatigue. It is important not only to work, but also to rest so that your health does not deteriorate. It is worth noting that in some situations, headaches can occur due to lack of activity.
Pregnancy period, menopause, premenstrual syndrome. When hormonal levels change, a woman may experience unpleasant symptoms in the form of a headache in the back of the head on the left side.
Lack of proper sleep, or the person, on the contrary, sleeps too much.
Constant stress, fasting, being in an uncomfortable position for a long time.

As a rule, headaches occur infrequently in such situations. If you eliminate the negative factor, then it may not happen again. If symptoms persist, you should visit a doctor and undergo professional diagnostics.

Treatment process

What to do if the pain causes severe discomfort? Only the attending physician can answer this question, since it is impossible to diagnose the presence of a particular disease at home. Therapy at home will only harm and worsen the situation. Exclusively after a thorough medical examination, based on the test results obtained, the doctor prescribes medications taking into account the individual characteristics of the patient’s body. Those people who have a history of serious spinal diseases in their family should monitor their health especially carefully.

If your head hurts in the back, on the left, at the bottom of the neck, you should take an anesthetic. It is important not to overuse pills. Care should be taken to select a medication that minimizes side effects. It is important to follow the dosage. It is forbidden to take painkillers for more than a week. To relieve pain, the following are often used:

pharmaceuticals;
physiotherapy;
massage;
physiotherapy;
complex medications.

Many people are interested in why the headache on the left side hurts? To eliminate pain in the neck and head area once and for all, you should definitely consult a doctor. This is often a sign of a serious disease in the human body. In rare cases, specialists use surgery.

Causes of pain

The causes of secondary pain in the occipital part of the head on the left back can be associated with various diseases and disorders:

Injuries in the head and neck area.
Vascular pathologies of the circulatory system supplying the brain.
Intracranial pathologies of non-vascular etiology.
Intake, withdrawal, use of substances of different groups (medicines, narcotic drugs, alcoholic beverages).
Infectious lesions of the brain, other organs and systems.
Malfunctions of the autonomic system, disruption of homeostasis (self-regulation).
Changes in the structural structure of intracranial and external cranial elements (medullary substance, nasal sinuses, eyes, ears, oral cavity).
Mental illnesses.
Tumors in brain tissue.

Pain in the left side of the back of the head often develops as a result of cranial neuralgia. To determine the causes of cephalalgia, it is worth paying attention to the accompanying symptoms. For example, if, simultaneously with cephalgia, ear pain and hearing impairment are observed, most likely the symptoms are associated with an infectious-inflammatory process in this area - otitis media, labyrinthitis.

With osteochondrosis with localization of the pathological focus in the cervical region, periodic compression of the nerve roots occurs, which provokes cephalgic syndrome. If the cause of pain in the left occipital part of the head is osteochondrosis, the painful sensations are periodic and acute. Attacks occur when turning the neck, sudden movements of the head.

The cause of the condition when the back of the head on the left in women hurts may be migraine, which is one of the primary forms of cephalalgia. It is characterized by unilateral localization. In this case, the back of the head on the left side of the head hurts regularly (the frequency of paroxysms can exceed 8 episodes per month). The duration of the attack varies significantly (several hours or days).

The pain is pulsating. More often detected in women (65-70% of cases). Often the pathology debuts at the age of 10-40 years. Often accompanied by vomiting and increased sensitivity to light and noise stimuli. A harbinger of paroxysm is often observed - an aura.

If you have a headache in the back of the head on the left, there is a high probability of cervical myositis. The disease is an inflammatory process occurring in skeletal muscle tissue. The cause of inflammation can be infections, microtraumas, overexertion, and hypothermia. Pathology is often detected in professional athletes.

If the left occipital part of the head constantly, moderately hurts, in patients of the older age group the doctor will suspect spondylosis, which causes chronic pain in the occipital parts of the head in 85% of cases. The pathology is characterized by destructive changes in the structure of the bone tissue of the spine, which occur as a result of the natural processes of aging and wear. The disease is accompanied by degeneration of the fibers that make up the fibrous rings of the spinal column.

Myogelosis is a consequence of chronic increased muscle tone. The disease is characterized by hardening of muscle tissue. When performing muscle work, interconnected processes of protein destruction and restoration occur. If the rest period after muscle tension is shortened, the process of protein recovery is disrupted, which leads to hyaline degeneration (formation of cartilage tissue) of muscle fibers.

Changes in tissue structure are associated with prolonged stay in a position that is uncomfortable for the spine, a sedentary lifestyle, poor posture, and stress. Localization of the pathological process in the cervical region provokes conditions when the head hurts in the back, lower left. According to experts, pain with myogelosis of the shoulder and cervical region develops in the neck area, then radiates (spreads) to the lower parts of the head.

Sharp pain in the back of the head on the left may reflect the process of irritation of the cranial nerves with sensory fibers. These include the vagus, occipital, trigeminal, glossopharyngeal. Painful sensations appear as a result of stretching or compression of nerve endings and roots. In cases where the occipital nerve is affected, the headache is localized on the left side in the occipital region.

Typically, cephalgia manifests itself acutely, intensely, and occurs or intensifies when changing the position of the head or chewing. It is paroxysmal (repeated attacks) in nature, radiating to nearby and distant areas of the head. For this type of cephalalgia, the formation of trigger zones is typical. Even a slight impact on the trigger zone provokes a severe attack.

A central (hypochondriacal) primary form of cephalgia is distinguished when it is not possible to accurately determine the mechanisms of its occurrence. Typically, the cause of pain in the left side of the head in this case is a decrease in the threshold of pain sensitivity. Pathological changes occur as a result of an imbalance between the processes of excitation and inhibition of the structural elements of the central nervous system.

Failures are more often associated with deterioration of neurohumoral regulation. Cephalgic syndrome can be triggered by life-threatening conditions. These include acute disturbances of blood flow in the brain, heart attacks, strokes, tumor processes, meningitis, abscess, and intracranial hemorrhages. To identify the causes of pain in the left side of the back of the head, you need to make an appointment with a neurologist and undergo a diagnostic examination.

Medications

Medicine for headaches should only be prescribed by a doctor, since not all medications are harmless. Nowadays, people use anti-inflammatory drugs to help relieve pain. With Ketoprofen, Diclofenac or Ibuprofen you can quickly get rid of headaches. The drugs “Diacerin”, “Celecoxib”, “Aceclofenac” do not interfere with the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract and quickly eliminate pain. If the left side of your head hurts, the following will help:

aspirin;
"Flupirtine";
"Pregabalin".

If the headache is triggered by stress or nervous tension, then doctors recommend additionally taking motherwort tincture or Corvalol. Before taking, you should consult a specialist, since self-medication can lead to serious consequences.

The mechanism of development of pain syndromes

Pain in half of the face or head can be a manifestation of diseases of different origins and mechanisms of development. Depending on the location, headaches and facial pains are distinguished.

The latter are also divided into symptomatic, vascular and neuropathic. Even occasional facial pain or headaches are a reason to consult a doctor.

Lack of adequate treatment and control of pain leads to chronicity and progression of the disease.

The final diagnosis can be made by a doctor based on a survey, clinical examination and data from additional treatment methods. However, before your appointment, you can conduct a preliminary self-diagnosis, this will help determine which doctor you need to see.

What is the Shants collar used for?

Thanks to this collar, muscle strain is reduced. This helps eliminate soreness in the head and neck. Experts recommend using it only after surgery or injury. The collar will improve your posture and secure the cervical spine well. Doctors often use reflexology to relieve pain in the cervical spine. The effect of therapy is based on anesthetic medications. Treatment is carried out using current. Laser therapy is an equally effective method. Thanks to ultraviolet and infrared rays, pain is relieved.

Why does the back of the head on the left side hurt?

Headaches appear suddenly, the causes of their occurrence are very diverse. Left-sided headaches in the back of the head often occur with pathological changes in blood vessels on the left side. Spasm of blood vessels on the left side often occurs when a nerve is pinched in the cervical spine. The pain is localized on the side where blood circulation is impaired.

Intracranial pressure

Left-sided headache is a common sign of increased intracranial pressure, which occurs due to stagnation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and increased intracranial pressure . Impaired circulation causes an accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid in a certain part of the brain; if this accumulation occurs in the occipital region on the left side, pain appears on the left.

Hypertension

An increase in blood pressure is accompanied by a sharp narrowing of the lumen of blood vessels. This leads to spasms in various parts of the brain. The most common location is the left side of the back of the head. With hypertension, the pain is constant, pressing, throbbing .

Injuries

Traumatic head injury is often accompanied by damage to blood vessels with further formation of hematomas and tissue swelling at the site of injury. Innervation is disrupted, nerve endings are compressed , resulting in pain. Signs appear in the area of damage, for example, if the blow is from the left, pain develops on the corresponding side of the skull.

Osteochondrosis

Under the influence of pathological processes, irreversible changes occur in the tissues of the spine. This leads to disruption of the normal shape and size of the vertebrae, as a result of which blood vessels and nerves are compressed, and the nutrition of brain cells deteriorates . Most often, changes develop on one side, which provokes the appearance of left-sided pain in the back of the head.

Migraine

With migraine, the sensations are often not local, but diffuse in nature, quickly spreading from the back of the head to the temple, eye, jaw and forehead on one side , often it is localized on the left. Patients complain of nausea, vomiting, sweating, weakness and chills. The duration of a migraine attack varies, from 1-3 minutes to 3-5 days.

Vascular problems

People suffering from increased meteosensitivity often complain of pain in the back of the head on the left . Unpleasant sensations appear when the weather changes, after physical or mental stress. Accompanied by an increase or decrease in blood pressure. Pain is felt in the area where vasospasm occurs.

Occipital neuralgia

Develops as a result of inflammation of the occipital nerve with osteochondrosis, spondyloarthrosis, after exposure to a draft or hypothermia. The pain is not concentrated in the back of the head, but spreads to the neck, ears, temples, and jaw. The disease has an acute, pulsating, paroxysmal course. Often localized on the left side.

Occupational pain

They develop in people whose work involves prolonged exposure to a forced position . As a result, the neck muscles are subject to severe stress, which leads to headaches. This problem develops among drivers, jewelers, seamstresses and representatives of other similar professions.

The pain goes away after changing body position, a short warm-up or a light massage.

Other reasons

Other causes of headaches include physical and mental stress, myositis, pathologies of the left temporomandibular joint, myogelosis, incorrect posture, diseases of the central nervous and cardiovascular systems, infectious diseases of the brain, in which the vessels on the left side are affected.

Doctor's recommendations

If you experience minor pain in the neck and head, you should immediately undergo a medical examination. To reduce the risk of increased pain, you must follow the recommendations of a specialist. As medical practice shows, most often due to poor diet and unhealthy lifestyle, headaches occur on the left side. For the purpose of prevention, doctors recommend:

lead a healthy and proper lifestyle;
do not drink alcohol;
walk more in the fresh air;
do physical education;
Healthy food.

If your head hurts in one place on the left, then it is advisable not to eat spicy, salty and fatty foods. Food additives and preservatives are very harmful to health. Strong tea and coffee often provoke pain in the head and neck.

Traditional methods for getting rid of headaches

It is not worth treating headaches specifically in the back of the head, as this can be dangerous. Exceptions may be cases when it is not possible to urgently visit a doctor or the pain is emotional in nature. Remember that any medications and folk remedies will relieve pain, but will not eradicate the cause of the problem.

To alleviate the condition, you can use decoctions of various herbs - chamomile, linden, St. John's wort. Such teas and decoctions soothe and normalize blood pressure. It is also recommended to take a lying position, relax, massage your neck and spine. If you have constant pain, try to reduce the load. If your job is sedentary, try to do a little warm-up and massage your neck every half hour. This will help normalize the condition.

Head pain in the back of the head on the left side can be an indicator of serious diseases, and can also occur in absolutely healthy people. When such symptoms appear, first of all, you need to normalize your regimen, start eating right, spend more time in the fresh air and lead a more active lifestyle. At the same time, it is still important to reduce the load on the cervical and spinal region. At the first opportunity, contact a professional to undergo an examination. Remember that any disease is much easier to cure at the initial stage, so be careful about your health and do not make the disease worse! Treatment of many diseases requires a comprehensive and professional approach; do not self-medicate and do not delay visiting a doctor.

If you have frequent headaches, be sure to see a doctor! After all, we feel happy when everything is fine and nothing hurts!

If you are an office worker or driver

If your day is spent in a sitting position, then you need to do basic exercises every 40 minutes, which will help prevent the development of pain in the head and neck. In addition, it is important to give up the elevator and walk more. You should drink enough water. It is important to develop stress resistance. If pain is felt systematically, you need to change your type of activity.

Therapist's conclusion

It is impossible to find out the cause of pain on your own. It is for this reason that it is important to visit a doctor if one of the symptoms of osteochondrosis appears. It is advisable to undergo a full medical examination every six months. This is the best prevention of any disease. You should know that painkillers can greatly harm a person’s overall health. Many people take analgin to eliminate pain, but not everyone knows that the drug causes a lot of side effects. Such tablets disrupt the functioning of vital organs and have a bad effect on the gastrointestinal tract. Herbs and infusions are as strong as antibiotics, so some traditional treatments can be fatal.

What does the nature of the pain indicate?

Based on the strength of the pulsation and the characteristics of its manifestation, a possible diagnosis can be determined without additional examinations:

Pain on the left or right side of the back of the head indicates cervical osteochondrosis, the development of which has become inflammatory in nature. Similar symptoms are possible with neuralgia, infectious lesions and myogelosis.
If the unpleasant sensation is too strong and intense, a possible cause is an inflammatory process caused by an infection. The sources of the problem are encephalitis, meningitis and various cold viruses.
Sharp pain with throbbing is a sign of an incipient cervical migraine. There may be several pain points.
With dull throbbing pain, diagnosis is necessary, since it indicates a wide range of pathological processes.

It is impossible to make a clear and accurate diagnosis based only on the nature of the pain. Mandatory medical consultation and submission of biomaterial for research are required.

Headache during pregnancy

Due to hormonal changes in a woman’s body, pain in the neck often occurs. In this case, self-medication is prohibited, since this can harm not only the pregnant woman, but also the unborn baby. First of all, the doctor should analyze:

localization of pain;
duration;
frequency;
provoking factors.

In rare cases, migraine is accompanied by nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, and a nervous reaction. In frequent cases, headaches are a normal reaction of the body to hormonal changes. Neck and head pain on the left back during pregnancy due to:

hormonal changes;
hypertension;
toxicosis;
irregular nutrition;
visual tension;
dehydration;
low sugar levels;
unfavorable climate.

Most often, headaches appear in the first trimester as progesterone and estrogen levels increase. These substances affect the functioning of blood vessels and often provoke their tone. As blood circulation in a woman's body increases, this creates a strong strain on the blood vessels. After a woman finds out about pregnancy, her usual diet changes. Due to a lack of caffeine, a headache often occurs in the back left behind the ear. To get rid of headaches you need to:

ventilate the room;
take a comfortable position;
get some sleep;
do yoga;
eat more vegetables and fruits;
attach a raw potato or cabbage leaf to your head;
Perform a light head massage with your fingers.

Arterial pressure

Blood pressure readings outside the physiological norm are accompanied by cephalgia.
Due to the structural features of the vascular network, it originates and is concentrated in the occipital part of the head. The sensations arise as a result of changes in the fullness of the blood channels and the diameter of their lumen, and increased blood pressure on their walls. Contrary to popular belief, unpleasant symptoms are typical not only for hypertensive patients, but also for people with low blood pressure.

Types and characteristics of headaches in the back of the head with hypertension:

against the background of muscle tension - increases gradually, complemented by nausea and dizziness. The patient experiences compression at the base of the skull on one side or both. Most often it appears due to stress that causes a spasm of the blood channels;
as a result of impaired blood outflow due to vasoconstriction - pain on the left side of the head is complemented by heaviness in the head. The sensations are pulsating and radiate to the temple. They intensify when coughing, sneezing, or moving the head;
due to spasm of the arteries - aching or dull cephalgia, which is accompanied by dizziness, disorientation, and nausea. The patient feels as if a hoop is pressing on his head;
cerebrospinal fluid pain due to changes in blood pressure - pulsating cephalgia, which can intensify with physical activity;
neuralgic pain – characterized by suddenness and extreme intensity. They radiate to different parts of the skull, neck, and upper back. They are the result of stress, increased intracranial pressure, and compression of the trigeminal nerve.

Obsessive throbbing occipital pain is characteristic of hypotension. Due to decreased vascular tone, blood rushes into the skull. In this case, pain occurs in the back of the head, radiating to the parietal and temporal regions.

It is especially pronounced in the morning, after waking up, and gradually disappears during the day due to the person’s physical activity.

The sensations intensify in a horizontal position of the body, when bending forward and tensing the muscles of the neck or upper back.

Painkillers during pregnancy

During the period of bearing a baby, it is allowed to take paracetamol, Efferalgan, Panadol and No-shpu. Despite the fact that these drugs do not cause side effects, they should not be taken systematically. To get rid of headaches, doctors recommend:

choose the optimal daily routine for yourself;
take regular walks in the fresh air;
do not be nervous;
avoid stress;
have a good rest;
avoid noisy places;
monitor your weight.

If your head hurts in the back left at one point, this may indicate overwork. If any of the symptoms of the disease appear, it is important to contact your doctor immediately. Any medications should be taken only after consulting a doctor, since you can harm not only yourself, but also your baby. Incorrect dosage of the drug often provokes uterine tone. Paracetamol is an effective pain reliever that can be taken during pregnancy and breastfeeding. These tablets relieve inflammation and do not cause side effects.

Why might it occur?

Valentin is 40 years old. Every two or three weeks I always get a throbbing headache, and the left side of the back of my head always hurts more. I am completely sure that the causes of my problem lie in hard work, because malaise always occurs after a hard day at work. I’m fighting the disease by taking analgin; I don’t think it’s necessary to go to the doctors yet. Victoria 25 years old. Since childhood, I have had a curvature of the cervical and thoracic spine. Headache in the back of the head has been bothering me periodically for more than five years. This is always a pulsating, prolonged cephalalgia, which can even radiate to the shoulder, on one side. Doctors say that the underlying disease needs to be fully treated, but there is no time for this yet. I’m saving myself from the problem with the help of Ibuprom, so far it’s helping.

Expert's conclusion

Many people are interested in why the head hurts on the left back side. Only the attending physician can answer this question after a complete examination of the patient. If systematic pain occurs, you should immediately seek help from a specialist. Medicines must be prescribed strictly by a doctor. If there are other serious diseases, then self-medication can lead to complications. A healthy lifestyle and regular visits to the doctor are the key to good health. If you have a headache on the left side of your head, this may indicate a serious illness. This is why diagnosis at home is impossible. Only after a complete examination of the patient does the doctor assess the overall clinical picture.

Diagnostics

A neurologist will help determine why the occipital part of the head on the left side hurts. The first task of a diagnostic examination is to exclude pathologies and conditions that pose a threat to health and life. It is worth paying attention to the signs:

Sudden onset of a new type of pain in the left hemisphere of the head.
Combination of cephalgia with focal neurological symptoms.
The appearance of cephalgic syndrome over the age of 50 years.
Increased pain after physical and nervous stress.

If the doctor suspects the secondary nature of cephalalgia, it will be possible to determine the cause of the disorders during an instrumental examination in the format of ultrasound, MRI, CT. If the head in the occipital region on the left hurts due to pathological processes affecting the brain tissue or the circulatory system supplying the brain, neuroimaging will reflect the nature of the disorders.