Research shows that many people who suffer from a mental illness also have headaches or migraines. It can be tricky sorting out whether the headache disorder is related to mental illness, or whether they occur coincidentally.
Whatever your specific circumstance, know that mental illness can affect the way you feel pain, especially headaches.
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Consider the following three examples of how your headaches may be linked to mental illness:
Depression and Headaches
Many people withdepressionexperience physical symptoms such as fatigue, loss of appetite, a reduction in sexual interest, and sleep disturbances, like insomnia.In addition, headaches and other types of pain, like muscle or joint aches are frequent complaints.
It’s thought thattension-type headachesmost commonly accompany depression, although depressed individuals can suffer from other primary headache disorders, likemigrainesorcluster headaches.
When possible, your healthcare provider will try to select a medication or treatment that can address both your depression and your headaches.
Commonly used medications to treat both depression and the headache associated with depression include tricyclic antidepressants, likeElavil(amitriptyline), or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as Paxil (paroxetine) or Zoloft (sertraline).
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Headaches
PTSD is more common in migraineurs than in the general population. Research also suggests that people who have migraines are more susceptible to developing PTSD when exposed to trauma, like a car accident or abusive partnership, than people who don’t get migraines.
Moreover, when headache sufferers have PTSD, they tend to have a higher degree of headache-associated disability than those without PTSD—meaning their headaches impact their everyday functioning and quality of life to a greater degree.
The good news is that there are effective strategies for treating both migraines and PTSD, including medications like the tricyclic antidepressant Elavil (amitriptyline) or the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) Effexor (venlafaxine).Cognitive-behavioral therapy may also be helpful, either alone or in combination with medication.
Bipolar Disorder and Headaches
Treatment of bipolar disorder and migraines may require more than one medication, although valproic acid may both prevent migraines and act as a mood stabilizer.
Lifestyle modifications, like getting enough sleep, learning to manage stress, and exercising can help alleviate symptoms of with your headaches and your mental illness.
Treatment Considerations
Special care is necessary when considering the use of multiple medications for mental disorders and headaches.
Some considerations:
It’s best to discuss all your therapy options carefully with your healthcare provider, especially if you are seeing different healthcare providers who are treating your medical conditions. For example, if you are seeing a neurologist or primary care doctor for management of your headaches and a psychiatrist for management of your mood disorder, it’s important that each provider—and your pharmacist—is aware of all the medications, supplements, and herbs that you’re taking.
A Word From Verywell
8 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Antonaci F, Nappi G, Galli F, Manzoni GC, Calabresi P, Costa A.Migraine and psychiatric comorbidity: a review of clinical findings.J Headache Pain. 2011;12(2):115-125. doi:10.1007/s10194-010-0282-4Kennedy SH.Core symptoms of major depressive disorder: relevance to diagnosis and treatment.Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2008;10(3):271-277.Chowdhury D.Tension type headache.Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2012;15(Suppl 1):S83-S88. doi:10.4103/0972-2327.100023Peterlin BL, Nijjar SS, Tietjen GE.Post-traumatic stress disorder and migraine: epidemiology, sex differences, and potential mechanisms.Headache. 2011;51(6):860-868. doi:10.1111/j.1526-4610.2011.01907.xDefrin R.Chronic post-traumatic headache: clinical findings and possible mechanisms.J Man Manip Ther. 2014;22(1):36-44. doi:10.1179/2042618613Y.0000000053Xu XM, Liu Y, Dong MX, Zou DZ, Wei YD.Tricyclic antidepressants for preventing migraine in adults.Medicine (Baltimore). 2017;96(22):e6989. doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000006989Engmann B.Bipolar affective disorder and migraine.Case Rep Med. 2012;2012:389851. doi:10.1155/2012/389851Evans RW.The FDA alert on serotonin syndrome with combined use of SSRIs or SNRIs and Triptans: an analysis of the 29 case reports.MedGenMed. 2007;9(3):48.Additional ReadingFornaro, M., Stubbs B.A meta-analysis investigating the prevalence and moderators of migraines among people with bipolar disorder.J Affect Disord. 2015 Jun 1;178:88-97. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2015.02.032.
8 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Antonaci F, Nappi G, Galli F, Manzoni GC, Calabresi P, Costa A.Migraine and psychiatric comorbidity: a review of clinical findings.J Headache Pain. 2011;12(2):115-125. doi:10.1007/s10194-010-0282-4Kennedy SH.Core symptoms of major depressive disorder: relevance to diagnosis and treatment.Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2008;10(3):271-277.Chowdhury D.Tension type headache.Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2012;15(Suppl 1):S83-S88. doi:10.4103/0972-2327.100023Peterlin BL, Nijjar SS, Tietjen GE.Post-traumatic stress disorder and migraine: epidemiology, sex differences, and potential mechanisms.Headache. 2011;51(6):860-868. doi:10.1111/j.1526-4610.2011.01907.xDefrin R.Chronic post-traumatic headache: clinical findings and possible mechanisms.J Man Manip Ther. 2014;22(1):36-44. doi:10.1179/2042618613Y.0000000053Xu XM, Liu Y, Dong MX, Zou DZ, Wei YD.Tricyclic antidepressants for preventing migraine in adults.Medicine (Baltimore). 2017;96(22):e6989. doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000006989Engmann B.Bipolar affective disorder and migraine.Case Rep Med. 2012;2012:389851. doi:10.1155/2012/389851Evans RW.The FDA alert on serotonin syndrome with combined use of SSRIs or SNRIs and Triptans: an analysis of the 29 case reports.MedGenMed. 2007;9(3):48.Additional ReadingFornaro, M., Stubbs B.A meta-analysis investigating the prevalence and moderators of migraines among people with bipolar disorder.J Affect Disord. 2015 Jun 1;178:88-97. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2015.02.032.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Antonaci F, Nappi G, Galli F, Manzoni GC, Calabresi P, Costa A.Migraine and psychiatric comorbidity: a review of clinical findings.J Headache Pain. 2011;12(2):115-125. doi:10.1007/s10194-010-0282-4Kennedy SH.Core symptoms of major depressive disorder: relevance to diagnosis and treatment.Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2008;10(3):271-277.Chowdhury D.Tension type headache.Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2012;15(Suppl 1):S83-S88. doi:10.4103/0972-2327.100023Peterlin BL, Nijjar SS, Tietjen GE.Post-traumatic stress disorder and migraine: epidemiology, sex differences, and potential mechanisms.Headache. 2011;51(6):860-868. doi:10.1111/j.1526-4610.2011.01907.xDefrin R.Chronic post-traumatic headache: clinical findings and possible mechanisms.J Man Manip Ther. 2014;22(1):36-44. doi:10.1179/2042618613Y.0000000053Xu XM, Liu Y, Dong MX, Zou DZ, Wei YD.Tricyclic antidepressants for preventing migraine in adults.Medicine (Baltimore). 2017;96(22):e6989. doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000006989Engmann B.Bipolar affective disorder and migraine.Case Rep Med. 2012;2012:389851. doi:10.1155/2012/389851Evans RW.The FDA alert on serotonin syndrome with combined use of SSRIs or SNRIs and Triptans: an analysis of the 29 case reports.MedGenMed. 2007;9(3):48.
Antonaci F, Nappi G, Galli F, Manzoni GC, Calabresi P, Costa A.Migraine and psychiatric comorbidity: a review of clinical findings.J Headache Pain. 2011;12(2):115-125. doi:10.1007/s10194-010-0282-4
Kennedy SH.Core symptoms of major depressive disorder: relevance to diagnosis and treatment.Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2008;10(3):271-277.
Chowdhury D.Tension type headache.Ann Indian Acad Neurol. 2012;15(Suppl 1):S83-S88. doi:10.4103/0972-2327.100023
Peterlin BL, Nijjar SS, Tietjen GE.Post-traumatic stress disorder and migraine: epidemiology, sex differences, and potential mechanisms.Headache. 2011;51(6):860-868. doi:10.1111/j.1526-4610.2011.01907.x
Defrin R.Chronic post-traumatic headache: clinical findings and possible mechanisms.J Man Manip Ther. 2014;22(1):36-44. doi:10.1179/2042618613Y.0000000053
Xu XM, Liu Y, Dong MX, Zou DZ, Wei YD.Tricyclic antidepressants for preventing migraine in adults.Medicine (Baltimore). 2017;96(22):e6989. doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000006989
Engmann B.Bipolar affective disorder and migraine.Case Rep Med. 2012;2012:389851. doi:10.1155/2012/389851
Evans RW.The FDA alert on serotonin syndrome with combined use of SSRIs or SNRIs and Triptans: an analysis of the 29 case reports.MedGenMed. 2007;9(3):48.
Fornaro, M., Stubbs B.A meta-analysis investigating the prevalence and moderators of migraines among people with bipolar disorder.J Affect Disord. 2015 Jun 1;178:88-97. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2015.02.032.
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