If you’re a person who gets migraines, it can feel like each morning is a fresh chance for you to hopefully not get slammed with one — but sometimes you wake up and already have a headache, which derails your whole day. While migraines can happen at any time of the day, nearly half of all migraines occur between 4 a.m. and 9 a.m., according to the American Migraine Foundation.
“The reason why those [morning] headaches feel worse is because, with headache, the timing to treatment really matters,” says Juline Bryson, MD, assistant professor of neurology at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. If you can treat your migraine or headache within the first 20 minutes that it hits, then there’s a good chance you can prevent the pain from getting really bad, she says.
Even if you don’t get migraines, there are a few reasons why tension headaches (which, BTW are not the same thing as migraines) hit first thing in the morning. Understanding what triggers your headaches will help you treat them, and make waking up less of a gamble.
Ahead are some common factors that can contribute to morning headaches and migraines, and how to find relief.
YOUR SLEEP SCHEDULE IS OFF.
Changes in your sleep cycle, whether you’re sleeping too much or too little, can increase migraines, Dr. Bryson says. If you sleep in or wake up earlier than usual it can “irritate your hypothalamus, a structure deep in the brain that’s responsible for sleep-wake and can affect migraines,” she says. Your goal should be to aim for seven or eight hours of sleep, she says. Also consider taking immediate-release melatonin supplements before bed, which have been shown to prevent migraines.
YOU WERE TRIGGERED THE NIGHT BEFORE.
It’s important to avoid migraine triggers in general, but if you slipped up and had a glass of red wine or processed food the night before, there’s a chance that you could end up with a migraine in the morning, Dr. Bryson says. “At night, the body is stewing in inflammation, and it just brings it out at that time,” she says.
YOU’RE DEHYDRATED.
Headaches are a common symptom of dehydration, Dr. Bryson says. Make sure you’re drinking enough water, because for some people, dehydration can even trigger a migraine. And if you drank alcohol the night before, then you might be hungover and dehydrated, so drink up.
YOU DIDN’T HAVE COFFEE.
When your body is used to getting caffeine at a certain time, and suddenly it doesn’t get caffeine, you can get a headache, Dr. Bryson says. “That’s your body’s way of saying, where’s my caffeine?” For some people, simply delaying your caffeine intake can trigger a migraine, so it’s important to stay on top of a schedule. That said, if you are trying to stop drinking caffeine altogether, try to wean yourself off slowly to prevent withdrawal symptoms, like headaches, Dr. Bryson says.
YOU SNORE.
If you’re someone who doesn’t get migraines, but you have tension-type headaches in the morning, that can be a sign of sleep apnea, Dr. Bryson says. Or if you do snore regularly, that can contribute to a.m. headaches.
THE WEATHER IS CHANGING.
Low barometric pressure can definitely contribute to migraines in the morning, Dr. Bryson says. “Maybe there was a storm system coming in, and that got you while you were sleeping,” she says. Unfortunately, you can’t control the weather, but you can be extra careful to avoid triggers when you know the weather is bad. There are also some phone apps that will send you barometric alerts based on the forecast. And some people find that wearing earplugs can be helpful while the weather is wonky.
