Be careful about the ponytail headache or external compression headache resulting from tying hair too tight!!
Have you ever experienced a headache after tying your hair very tightly that is in a ponytail hairstyle?
Have you ever thought about what could be the real reason behind this type of headache?
It has been brought to light by some dermatologists that it is a real phenomenon termed as ponytail headache or it is also called as external compression headache.
Why does ponytail cause headaches actually?
It is worthy to note that when we tie our hairs too tightly, the scalp and hair follicles etc would be kept under tension. Truth is that yanking or pulling hairs too tightly all of a sudden would stimulate the nerve endings on the scalp and produce pain messages. This would be shown as headaches.
Our scalp is very sensitive and repeatedly pulling hairs through the ponytail could engage blood vessels and nerve elements resulting in headaches. The shocking piece of information is that in some persons even combing activity can cause headaches.
Various factors involved are:
Nerve sensitivity- Scalp tightness can result in overstimulation of sensory nerves.
Muscle strain- Small muscle of the hair follicles would get stretched due to repeated tension and this can cause headaches.
Hair density and weight- Those with denser and longer hairs have more chances of getting ponytail headaches due to weight contributing to tension.
Longer time of hairstyles – Headaches can occur due to having a tight hairstyle for a longer time period.
The hairstyle is too tight and would be known by certain signs like pain, a delayed headache, redness on the scalp, aching dullness worsening over time etc.
It was revealed by a research study in 2004 that out of 93 females as many as 50 women reported headaches due to ponytail hairstyle. It was found out that headache was present in the hair tie area in 10 cases whereas others felt pain in the vertex, forehead, temples, neck, parietal region etc.
The surprising piece of information is that loosening of the ponytail relieved headache immediately in 4 cases, within 30 minutes in 32, within an hour in 5 and 9 were unsure of the duration of time.
How to avoid ponytail headaches?
It would be possible to avoid getting headaches due to tight ponytail type hairstyles by loosening up the hairstyle, by changing hairstyles, by using relaxing accessories, by hair follicle care etc.
