We've all been there: you just finished chugging your venti iced coffee from Starbucks before heading to class, and now your head is splitting open as you try to focus on your prof's lesson. If you're a devoted coffee drinker like I am, or if you pound down a couple of sodas or teas per day, headaches like these seem like a necessary evil. But why suffer if there's an easy way to learn how to get rid of caffeine headaches?
Some of these techniques are drug-free and offer little to no change in your daily routine. So if giving up your daily cup of coffee is an absolute no-go, give one of these a try! A headache shouldn't kill your buzz, and now it doesn't have to.
1. Eat Peppermint
I can't be the only one already looking forward to Christmas, right? Peppermint is pretty much the magic fix for a bunch of different ailments, headaches included! According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, peppermint can be used in a bunch of home remedies, for everything from period cramps to skin irritation.
While it may not be the best idea to grab a peppermint mocha from Starbs once you have a caffeine headache, you should definitely try some peppermint tea. It's got little to no caffeine, and it can also help with an upset stomach after your coffee bender.
2. Drink More Water
The human body is more than half water. On days when it feels like your veins and organs are filled more with java than H20, you should probably put some of that agua back into your system.
Many of the side effects of a headache, including caffeine headaches, overlap with the side effects of dehydration. Think about it: when you don't have your coffee, you feel fatigued. When you're dehydrated, you feel fatigued. You can treat your fatigue and dehydration by drinking some more water. Most health officials recommend drinking eight glasses a day, but I think the more, the better.
3. Use Mustard
Your fave hot dog topping just got a new use. Mustard has plenty of medicinal uses, including a helpful agent for curing headaches. While I wouldn't recommend smearing yourself in a bottle of French's, mustard powder could be your new best friend when headaches roll around.
Mustard powder has rubefacient properties, which is just a fancy way of saying that it increases blood circulation and is therefore great for headache and muscle aches. To treat a caffeine headache with the yellow stuff, soak your feet in a tub full of hot water and mustard powder. You can tell people it's the newest trend in pedicures.
4. Get Moving
At this point, it's pretty much common knowledge that exercise can improve blood circulation. So, why not try to exercise to get rid of your caffeine headache? Obviously, you'll have to gauge how hard you'll go in the gym by your headache. If the pain is severe, I wouldn't recommend trying to run a 5K.
You can try some simple yoga, going for a walk, or even deep breathing. All of these exercises will open up your circulation, and get the blood flowing more regularly through your body. Sign me up for no headaches and burning calories, please!
5. Pinch Yourself
You don't have to give yourself these glorified hickeys with the cupping method, but studies have shown that acupuncture, and even applying a lil' pinch to some pressure points can help you get rid of a caffeine headache.
All you have to do for this technique is pinch the area between your thumb and your forefinger. It may hurt a little, but what's a little bit of pain in exchange for relief from a headache?
6. Eat Some Ice Cream
Alright, maybe I'm being a little too optimistic here. Wouldn't it be so much easier if ice cream could solve all of our problems? The point I'm trying to make is that foods that are rich in calcium should be one of your go-tos when you're trying to figure out how to get rid of a caffeine headache.
Calcium-rich foods, like dairy products, have long been used as home remedies for headaches. Calcium is an essential nutrient for brain function, helps keep your bones strong, and relaxes nerves, which lessens headache pain. Good Housekeeping placed dairy products, like low-fat milk, first on their list of the top foods to fight headaches. I always knew Ben & Jerry's was good for something other than a late night snack.
As far as avoiding caffeine headaches in the future, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. Healthcare professionals, like those at Mayo Clinic, recommend not going over 400 milligrams a day of caffeine. That's roughly the equivalent of four cups of coffee.
If you really need to take a serious step back from the Keurig, try other ways to wake up in the morning. Maybe you could take a cool shower, go for a run, or even make a killer wake up playlist.