Get help here!
Get help here!
Get help here!
Only a doctor can make a diagnosis and tell you what kind of headaches you have.
Having a diagnosis is important for understanding what’s causing the headaches and how to deal with them the right way.
Your family doctor or pediatrician is the first person you should contact if you have headaches.
When should you see a doctor?
In most cases, headaches are harmless. This means that there is nothing to worry about.
However, if you feel like your headaches are getting worse, are occurring more frequently, are severely restricting your everyday life, and the strategies you have been using are not helping anymore, then you should talk to your doctor. Also, if your headaches have changed or are accompanied by other changes, you should definitely see a doctor.
The doctor can help you determine what type of headache you have and give you advice on what to do.
Important!
The use of medication should always be discussed with your doctor!
Preparing for the doctor’s appointment
Here are some helpful tips if you’re considering seeing a doctor about your headaches.
- Make an appointment to talk to the doctor only about the headaches. That way they have more time for it.
- Think of ways to describe your headache.
- How often do you have headaches? If you find it difficult to describe how many days in the last month you have had a headache, it can be helpful to use a headache diary before your appointment.
- What do your headaches feel like?
- When do your headaches bother you the most? What do they keep you from doing?
- What have you done about the pain so far and has it helped you?
- Have you taken any medication?
Write down what you would like to discuss with the doctor and what questions you have for him or her. Take these notes with you to the apppointment.
You can download a checklist to get ready for the doctor’s appointment here. That way you are well prepared!
Have your headaches been bothering you for a while now and they just won’t get better?
If you’ve been suffering from pain for a long time and treatment hasn’t helped you yet, or your doctor is unable to tell you exactly where the pain is coming from, then you and your parents could turn to child pain experts. In Germany, there are a few places you can contact. Which one is the easiest for you to reach?
Bayrisches Kinderschmerzzentrum, Augsburg
Deutsches Kinderschmerzzentrum, Datteln
Baden-Württembergisches Kinderschmerzzentrum, Stuttgart
Phone number: +49 821 400-01
Phone number: +49 2363 975-180
Phone number: +49 711 278-72408
Baden-Württembergisches Kinderschmerzzentrum, Stuttgart
Phone number: +49 711 278-72408
Would you like to talk to someone, but don’t know who?
Then phoning a hotline, e.g. the “Nummer gegen Kummer”, might be something for you. Here you can get help anonymously and free of charge – for all your questions, worries and problems.
Monday to Saturday from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., you can call the Children’s and Young People’s Hotline free of charge by calling 116 111 from your cell phone or landline. Just give it a try – it can’t hurt!
You can find more information here:
Still unsure? Then look at this. In this short video you can see what happens when you dial the hotline (“Nummer gegen Kummer”).
Learn more about headaches on the following pages.
Tension-type headaches
Here you will find information about the most common type of headache, the tension-type headache.