According to MedlinePlus, a service of the National Library of Medicine, about 12% of Americans get migraines. If your head has been pounding since lunch, or squeezing like a vice for days, you are trying to answer a real question. Migraine and headache can feel similar, but they behave differently, and knowing which is which changes what you watch for next.
Types of Headache Pain
Headache pain can feel different depending on the day. NINDS, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, tracks these patterns closely, and the differences are consistent enough to describe clearly. The three sections below cover tension-type headache, migraine, and cluster headache in turn.
Tension-Type Headache
A tension-type headache often feels like steady pressure rather than a throb. Many people describe it as exhausting more than sharp. NINDS calls it “the most common type of headache condition,” with pain that is “usually mild to moderate.”
It presents as “constant pressure on the face, head, or neck,” often described as “like a belt is being tightened around the head.” Most people feel it on both sides, and it “can last from 30 minutes to 7 days.” Sensitivity to light or sound may occur, but not both together, per NINDS.
NINDS draws a clear line: tension-type headache “differs from migraine in that there’s no pre-headache aura, nausea, or vomiting,” and it “doesn’t get worse with everyday physical activities, like walking or climbing stairs.”
Migraine and Aura
Migraine pain builds gradually, and it often reaches beyond the head itself. Many lose hours, sometimes days, to it. NINDS explains that migraine “starts slowly and gets worse,” usually settling on one side of the head, and can bring “nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to light, smell, and sound, confusion, blurred vision, mood changes, and tiredness.” The headache phase itself “can last from hours to days.”
Some people also experience an aura beforehand, though NINDS notes “only some people living with migraine episodes have an aura.” Auras appear “about 10 minutes to an hour before the actual episode,” last “no more than an hour,” and may include “vision changes, trouble speaking, tingling in the hands or face, and confusion.”
NINDS also notes that “the most common type of migraine is migraine without aura.” Migraine occurring “on at least 15 days of the month for more than three months” is classified as chronic migraine.
Cluster Headache
Cluster headache is rare, but its pattern is unmistakable once you know it. NINDS identifies it as the most common trigeminal autonomic cephalalgia, producing “sudden, extremely painful attacks usually at the same time of the day or night for several weeks.” The pain centers on “one side of the head, often behind or around one eye.”
It peaks “five to 10 minutes after starting” and continues “at that intensity for up to three hours.” NINDS notes that “the nose and the eye on the affected side of the face may get red, swollen, and teary” during an attack. The pattern “generally begins between ages 20 and 40” and is “more common in men than in women.”
Migraine and Headache by the Numbers
MedlinePlus reports that “about 12% of Americans get migraines” and that “women are three times more likely than men to get migraines.” The page carries no publication date, so treat this as a general reference, not a current count.
A different measure comes from the CDC. In 2021, “4.3% of adults aged ≥18 years reported being bothered a lot by headache or migraine in the past 3 months” — 6.2% of women and 2.2% of men. This is narrower than migraine prevalence: it measures headache or migraine together, over a recent three-month window, not a lifetime count.
When to See a Doctor
Not every headache needs a doctor, but some symptoms should not wait for a scheduled visit. NINDS is specific about which ones, and about a simpler threshold that applies even without them.
Warning Signs From NINDS
Some headache symptoms call for a same-day call to a doctor, not a wait-and-see approach. NINDS puts it plainly: “Not all headaches need treatment from a doctor.” But the agency adds, “headaches can sometimes signal a more serious health condition that does require medical care.”
NINDS advises people to “call or see a doctor right away” if they or someone with them experiences any of the following:
- “A sudden, severe headache, possibly with a stiff neck”
- “A severe headache with fever, nausea, or vomiting that’s not related to another illness”
- “A person experiencing their ‘first’ or ‘worst’ headache that also has confusion, weakness, double vision, or loss of consciousness”
- “A headache that gets worse over days or weeks or changes in pattern or behavior”
- “Headaches in children that keep coming back”
- “A headache after a brain injury”
- “A headache with loss of sensation or weakness in any part of the body—this could be a sign of a stroke”
- “A headache with convulsions (shaking) or trouble breathing”
- “Two or more headaches a week”
- “A constant headache in someone who hasn’t had headaches before, especially if they’re over age 50”
- “New headaches in someone with a history of cancer or HIV/AIDS”
A Simpler Everyday Signal
A doctor, not a pain-management clinic, is the right first call for any of the symptoms above. These signs may point to stroke, infection, or bleeding, which only a doctor can evaluate. NINDS also gives a simpler threshold: “Talk with a doctor if headaches affect your daily life.”
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is the Difference Between a Tension Headache and a Migraine?
Tension-type headache produces “constant pressure on the face, head, or neck,” usually on both sides, according to NINDS. Migraine differs: it involves “throbbing and pulsating pain on one side of the head,” often with nausea, vomiting, or sensitivity to light and sound, without tension-type’s steady, band-like pressure.
How Long Does a Migraine Typically Last?
NINDS states that the headache phase of a migraine “can last from hours to days.” That single episode differs from chronic migraine, which NINDS defines as headaches occurring “on at least 15 days of the month for more than three months.”
How Common Is Migraine?
MedlinePlus puts migraine at about 12% of Americans, an undated estimate. CDC data from 2021 measures something narrower: 4.3% of adults reported being “bothered a lot” by headache or migraine in the past 3 months, with women at 6.2% and men at 2.2%.
Who Is Most Likely to Get Cluster Headaches?
According to NINDS, cluster headache “generally begins between ages 20 and 40” and is “more common in men than in women.” It produces “sudden, extremely painful attacks usually at the same time of the day or night for several weeks,” a pattern distinct from tension-type headache and migraine.
Ongoing Care at AllCare Health & Pain
AllCare Health & Pain does not include a neurologist and does not perform the neurological evaluation needed to diagnose a headache disorder. That evaluation belongs to a doctor first. Once serious causes have been ruled out, our role is ongoing management of headache pain.
At AllCare Health & Pain in Jersey City, Dr. James Liu is a board-certified anesthesiologist and pain management specialist, certified by the American Board of Anesthesiology in anesthesiology and pain medicine, with a pain management fellowship from NYU. We also offer physiatry/PM&R, orthopedics, acupuncture, physical therapy, massage therapy, pain management and chiropractic. Because head, face, and neck pain often overlap, our neck pain page covers care for that connected area.
If a doctor has already evaluated your headaches, our headache pain management page outlines our approach to ongoing support. Schedule an appointment on 201-386-9800 or via our contact page.
Call Us: 201-386-9800 
