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Headache.Why do my headaches keep coming back?

Because a recurring headache is usually a signal, not the whole problem. Triggers can hide in sleep, the jaw and neck, hormones, food, stress, and patterns that only show up across months. The practitioners here go looking for the pattern instead of just the next pill.

Last updated October 4, 2026

Why does this get missed?

Because a headache is treated in the moment it happens. A visit can ease the pain in front of it, while the triggers play out over weeks and months.

Sleep, the jaw and neck, hormones, food and stress sit with different specialists and in different records. Seen side by side across a year, the pattern tends to show itself.

The curated pieces

3 pieces

  1. Podcast, BBC Radio 4, 28 min

    01

    The Life Scientific, Peter Goadsby on migraine

    Peter Goadsby, MD, PhD, a neurologist at King’s College London and UCLA who shared the 2021 Brain Prize for uncovering the CGRP pathway behind migraine, work that led to a new class of preventive treatments.

    What you’ll learn

    How migraine went from being dismissed as just a headache to being understood as a brain disorder. Goadsby explains what actually happens in the brain during an attack, and why that led to treatments designed for migraine itself. He is warm and plain spoken, and he takes migraine seriously in a way many patients never experienced. You come away knowing why newer options exist and why they are worth asking about.

    Worth asking your doctor

    Given how often I get migraines, should we talk about preventive treatment, including the newer CGRP based options?

    Go to the source

  2. Study, free full text, JAMA Internal Medicine

    02

    Effectiveness of Mindfulness Meditation vs Headache Education for Adults With Migraine: A Randomized Clinical Trial

    Rebecca Erwin Wells, MD, MPH, a neurologist and headache specialist at Wake Forest who founded its comprehensive headache program and studies mind body approaches to migraine with careful trials.

    What you’ll learn

    Refreshingly honest. Mindfulness training did not cut migraine days more than headache education did, and both groups improved. But the mindfulness group had less disability, better quality of life, lower depression scores and less fear of pain, and those gains lasted 36 weeks. A good way to think about a treatment that changes how much migraine runs your life, even when it does not change the count.

    Worth asking your doctor

    Beyond reducing how many migraines I have, what could reduce how much they disrupt my life, and is mindfulness training worth adding?

    Go to the source

  3. Podcast, Talking Head Pain, 35 min

    03

    Living Better with Migraine: A Conversation with Dr. Dawn Buse, PhD

    Dawn Buse, PhD, a licensed psychologist and Clinical Professor of Neurology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine who has spent her career on migraine, its emotional weight, and the barriers to care.

    What you’ll learn

    The side of migraine that rarely gets airtime: the emotional one. Buse explains how CBT style tools fit alongside medical treatment, and how to build small, realistic habits that stick. She is clear that progress is rarely a straight line, which is a relief to hear. It feels like talking to someone who has sat with thousands of people with migraine.

    Worth asking your doctor

    Could a psychologist who specializes in headache be a useful part of my migraine plan?

    Go to the source

Every card links straight to the original source. We summarize and send people there. We never republish. How pieces are chosen

Questions to bring to your next appointment

  1. 01Given how often I get migraines, should we talk about preventive treatment, including the newer CGRP based options?
  2. 02Beyond reducing how many migraines I have, what could reduce how much they disrupt my life, and is mindfulness training worth adding?
  3. 03Could a psychologist who specializes in headache be a useful part of my migraine plan?

This is a starting point, not medical advice. Talk with a doctor you trust before changing anything.

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