An association between headaches and stress has been recognized for many decades, and early studies relevant to the relation were reviewed in Harold Wolff’s classic 1948 book Headache and Other Head Pains. Stress and headaches can be related in a number of ways, and the different pathways can be subsumed within a functional model of chronic headaches that focuses on the controlling variables of headaches (antecedents and consequences), as first described in a 1993 book by Paul Martin. Stress can precipitate or aggravate certain types of headaches. Stress can serve as a psychosocial context for headaches, as a result of stressful situations in a person’s life (e.g., a dysfunctional marriage, occupational pressures) and/or factors that moderate the stress response, such as inadequate social support. ...

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