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Headaches have been part of your daily life for so long , you can ’ t even remember when they started .
You ’ ve tried everything — over-the-counter medications , prescription painkillers , herbal supplements . You ’ ve changed your diet . You ’ ve changed your sleep habits . You ’ ve stopped going out with friends and family . But no matter what you do , the incapacitating headaches keep coming back .
For a select and unfortunate group of headache sufferers , this extreme scenario is the status quo . Despite doing everything they can to treat their headaches , their pain is persistent , severe and debilitating . Unique cases like this warrant unique care . That ’ s where inpatient headache clinics come in .
Inpatient headache care is a multidisciplinary treatment approach administered by medical professionals who specialize in complex headache cases , says Wade Cooper , DO , director of the Headache and Neuropathic Pain Program at the University of Michigan . This type of care provides a host of benefits , including access to a team of specialists , close medical observation for more difficult cases and intensive therapeutic options , such as IV medications , that are not available at home or in most acute care settings .
For patients who can ’ t find relief elsewhere , inpatient headache clinics can provide tools to reduce pain and improve quality of life .
From Ridicule to Reverence
The roots of inpatient headache care date back to the 1980s , when Seymour Diamond , MD , executive chairman of the National Headache Foundation and founder and director emeritus of the Diamond Headache Clinic , established the first dedicated acute inpatient headache unit at Bethany Methodist Hospital in Chicago .
www . headwisemag . org | National Headache Foundation 41