Ibuprofen for tension headaches, acetaminophen for the rest.

I pretty much always go ibuprofen, but aspirin is fine.

I’m pretty sure acetaminophen is snake oil though (this is a joke but I can’t recall ever having it resolve a headache for me like ibuprofen does).

Motrin(Ibuprofen) because it works better for me, assuming the migraine doesn’t cause me to puke it up right after.

Aspirin has never been of value to me and I would only take it if I had a heart attack.

I’ll go plain old paracetamol which works for me most of the time. If that fails then ibuprofen would be my next choice.

Ibuprofen if I’m at work, but at home I usually take a short nap and have some coffee after, which works better for me.

Excedrin = Aspirin + Tylenol + Caffeine

If I can’t avoid it or if I’m in a hurry, I will take Paracetamol 500mg. If there is no change within an hour, I’ll take Ibuprofen 600mg. But if I have time, I will get some rest (avoid bright light, close eyes and listen to podcasts).

I try to figure out what’s causing it, then treat. I get headaches from eyestrain (so I take addition and focus on something else), allergies (antihistamine/decongestant), sunglare (eyerest), overexertion/dehydration (drink water and take it easy), caffeine withdrawal (drink cola), etc.

Ibuprofen but in ideal conditions cannabis

As other comments have said, deal with the origin of the pain first, THEN…

If it’s bad enough to take meds but not too bad, then one 500mg paracetamol and 200mg ibuprofen (my go to for pain). The paracetamol will generally be one with some caffeine in it.

If it’s a BAD headache, then 900mg aspirin.

I do have a headache hat which is kept in the fridge.

It depends on the cause, and your own biology.

Aspirin reduces pain signals but also reduces blood clotting, If your headache is from vasculature issues in and around your brain it’s extra insurance.

Acetaminophen just reduces pain signals in the nervous system. It doesn’t have any secondary advantageous effects but it is easier on your stomach.

Ibuprofen reduces pain signals and also as an anti-inflammatory. So if your headache is caused from minor swelling in the head it’s the obvious choice.

I feel like at least in the US most people tend to overtake ibuprofen when they’d probably be better suited with Tylenol or aspirin.

95% of the time, a headache for me means I’m dehydrated. So I drink water + electrolyte drops.

Not OTC: water and exercise. But hey, keep searching for the “easy” way out.

Acetaminophen (Tylenol) if I can’t get it under control without meds but I agree with the other posters about trying to figure out the root cause! For me, the main causes of headaches used to be hormones from the pill until I switched to a different form of birth control (IUD). Nowadays my headaches are mostly dry eye or allergy related so I keep eye drops on hand and take allergy meds and I’m down to headaches once every week or two. Staying hydrated and taking fish oil supplements has also helped my dry eyes.

Somewhat in order of action:

• check if I am clenching jaw/grinding my teeth, relax shoulders and neck, center my thoughts, lower blood pressure and pulse

• thoroughly flush sinuses (like spend 20 minutes or more at least)

• drink lots of water/electrolytes and caffeine

• reduce sensory input: dark quiet room with comfortable seating

• double dose of Sudafed and Diclofenac sodium

• jump into traffic