Headache Treatment Online & Online Prescription

Key facts

Treated online: Yes, usually. Video assessment, with a prescription when appropriate.
Most headaches are diagnosed from the history alone: tension-type, migraine and medication-overuse headache each have a recognisable pattern.
A thunderclap headache, sudden worst-ever pain reaching maximum intensity within about a minute, is a 112 emergency.
Tension-type headache presses on both sides and lets you carry on; migraine throbs, brings nausea and stops your day.
Painkillers used on more than about 10 to 15 days a month can themselves become the cause of daily headache.

Check before you book

Do not book a video appointment for: a thunderclap headache (sudden, worst-ever pain reaching maximum within about a minute); headache with fever, a stiff neck or a new rash; headache after a head injury; or headache with weakness, slurred speech, vision loss, confusion or seizure. These need emergency assessment. Call 112.

Can an online doctor treat headaches?

Yes

Headache: usually treated online.

Yes. Mobi Doctor, an online healthcare service with licensed doctors, can diagnose and treat most headaches by video, because headache diagnosis rests on your history rather than on machines.^[1] The doctor identifies the type, whether tension, migraine or medication-overuse, prescribes where clinically appropriate, and refers in person when red flags appear. Prescribing rules vary by country, and your doctor confirms what applies to you.

This is worth stating clearly because many people assume headaches need a scan first. Usually the opposite is true: the story comes first, imaging only when the story earns it. That makes headache one of the conditions where a well-run video consultation delivers close to the full value of a clinic visit.

Listen: Headaches Treatment Online

The audio version of this topic from the Mobi Doctor podcast. Open the episode.

How an online consultation helps with headaches

Diagnosis by pattern:

tension-type, migraine and medication-overuse headache are told apart by their story, where it hurts, how it behaves, what it responds to. Taking that story carefully is precisely what a video appointment is for.^[1]

A painkiller audit:

how many days a month you take painkillers is sometimes the diagnosis itself, because frequent use can cause the very headache it is treating. The doctor reviews this without judgement and builds an exit plan.

A treatment ladder, not a single pill:

from lifestyle changes and simple analgesia used sparingly, up to type-specific treatment and daily preventives where the frequency justifies them.

Honest escalation:

if your pattern carries red flags or does not fit a benign type, the doctor says so and refers you for in-person examination, imaging or neurology. Video care is a front door, not a dead end.

What the doctor checks in an online headache consultation

Headache diagnosis is a structured interview, not a scan. In a headache consultation the doctor will typically check:

When the headaches started and whether they are changing.^[1]
How often they come and how long each one lasts.
Where the pain sits and what it feels like: a pressing band on both sides, a one-sided throb, or pain around one eye.
What you take for them, and, crucially, on how many days per month.
Associated symptoms: nausea, sensitivity to light or sound, warning aura, or a watering, red eye.
Lifestyle drivers: sleep, caffeine, alcohol, screens, skipped meals and stress.
The menstrual pattern where relevant.
A deliberate red-flag screen. One honest limit: a hands-on neurological examination is not possible on video, so where examination or a scan is genuinely needed, for example a new headache after 50 or a steadily worsening pattern, the doctor arranges in-person care rather than guessing.

Keep a two-week headache diary

Before your appointment if you can, note each headache: date and time, how bad out of ten, how long, what you took, and anything around it, such as sleep, stress, alcohol, skipped meals or cycle day. Two weeks of notes turns a vague complaint into a readable pattern, and often shows a trigger or a painkiller habit nobody had spotted. After the consultation the diary keeps working: it is how you and the doctor judge at follow-up whether a preventive is earning its keep.

Which type of headache do I have?

Most recurring headaches are one of three types: tension-type (a pressing band on both sides that lets you carry on), migraine (throbbing, often one-sided attacks with nausea or light sensitivity that stop your day) and medication-overuse headache (a dull daily headache maintained by frequent painkillers). Headache disorders are among the most common conditions of the nervous system, and the pattern identifies the type.^[2]

Headache types at a glance

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The common headache types and how they behave, aligned with cited classification
Type	What it feels like	Typical pattern
Tension-type	Pressing, tight band on both sides; mild to moderate	Builds with stress, screens or poor sleep; you can usually keep going
Migraine	Throbbing, often one-sided; nausea, light and sound sensitivity	Attacks lasting hours to about three days that stop your day; sometimes preceded by aura
Medication-overuse	Dull, background headache, present most days	Grows out of taking acute painkillers on roughly 10–15 or more days a month
Cluster	Excruciating pain around one eye, with watering or redness	Rare; brief attacks recurring daily in clusters lasting weeks

Tension-type headache

The most common headache: a pressing, tight-band feeling on both sides, mild to moderate, without vomiting, and you can usually keep going with your day. Stress, poor sleep, long screen stretches and neck tension all feed it. Annoying and recurrent, but not dangerous.

Migraine

A different animal: attacks typically last hours to a few days, are often one-sided and throbbing, get worse with movement, and come with nausea or sensitivity to light and sound.^[3] Some people get warning symptoms (aura) first, and in some women attacks track the menstrual cycle, see hormone headaches. If this description fits you, our dedicated migraine page covers acute and preventive treatment in depth.

Medication-overuse headache

The cruellest loop in headache medicine: taking acute painkillers on more than about 10 to 15 days a month (the threshold depends on the medicine) can itself cause a dull, daily background headache, which invites more painkillers.^[1] Suspect it if you have headaches on more days than not and reach for tablets most days. It is treatable, but the treatment is a planned withdrawal, not a stronger pill.

Is my headache suitable for online care?

Most recurring headaches are safe to diagnose and treat online; a few patterns need in-person care. The table below shows how doctors sort headaches into a treatment ladder and referral.

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How headaches are assessed, the likely first step, and when in-person care is needed, aligned with cited guidance
Headache presentation	Likely first step	Suitable for online care?	When referral or in-person care is needed
Tension-type headache	Lifestyle measures and simple painkillers used sparingly	Usually yes	If frequency rises and a preventive is needed but not tolerated
Migraine (diagnosed by pattern)	Acute treatment (including triptans) and preventives when frequent^[1]	Usually yes	Atypical features, changing aura, or poor response needing neurology
Medication-overuse headache	A structured painkiller-withdrawal plan with support	Yes	If withdrawal is difficult or the picture is unclear
New headache after 50, or a pattern clearly worsening over weeks	In-person assessment, sometimes imaging	Initial assessment yes	Prompt in-person examination and referral^[1]
Thunderclap headache, or headache with fever and stiff neck, weakness, vision loss or after head injury	Emergency care	No	Call 112 immediately

Availability and prescribing vary by country; your doctor confirms what applies where you are.

Not sure which type you have? A doctor can tell you in one consultation. €47, exact price shown before payment.

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When should I see a doctor about headaches?

See a doctor about headaches when they come on two or more days a week, when you need painkillers more than two to three days a week, when the pattern is changing or waking you from sleep, or when headaches interfere with work. Any new headache after 50 should be assessed promptly.

None of those thresholds means something sinister; they mean the do-it-yourself phase has run its course. Frequency that high has a name and a treatment plan in almost every case, and the earlier the painkiller pattern is reviewed, the easier medication-overuse headache is to avoid or unwind.

When a headache is something else

Sinus pressure, colds and flu

A heavy face and forehead during a cold is sinus congestion behaving normally, and it settles as the cold does. True sinusitis headaches come with a blocked nose, thick discharge and face pain that worsens on bending forwards. What sinus trouble does not explain is months of recurring headaches; most "sinus headaches" that keep returning turn out on proper history to be migraine.

Eyes, screens and the neck

Uncorrected vision strains its way into end-of-day head pain, and an eye test is a cheap, underused headache investigation. Long fixed postures at screens feed tension-type headache through the neck and shoulders; so can an awkward pillow or a whiplash-style injury. The tell is timing: pain that builds with the working day and eases away from the desk.

Why do I wake up with a headache?

Waking with a headache most often traces to something in the night: snoring or sleep apnoea, alcohol the evening before, caffeine withdrawal after heavy daytime use, teeth grinding, or medication-overuse headache surfacing as painkillers wear off overnight. Frequent morning headaches deserve review, especially with loud snoring or witnessed pauses in breathing.

Sleep apnoea is the one not to miss: morning headaches plus heavy snoring, daytime sleepiness and pauses in breathing that a partner notices form a pattern worth naming to the doctor, because treating the sleep disorder treats the headache. And despite the popular belief, ordinary high blood pressure rarely causes headaches; only extreme readings do, which is one more reason the history matters more than the guess.

Special situations

Headaches in pregnancy

Headaches are common in early pregnancy and usually benign. Paracetamol at the lowest effective dose is the usual first choice; anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen are avoided, especially in the third trimester. The exception that matters: a new, severe or unusual headache in the second half of pregnancy, particularly with visual disturbance, sudden swelling of the face or hands, or upper-abdominal pain, needs urgent in-person assessment for pre-eclampsia, not a video appointment.

New headaches after 50

A first-ever headache pattern starting after 50 is assessed differently, in person. One specific pattern needs same-day care: scalp tenderness (brushing hair hurts), aching in the jaw when chewing, and any visual disturbance, with or without feeling generally unwell. That combination suggests inflamed blood vessels (giant cell arteritis), which is treatable, but sight is at risk if it waits.

Travellers and irregular weeks

Travel stacks headache triggers: broken sleep, dehydration on flights, alcohol at altitude, missed meals and a caffeine schedule in pieces. If you know your pattern, pack accordingly, with your usual acute treatment, water and regular meals. A video consultation works across Europe if a headache pattern misbehaves mid-trip, and the doctor can judge whether it is your usual type or something that needs local care.

Treatment options for headaches

What you can do yourself

Boring but effective: regular sleep and wake times, meals not skipped, steady hydration, screen breaks and attention to posture if your headaches are tension-type, and caffeine kept constant rather than escalating. Paracetamol, ibuprofen or aspirin work best taken early in a headache, and on no more than two to three days a week.^[5] That cap is not stinginess; it is what protects you from medication-overuse headache.

Prescription treatment

A prescription is never issued without a consultation. The assessment decides the treatment, and prescribing follows the type. Migraine has specific acute medicines (triptans) and daily preventives once attacks are frequent, assessed and, when the doctor judges them the right treatment, prescribed by video, with the details on the migraine page.^[4] Frequent tension-type headache can respond to a low-dose daily preventive such as amitriptyline, which the doctor will discuss honestly, including side effects. Medication-overuse headache is treated with a structured withdrawal plan and support through the rough first weeks. One thing is deliberately not on the menu: opioid and codeine-containing painkillers, which are a poor fit for headache and a fast route to overuse, are not prescribed through Mobi Doctor.

Reducing how often headaches come back

Prevention is mostly rhythm: consistent sleep, meals and caffeine flatten the trigger landscape, and regular aerobic exercise has a genuine track record for both tension-type headache and migraine. Use the diary to find your personal pattern rather than following generic trigger lists, and when attacks stay frequent despite good habits, that is the signal to discuss a daily preventive rather than to endure.

When we treat headaches online, and when we refer you

We treat online: tension-type headache; migraine, both acute treatment and prevention; medication-overuse headache with a structured withdrawal plan; and the lifestyle and trigger review that reduces how often headaches come back.

We refer or redirect you: any red-flag pattern (a thunderclap headache, headache with fever and a stiff neck, headache after a head injury, or headache with weakness, speech trouble, vision loss, confusion or seizure), which is an emergency; a first new headache after 50, or a steadily worsening pattern, which needs in-person examination and sometimes imaging;^[1] the giant cell arteritis pattern of scalp tenderness, jaw ache on chewing and visual disturbance, which needs same-day care; suspected sleep apnoea for a sleep study; and pre-eclampsia features in later pregnancy, which are an emergency. In those cases the consultation gets you to the right examination quickly, not a prescription in its place.

When to get in-person care

Treat as an emergency: a thunderclap headache (sudden, worst-ever, maximal within about a minute); headache with fever plus a stiff neck, rash or intolerance of light; headache following a head injury, especially with vomiting, drowsiness or blood-thinning medication; headache with one-sided weakness, facial droop, slurred speech, vision loss, confusion or seizure; or a sudden severe headache in late pregnancy with visual disturbance or swelling. In any of these situations, call 112 immediately.

How Mobi Doctor works

Book a time that suits you: open daily 7am–11pm, often the same day, with the exact price, €47, shown before you pay.
Speak to a licensed doctor about headaches: a private video consultation, from anywhere in Europe.
Leave with your plan the same day: everything agreed on the call, and if treatment is right for you, the prescription follows straight away, sent to a pharmacy near you in most EU countries. If we can’t help you online, you get a full refund.

Frequently asked questions about headaches

Can an online doctor prescribe headache medication in Europe?

Yes, an online doctor can prescribe headache medication in Europe, including migraine-specific acute treatments and daily preventives, where clinically appropriate after a proper assessment, with the prescription sent to a local pharmacy in most EU countries. Opioid and codeine-containing painkillers are not prescribed online, and are a poor choice for headache in any case.

How quickly can I talk to a doctor about my headaches?

Usually the same day. Appointments run 7 days a week from 7am to 11pm. A video consultation costs €47. The exact price is shown before payment, and there is no subscription. If you can, bring notes on your recent headaches and a list of what you currently take, because it makes the first consultation far more productive.

When should I worry about a headache?

Seek emergency help for a sudden worst-ever headache, headache with fever and a stiff neck or rash, headache after a head injury, or headache with weakness, speech trouble, vision loss or confusion. Book a prompt review for a first new headache after 50, or a pattern that is clearly worsening over weeks.

Why do I have a headache every day?

The two most common explanations are chronic tension-type headache and medication-overuse headache, and they often coexist. The key question is how many days a month you take painkillers; if the answer is most days, the tablets may be maintaining the problem, and a doctor can plan a way out.

What is the difference between a tension headache and a migraine?

Tension-type headache presses on both sides like a tight band, stays mild to moderate, and lets you carry on. Migraine is usually one-sided and throbbing, worsens with movement, brings nausea or sensitivity to light and sound, and tends to stop your day.

Will I need a brain scan?

Usually not. Most headaches are diagnosed from the history, and scans are reserved for red flags or patterns that do not fit a benign type. If yours is a case where imaging genuinely matters, the doctor will say so directly and refer you for it in person.

Does caffeine help headaches or cause them?

Both, depending on the pattern. A steady, moderate intake is fine and can even ease the occasional headache, but escalating use sets up overnight withdrawal, a classic cause of waking with head pain, and heavy daily use feeds the chronic-headache cycle. Keep your intake constant from day to day, and tell the doctor honestly what it is.

What can I take for a headache during pregnancy?

Paracetamol at the lowest effective dose is the usual first choice in pregnancy; anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen are avoided, especially in the third trimester. A new, severe or unusual headache in the second half of pregnancy, particularly with visual disturbance or sudden swelling, needs urgent in-person assessment rather than an online appointment.

Sources & further reading

Headaches in over 12s: diagnosis and management (CG150), NICE, National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, 2012 (updated 2021).
Headache disorders fact sheet, WHO, World Health Organization, 2024.
International Classification of Headache Disorders (ICHD-3), International Headache Society, 2018.
Migraine, HSE, Health Service Executive (Ireland), accessed August 2026.
Oral paracetamol for treatment of acute episodic tension-type headache in adults, Cochrane, Cochrane Library, 2016.

This page is for information only and is not a substitute for a medical consultation. Guideline links are provided for transparency; treatment decisions are made with your doctor.

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