Headaches lead to over 890,000 missed days of work annually at a cost of €99.5 million to employers. Research for Headache Awareness Week has found a further 1-in-5 or 19% of people in Ireland have had limited work ability due to a headache.

It also revealed that within the workplace 24% of people say their workload is their biggest headache trigger while 22% claim staring at a computer screen all day is the main cause.

Our work colleagues also get some of the blame as dealing with stressed co-workers or clients triggers work headaches for another 21% of respondents.

Headache app

This research was announced at the launch of Headache Awareness Week which is taking place from 16th to the 23rd of March.

It hopes to educate people on the types and causes of headaches as well as providing advice on how to help relieve them so as to minimise impact on your quality of life.

As part of the campaign a Headache Soother app has been developed which is now available to download for free from the App Store and Android Market.

The app is designed to help people better understand thier headache symptoms while offering practical solutions to help manage the pain.

3.2 million people in Ireland get headaches with almost 1-in-5 people experiencing a headache once a week or more. 22% of people described their level of pain as ‘bad,’ ‘very bad,’ or at a level where they feel they ‘cannot cope.’

Meanwhile over a quarter of people have had to put off daily tasks due to a headache and 15% of people have had to spend a day in bed due to headache.