Headache after long mental work.

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thekwoka@reddit

That's how the brain works.

4 hours of deep work is pretty near the limit for the vast majority of people.

though meth helps.

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Hot-Sheepherder301@reddit

Bro casually suggesting a highly addictive hard drug

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thekwoka@reddit

One that is legal with prescription for ADHD

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ProfessorGriswald@reddit

Prescription ADHD medication is NOT the same as meth. Please do not proliferate harmful misinformation and stereotypes.

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thekwoka@reddit

They are a meth (well half are, the other half are amphetamines basically) and they act essentially the same on the brain, with all the same narcotic characteristics.

The only difference is how it enters your body, with the pharma products being is slow release capsules, compared to smoking or injecting.

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ProfessorGriswald@reddit

This is incorrect for a number of reasons.

Most ADHD medication contains either methylphenidate or amphetamine, not methamphetamine (and no, the former is not “a meth” just because it has the same four letters at the beginning). The lisdexamphetamine in Elvanse/Vyvanse is a prodrug and completely inactive until converted to dexamphetamine. Street meth is active immediately and has a completely different chemical structure and potency.

The pharmacokinetics are fundamentally different. Methamphetamine creates a rapid euphoria, which the therapeutic doses of ADHD meds avoid through the delivery mechanism.

Saying the only difference is delivery is like saying a dripping tap and a fire hose are the same thing because they both deliver water. Rate, intensity, duration, all completely change the effects. “It’s basically meth” is a daft comparison. ADHD meds have decades of safety data and help millions live functional lives.

More to the point, proliferating this rhetoric directly contributes to people (especially parents) refusing effective medication because of fear-mongering comparisons, makes people taking medication for their ADHD feel like drug addicts for taking incredibly important medication that helps them function, creates more stigma causing people to avoid seeking help, and makes people hide their medication or disability at work to avoid discrimination. I’ve seen parents let their kids struggle rather than “give them meth”, adult sufferers stopping their meds because their partner made them feel like addicts, people going without out of shame, and uni students being treated like drug dealers for having a prescription.

So, kindly consider the impact on people who are already struggling before you spout this crap.

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Head_Let6924@reddit

Chill out with a hot chicken sandwich and movie/funny cartoons

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johny2nd@reddit

There's lot of good advice here, but hard to tell what is the problem in your specific case. You need to go one by one I guess from the easiest possible causes.

Have fresh air at your workspace, enough light, listen to ergonomics advice, then look at your posture, do multiple breaks with exercises, etc. and only then check medical reasons IMHO.

For example for me I was pressing my jaws too hard causing head muscles to be strained. Realizing this helped me to remove headaches.

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cran@reddit

Could be eye strain, but your brain uses a lot of energy. Be sure you’re eating well and, in a pinch, a little coffee and sugar helps.

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considerfi@reddit

Yeah the last job I had was super intense. Fun, but intense, a lot of mental work that needed to be done fast for many hours a day. I needed more sleep even. I could have napped in the middle of the day, I was so tired. I never nap but I could legit have fallen asleep. Coffee, sugar, no alcohol, more nutritious food, and more hours of sleep helped.

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SolarNachoes@reddit

Sounds like eye strain maybe?

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Gwolf4@reddit

Yeah, probably OP needs glasses and doesn't know it yet, also blue filter.

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considerfi@reddit

This. Check your eyesight OP. You likely need glasses.

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Constant-Listen834@reddit

Or lack of exercise / hydration

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dgack@reddit

This I could not find in my earlier days of suffering from Headache , but not having clean gut, and not hydrating enough cause these. Summary is not cleaning gut

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maikindofthai@reddit

You mean wiping?

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ScudsCorp@reddit

Hydration + electrolytes

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venerated@reddit

This would be my first guess. I didn't get glasses til I was like 32. Used to get really back headaches working on stuff, now I rarely get them.

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ReverseMermaidMorty@reddit

If it is eye strain, try using light mode instead of having everything in dark mode.

Not having my pupils constantly constricting and expanding from working in a dark mode app in a brightly lit office helped a ton

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SolarNachoes@reddit

And get the biggest monitor(s) you can accommodate. I use dual 34” monitors and get zero eye strain. I also use reading glasses with the blue light blockers. And all light is ambient and located behind me.

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thekwoka@reddit

I use dual 34” monitors and get zero eye strain

just neck problems lol

I recommend 34 inch ultra wide as a minimum.

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SolarNachoes@reddit

Chairs can swivel.

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thekwoka@reddit

do you mount your mouse and keyboard to your chair?

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SolarNachoes@reddit

Maybe you should try yoga

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shesaysImdone@reddit

I've heard the constant movement of your head between the monitors can cause physical problems down the line

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SolarNachoes@reddit

It’s not any different than an ultra wide.

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thekwoka@reddit

well, it's wider than an ultra wide...since ultrawide are not 2 whole displays next to eachother, but ultra wide would allow you to center something far easier, since no center bevel.

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SolarNachoes@reddit

I center one monitor and the other is off to the side at an angle.

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thekwoka@reddit

So, even more neck strain?

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thekwoka@reddit

Yeah, I also use light mode during work hours and dark mode outside work to kind of help establish a different "environment" for work, since I work from home on the same devices.

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WeedFinderGeneral@reddit

Also - blue light/yellow lens glasses, just to put that effect on your whole vision. I get horrible migraines (literally in bed right now after puking my guts out earlier) and glasses really help.

I have a regular clear lens pair of glasses I wear basically 24/7 now - even though I supposedly have 20/20 vision - just as like a base preventative measure.

The yellow lens ones work better though - but you will also look like Hunter S Thompson.

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DeterminedQuokka@reddit

This is an idea. I fun flux on my system at a pretty high orange scale to avoid this. Although, it's not because of a number of hours of work but because I'm prone to migraines. I assume if you are slightly less prone it might seem related to work.

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Crazy-Willingness951@reddit

Try the Pomodoro technique.

I found that an early morning workout (run or swim) helped me to focus better at work.

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fuckoholic@reddit

try to reduce the number of irritants throughout the day. Make the room darker, avoid music, turn off the light, use dark theme, turn off distractions like phone (make it silent), turn off animations for tyling or switching windows. Let me know if it helped!

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rcls0053@reddit

I only tend to get headaches by straining a particular muscle in my right lats, because I have this bad habit of actually moving my head forward too much and not sitting correctly. It's always the same muscle. I fixed it by going to the gym and doing strength training. Neck and back muscles improved a lot so no more headaches.

It might be related to your muscles, neck, back, shoulders or your vision.

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orangeowlelf@reddit

After 20 years, I’m pretty used to prolonged mental work. I can usually do between six and eight hours before I start slowing down.

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stdpmk@reddit (OP)

You are lucky))

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orangeowlelf@reddit

I don’t know about luck, I didn’t start that way and it took me 20 years to get to the point where I could do work that I need to concentrate on for that long. I still take breaks, I’ll get up and walk around my floor of the building every hour or so just to make sure I can keep going.

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Huge-Leek844@reddit

I have migraines after working a full day at the office because of the artificial light. When i work from home i dont have migraines.

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AdecadeGm@reddit

Mostly eye strain and lack of blood flow from sitting too long. The brain is doing just fine. It never gets tired.

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So_Rusted@reddit

What do you mean by brain doesnt get tired?

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the300bros@reddit

No headache but my appetite goes up a lot if I’m focused most of the day. Skipping meals would be a bad idea. Sure you aren’t hungry?

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dryiceboy@reddit

Why are you asking random people online instead of going to the doctor?

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Ok-Vermicelli-7807@reddit

Did you stop drinking caffeine or using nicotine recently?

Super low or super high sodium intake? Not drinking much water?Drinking too much water?

Also just a general lack of nutrients could also cause a headache.

If none of those, my best guess is eye strain.

If it continues, see a doctor.

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db_peligro@reddit

When I have a nice feature to work on I sometimes get to a flow state where I have a model of the system fully loaded into my brain's working memory and the hours fly by.

More often I am doing much more granular and boring tasks where its a constant temptation to alt tab away and waste time.

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bonnydoe@reddit

Put on a cheap smart watch: it buzzes when you sit too long. I am a notorious long-concentration-person, but I do listen to my watch ;)

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lastPixelDigital@reddit

You you are just thinking too hard. Don't think hard, think smart! /s

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SubstantialSilver574@reddit

People say eye strain but it’s a legit brain strain headache sometimes. It’ll exhaust you and make you hungry

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da_supreme_patriarch@reddit

Get blue light glasses, also make sure you get up and wash your face every hour or so if possible, or just walk around for a few minutes, helps with easing tensions a lot. Two other things that help me are milk and tonic water, but your mileage may vary. I also carry paracetamol/ibuprofen with me if things get really bad and I really have to get work done, but I try to use them spatingly once I have exhausted all other options.

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dbxp@reddit

I used to have a bit of that, it was astigmatism, get your eyes checked

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Wafer_Over@reddit

Don't forget the neck. It can cause headaches.

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wiriux@reddit

Not necessarily eye issue. It is possible to get a headache from studying/concentrating too hard.

I used to get headaches sometimes when studying math or when doing CS hw or projects while in college. Any situation where you get high levels of stress can give you a headache.

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sfboots@reddit

Check the ergonomics of your workspace. monitor height. Chair height. Desk height

I have gotten headaches due to the monitor being too low. Working using the laptop screen on the desk guarantees I get a headache and stiff neck after two hours. So I can't work in a conference room

My normal desk has an external monitor mounted about 16 inches above the desk, so I can look straight at the monitor

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Heavy_Thought_2966@reddit

Gotta take breaks and look away from the screen. Go grab some water and a snack or use the bathroom.

Headaches are likely eye strain, dehydration or not enough nutrients.

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bicx@reddit

I can get headaches, but it's usually because of eye strain, stress-induced tightness in forehead from "frowning," and craning my neck while leaning forward (this also triggers ocular migraines for me if I do it too much). As others have said, taking breaks helps reset your mind and posture.

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