Headaches are one of the complaints people mention most often after a car crash, and they are also one of the easiest to lose track of. A headache that appears on the third day can feel unrelated to the wreck, and by the time you try to describe it, the details have blurred together. A short written log gives you something concrete to bring to your appointment.
This article is educational. It does not explain what is causing your headaches, and only a licensed provider who examines you can do that. The goal here is to help you describe what you notice in clear, everyday words.
Get emergency care first
Some headache symptoms need immediate help, not a scheduled visit. Get emergency care right away if a headache is sudden and severe, if it follows a hard blow to the head, or if it comes with weakness, numbness, trouble speaking, confusion, vision changes, repeated vomiting, or unusual drowsiness. Do not wait to see whether it passes. Your log can wait; your safety comes first.
What to write down each time
Keep a notebook or a note on your phone, and add an entry each time a headache starts. Write the date and the time it began. Then note where you feel it, such as the forehead, the temples, the back of the head, the neck, or one side only. Describe the feeling in your own words. Some people say it is pressing, others say sharp, throbbing, or like a tight band. Use whatever words fit.
Next, record how long the headache lasts, from start to finish, even if your estimate is rough. Write what you were doing in the hour before it began. Common examples include sitting at a screen, driving, lifting a bag, standing at the stove, being in a loud room, skipping a meal, or sleeping poorly. You are not trying to prove a cause. You are simply noting what was happening so patterns can be seen later.
Note what you tried and what changed
Write down anything you did to ease the headache, including rest in a dark room, a cold or warm pack, a walk, water, a snack, or a medication. Include the name and amount of any over-the-counter or prescribed medicine you took and the time you took it. If something helped, write how much and how quickly. If nothing changed, write that too. A simple line such as 'eased a little after thirty minutes, came back by evening' is more useful than a vague summary.
Finally, note how the headache affected your day. Did you leave work early, cancel plans, skip a chore, or have trouble reading or watching a screen? Did it wake you up? These details show how much the headaches interfere with ordinary life, which matters as much as how bad they feel at the worst moment.
Using the log at your visit
Bring the log to your first appointment and read it aloud if that helps. Your provider can ask follow-up questions about the entries and decide what to examine. You do not need to guess at a diagnosis or fill gaps with what you think the doctor wants to hear. Write 'not sure' where you are not sure. Honest gaps are more useful than tidy guesses.
Keep the log going after the visit too. Many people find that headaches change over time, sometimes becoming more frequent, sometimes fading, sometimes shifting in location. A continuing record lets you and your provider see those changes without relying on memory. If a headache becomes worse, changes character, or starts during a usual activity you never noticed before, add it to the log and mention it at your next visit.
Keep it simple
A useful headache log does not need special forms or medical language. A few lines per headache, written the same way each time, will do. Date, time, location, feeling, duration, what came before, what you tried, and how it affected your day covers most of what a provider needs to hear. Keep the notebook somewhere you will see it, and make an entry on the same day whenever you can.
Whether you are heading to an exam this week or simply trying to make sense of the headaches you have had since the wreck, a clear record is one of the most practical steps you can take. It turns a vague ache into specific observations, and specific observations are what make a visit productive for you.