Feeling your heartbeat in your head can be caused by anxiety, high blood pressure, or caffeine. See a doctor if it persists.
Common causes
- Anxiety and stress.
- High blood pressure.
- Caffeine and nicotine.
- Exercise.
- Pulsatile tinnitus.
- Anemia and thyroid disease.
- Pregnancy.
What helps
Slow breathing, less caffeine, rest and hydration.
See a doctor
If it is persistent, one sided or comes with dizziness or hearing change.
Emergency
Severe headache, chest pain or fainting. Call 911.
Pulsatile sensation
Feeling your heartbeat in the head can mean awareness of normal blood flow, or an increase in the force of circulation.
Common causes
- Anxiety and panic attacks.
- High blood pressure.
- Caffeine, nicotine, alcohol and energy drinks.
- Exercise and fever.
- Migraines and tension headaches.
- Dehydration.
- Anemia, where the heart pumps harder to deliver oxygen.
- Thyroid problems.
- Medications including decongestants and stimulants.
Vascular and ear causes
Pulsatile tinnitus can come from turbulent blood flow near the ear. Atherosclerosis or abnormal vessels are less common causes.
Blood pressure
Severe hypertension can cause pounding headaches. A reading above 180/120 mm Hg with symptoms like headache, chest pain, vision changes or confusion is a hypertensive emergency.
What helps
- Rest in a quiet, dark room.
- Slow, deep breathing.
- Drink water.
- Cut down on caffeine and alcohol.
- Check your blood pressure at home with a validated cuff.
- Get regular sleep and exercise.
Track patterns
Note when it happens, how long it lasts, and what you did before it began.
See a doctor if
It is frequent, persistent, only in one side of the head, or comes with dizziness, hearing changes or high blood pressure readings. A doctor may check blood pressure, heart rhythm, blood tests and imaging.
Emergency
Call 911 for sudden severe headache (“worst of your life”), chest pain, trouble speaking, weakness, vision loss, fainting or a head injury.
Pulse sensations and triggers
Feeling the heartbeat in your head can be due to pulsatile tinnitus, high blood pressure, anemia, caffeine, anxiety, fever, thyroid overactivity or exercise, which raise the force of blood flow. Migraine can cause throbbing pain that feels like a heartbeat in the head. Vascular conditions affecting arteries near the ear or neck, and a clogged ear canal, can make normal pulse sounds louder. Palpitations, an awareness of the heartbeat, are different and are felt in the chest.
What to do
Measure your blood pressure at home and track when the sensation occurs, along with caffeine, sleep, stress and medicines. Cutting caffeine and alcohol, managing stress and treating anemia or thyroid problems often help. See a doctor if it is constant, one sided, linked to hearing changes or dizziness. Call 911 for a sudden, severe headache, weakness, vision loss, trouble speaking, chest pain or fainting. A blood pressure above 180/120 with symptoms is an emergency.
Based on data from the American Heart Association and the American Academy of Otolaryngology
