Why Rainy Days in Japan Give You a Headache

So it turns out 'weather sickness' is a real thing, and it's not just you being dramatic. ☔

It's Not Just You

You know that dull, pounding headache that rolls in with the rain clouds during tsuyu? The one that makes you want to curl up under your Nitori cooling blanket and not emerge until August?

That's 'weather sickness' (気象病, kishōbyō), and a recent survey found that a whopping 65% of people in Japan get it. The number one symptom, by a long shot, is headaches.

It's especially common for women, with over half reporting headaches during typhoon season or the change of seasons. So yes, you can officially stop feeling guilty for blaming the weather for everything.

Blame Your Blood, Apparently

For a while, the going theory was that drops in atmospheric pressure—which you can literally track on some Japanese weather apps—mess with the fluid in your inner ear. This then throws your whole autonomic nervous system out of whack.

But new research just dropped, and it gets even more specific. A study found that people prone to these pressure-induced headaches tend to have lower levels of two things in their blood: 'nervonic acid' and 'activated vitamin D'.

I don't know what nervonic acid is, but I'm definitely telling my boss I'm running low on it next time it rains.

What You Can Actually Do

The official advice for dealing with this is pretty much the standard Japanese self-care playbook. First, get more sleep. Take a long bath. Relax. This supposedly helps balance your nervous system.

If you're feeling sluggish and down, the advice is, paradoxically, to force yourself to go outside. The activity can kick your sympathetic nervous system into gear and actually make you feel better.

And most importantly, they say it's okay to take a painkiller. You won't build up a tolerance if you use them as directed. It’s a real physical condition, not just a vague feeling of malaise.

Of course, if it's really bad or getting worse, go see a doctor. Don't just take medical advice from a lifestyle feed. We're not qualified, we just also have headaches.