10 reasons why your head and face are tingling and when it's a medical emergency

• Tingling in the face or head can be due to a number of things from migraine to stroke.
• Look out for other tell-tale symptoms like flashes of light or sudden blurred vision.
• Getting the right diagnosis is important for receiving the best, most effective treatment.

Many people experience unexplained tingling or numbness at some point in their lives. But tingling in the head or face can be cause for concern, especially if this is the first time you've experienced the sensation.

A number of conditions can cause tingling, from anxiety to multiple sclerosis to COVID-19. So, when should you reach out to your doctor versus treating symptoms at home?

Here's a rundown of why your head and face might be tingling and when you should get help.

1. Anxiety or panic attack

You may already be familiar with anxiety's emotional and psychological symptoms, like feeling nervous, restless, or panicked. But anxiety can also be the root of physical issues.

For example, tingling or numbness in the body can be a sign you're having a panic attack. Other physical symptoms include:

• Irregular breathing
• Rapid heartbeat
• Chest pain or pressure
• Nausea
• Trembling or shaking

Repeated panic attacks may indicate panic disorder, an anxiety disorder characterized by unpredictable episodes of overwhelming fear accompanied by physical symptoms like chest pain, heart palpitations, dizziness, and abdominal distress. As many as 3% of American adults experience panic disorder every year.

How to treat it: If panic disorder is causing your symptoms, your provider may refer you to a mental health professional to ensure you get the right treatment, which may include medication or psychotherapy.

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is commonly used to treat panic disorder. This form of psychotherapy teaches you different ways of reacting to the feelings that pop up before or during panic attacks in order to help reduce their frequency.

Your doctor may also prescribe medications of which the most common are antidepressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs). In more rare cases, beta blockers or anti-anxiety medications may also be an option.

2. Vitamin B12 deficiency

Vitamin deficiencies can be tricky to spot since symptoms often come on gradually and intensify over time.

"A vitamin B12 deficiency usually causes numbness and tingling in the hands and feet due to the small blood vessels. However, some people also experience these symptoms in their face or head," says Leighanna Jagels, ND and owner of Wildcraft Family Wellness.

Other symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency might include:

• Difficulty walking or balancing
• Swollen tongue
• Trouble thinking and reasoning
• Memory loss
• Muscle weakness
• Fatigue

How to treat it: You can raise your vitamin B12 levels by eating more foods rich in B12 including certain fish, meat, and dairy products. Vegans and strict vegetarians can increase their vitamin B12 intake by consuming fortified cereals or supplements.

3. Migraine

While the most recognizable migraine symptom is the intense throbbing pain in one area of the head, migraines can also cause numbness or tingling in the head and face.

A migraine can be triggered by any of the following:

• Stress
• Anxiety
• Hormonal changes (particularly during your menstrual cycle)
• Bright or flashing lights
• Too little sleep or food
• Diet, including foods like alcohol, chocolate, aged cheese, cured meats, smoked fish, and monosodium glutamate (MSG). Dietary triggers vary from person to person.

You might experience additional sensory symptoms beyond your headache, such as numbness or changes in vision. These symptoms indicate a migraine "aura." Only 25%-30% of people with migraines experience auras, which occur just before or during the headache phase.

These sensory disturbances might include flashes of light, blind spots and other vision changes, or tingling in your hands or face.

Symptoms of migraines with aura include:

• Numbness or tingling, often on one side of your face
• Difficulty speaking
• Vision loss
• Muscle weakness
• Flashes of light
• Blind spots
• Shimmering stars or zigzag lines in your vision

How to treat it: While migraines can often be treated at home, you should contact your doctor immediately if you experience new symptoms, like vision loss, speech difficulty, or muscle weakness on one side of your body. This can help your provider rule out more serious conditions, such as a stroke.

4. Nerve damage

A tingling or numb feeling in your face or head might be a sign that a nerve is irritated and sending altered signals to your brain.

Think of your numbness or tingling as a roadblock in your nervous system. The constant pressure placed on a nerve can prevent your nervous system from moving the electrical impulses that typically transmit sensations. This can lead to a loss of feeling or numbness.

"Alteration to the function of the nerves affecting the skin on your head and face is what causes this tingling sensation," says Joshua Burnham, DC, and owner of Precision Chiropractic Services.

According to Burnham, there are several conditions that can result in changes to the nerves' function. "Diabetes, migraines, dental conditions, mental and emotional stress, and cervical nerve irritation can all impair your nerves' ability to function correctly," says Burnham.

In some instances, a nerve may be injured from an accident, leaving that nerve trapped in a "pins-and-needles stage." This might leave you in constant pain.

How to treat it: Your provider may recommend physical therapy to prevent stiffness and restore function and feeling to treat a nerve injury.

Anti-inflammatories like aspirin can also relieve nerve pain. In some cases, your doctor may prescribe corticosteroid injections.

Antidepressants are also an effective treatment for nerve pain, even when depression isn't at play. This is because antidepressants increase the neurotransmitters in your spinal cord that reduce pain signals.

If your nerve damage is caused by an underlying medical condition, your doctor will need to treat this condition.

"Considering that one in three US adults is prediabetic according to the CDC, it makes sense to see a doctor and start with blood work to rule out an insulin-resistance induced neuropathy as the cause for tingling," says Burnham.

Moreover, if you know that you have carpal tunnel syndrome or diabetic neuropathy, tingling in the head or face is a sign you should seek immediate medical care.

5. Bell's palsy

Bell's palsy is an acute episode of facial muscle weakness or paralysis. It may be preceded with a sense of numbness that begins abruptly and worsens over 48 hours and is joined with facial paralysis. This condition is the most common cause of facial paralysis and generally occurs on only one side of the face.

Symptoms of Bell's palsy include:

• Weakness or stiffness on one side of the face
• Facial numbness or loss of feeling
• Drooling or impaired taste
• Trouble closing your eyes
• Hypersensitivity to sound in the affected ear (hyperacusis)

While the cause of Bell's palsy is unknown, it has been linked to inflammation of the nerve that controls your facial muscles. This is an autoimmune response that occurs when your immune system attacks your own body.

How to treat it: If you develop acute facial weakness you should contact your doctor immediately. Your provider may try to rule out more serious conditions, such as a stroke.

An estimated 85% of people with Bell's palsy will recover on their own, seeing a spontaneous improvement within three weeks of symptoms. However, the other 15% of individuals will need medical treatment to regain facial functioning, which is why it's so important to see your doctor as soon as possible if you're experiencing Bell's palsy.

Oral steroids are a highly effective treatment for people with new-onset Bell's palsy and increase your chance of recovering facial functioning. Additional therapies like physical therapy, facial massage, or acupuncture may also provide a slight improvement in symptoms.

Treatment should be started as soon as possible, ideally within 72 hours of symptom onset, to increase your odds of a full recovery.

6. Ramsay Hunt syndrome

If you're only experiencing tingling or numbness in one side of your face or head in addition to facial paralysis, dizziness or hearing loss, Ramsay Hunt syndrome may be to blame. This condition occurs when a shingles outbreak impacts the facial nerve near one of your ears and can lead to prolonged facial muscle weakness.

Note: Shingles is caused by the same virus as chickenpox, which affects 350,000 people each year in the US. Once you've had chickenpox, the virus lives on in some of your nerve cells in a dormant, inactive state that is harmless to your health. But, for one in three adults, the virus will become active again at a later age and result in shingles.

Symptoms of Ramsay Hunt syndrome include:

• Painful, inflamed rash with fluid-filled blisters around one ear
• Facial weakness, paralysis, or numbness on the same side as the affected ear
• Hearing loss and imbalance

How to treat it: Call your medical provider immediately if you experience facial paralysis or a rash that could be shingles on your face. Your provider may try to rule out more serious conditions, such as a stroke. Your doctor may suggest antivirals, corticosteroids, anti-anxiety medications, and pain relievers to combat your symptoms.

Starting treatment within 72 hours of these warning signs can help you prevent long-term health complications like permanently weakened facial muscles and deafness.

7. Stroke

Numbness or weakness in your face, arms, or legs, especially on just one side of your body, could be a sign of stroke.

You can use the acronym "FAST" to identify the condition:

• Face Drooping: Is one side of the face numb or drooping? Can you smile symmetrically?
• Arm Weakness: Is one arm numb or weaker than the other? Can you raise both arms symmetrically?
• Speech Difficulty: Is your speech slurred?
• Time to call 911

Other symptoms of stroke might include:

• Sudden blurred or double vision
• Sudden issues with balance or loss of coordination
• A sudden, severe headache with no apparent cause
• Muscle weakness or dizziness

While strokes generally occur without warning, some individuals experience temporary numbness, tingling, weakness, or other symptoms before the actual onset of stroke. This is what's called a Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), also known as a mini-stroke.

How to treat it: If you are experiencing any symptoms of stroke or TIA, go to a hospital immediately or call 911.

Treatments administered within the first few hours of symptoms can reduce or fully reverse brain injury. Your doctor may administer a t-PA (a medication that opens blocked blood vessels) or remove a blood clot from your brain via catheter.

8. Multiple sclerosis

Numbness in your face or body is usually the first noticeable and one of the most common symptoms of multiple sclerosis (MS). But it comes with a wide range of symptoms that can affect any body part.

As a result, each person experiences MS differently, and symptoms are unpredictable.

While some individuals might experience steadily worsening symptoms, others might experience an ebb and flow. Periods when symptoms lessen or disappear entirely are known as remissions. Periods of worsening symptoms are known as relapses.

Common symptoms of MS include:

• Numbness or tingling
• Muscle weakness
• Stiffness
• Fatigue
• Pain
• Mood disturbances like anxiety and depression
• Mobility issues
• Trouble thinking, learning, or planning
• Sexual dysfunction
• Bladder dysfunction
• Bowel issues
• Trouble speaking or swallowing

How to treat it: While there are no medications available to relieve numbness associated with MS, most instances of numbness are not disabling and tend to fade on their own. In some instances of a new onset of severe numbness, your doctor can prescribe a short course of corticosteroids to speed up your recovery.

While there is currently no cure for MS, research is ongoing to develop new disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) and medications to ease symptoms and improve the quality of life of people diagnosed with this condition.

9. High blood pressure

In rare cases, high blood pressure can cause numbness or tingling in the head, face, or extremities. This is known as a hypertensive emergency and happens when your blood pressure climbs so high that it damages your body, potentially injuring major organs like your brain, heart, and kidneys.

You should seek emergency care if your blood pressure is above 180/120 and you have any of the following symptoms, as these can be signs of organ damage:

• Headache
• Dizziness
• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain
• Vomiting
• Vision changes
• Altered mental state

Most hypertensive emergencies happen in patients already diagnosed with chronic hypertension (high blood pressure). As the name states, this is an emergency and should be treated like one.

How to treat it: If you are experiencing a noticeable increase in your blood pressure or related symptoms, go to your nearest hospital. Your doctor can prescribe fast-acting medication to lower your blood pressure and decrease your risk of bodily injury.

10. COVID-19

COVID-19 symptoms are notoriously difficult to pin down since they vary from person to person. The CDC doesn't currently list facial numbness or tingling as a symptom, but this may change as further research is performed.

After recovering from COVID-19, many people experience one or more lingering neurological issues, like numbness, tingling, impaired memory, or loss of smell.

For example, one 2020 study of 229 patients with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 found that 47 patients (33.57%) reported a tingling, sore, or dry feeling in their noses. Interestingly, this symptom was a common complaint of patients without any other nasal symptoms, such as loss of smell.

Another 2020 study found that COVID-19 patients may suffer from similar issues of numbness or tingling after treatment. This study details the nerve damage some individuals have suffered after being turned onto their stomachs in the ICU (prone positioning) during a life-saving measure to help them breathe. For COVID-19 survivors with neuromuscular complications like tingling or numbness in the face, head, or extremities, imaging can help identify the root of the problem and guide further treatment.

How to treat it: Since the jury is out on whether or not tingling and numbness is a sign of COVID-19, reaching out to your doctor can help you identify other potential symptoms and find the right treatment plan.

Your provider may suggest antiviral medications, monoclonal antibody treatments, or bedrest to treat COVID-19, depending on the severity and onset of your symptoms.

Insider's takeaway

Since many conditions are linked to numbness and tingling in the head and face, it might take a professional to identify what's causing your symptoms.

Reaching out to your medical provider can give you peace of mind when you find yourself worrying about your symptoms.

Numbness and tingling of the face can have various causes, from vitamin deficiencies to potentially life-threatening conditions like a hypertensive crisis.

"If you haven't started or changed a medication recently, seeking emergency medical attention could save your life," says Jagels.