The causes of tension-type headaches are multifaceted, involving both physiological and environmental factors. Sufferers often exhibit increased tenderness in pericranial muscles. A range of triggers can contribute, including sleep deprivation, skipping meals, eye strain, overexertion, and poor posture. Stress is a particularly significant factor, believed to contribute by increasing muscle contraction and heightening the body's sensitivity to pain. This mechanism is supported by findings that individuals with tension headaches have a lower pain threshold and greater pain sensitivity than non-sufferers. Therefore, stress may trigger or worsen these headaches by amplifying pain perception in already-sensitized neural pathways.