Severe throbbing head pain for more than 24 hours

A friend of mine started feeling headaches regularly about a year ago when his wisdom teeth were growing in.  Now, over time the headaches became worse and worse and more frequent.  He was experiencing pain in his mouth where his wisdom teeth were growing in, and the headaches happened the same time his teeth hurt.  This has been going on for a year now and he still refuses to see a doctor. A month ago he didn't experience any pain for about 2 weeks, so he thought maybe things had gotten better. But, within the last few weeks his headaches have been coming back worse and worse. Yesterday he started suffering from severe, throbbing  pain in his head; in particularly he said it felt like his temples were being stabbed-his headaches have never been this bad before.  The pain has yet to subside.  

Personally I feel he needs to see a doctor, but that won't be easy since we are in the middle of Finals for college.  Is there anything that can be done to temporarily relieve the pain or lessen it?  Also, what could be a cause of such symptoms?  

Thank yo for any and all help! I greatly appreciate it!

Sincerely,
Mira

[DrNoopurMD]

Hi,

It s important that your friend takes out some time and consults his GP as these headaches have been persisting long enough to warrant a clinical exam. There is a possibility that these headaches are migraines. Migraines are throbbing one sided headaches which can get triggered by caffeine, red wine, processed meats, canned foods, MSG and artificial sweeteners like aspartame. Sharp stabbing headaches can also be icepick headaches which are seen in migraneurs.
I would suggest him to maintain a headache diary to identify the triggers and take OTC NSAIDS like Motrin for pain relief. He should also take rest till the headache wears off and apply cold compresses to his head and neck.
Keep us posted.