# Have / Having a headache || had / was having a  headache



## skydown13

I've checked all other related threads and still don't get it.
Why are following sentences correct? But not "I am having a headache now."
1. I am having a great time now.
2. I am having a migraine now.
3. I am having a heart attack now.


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## bennymix

It's not incorrect, but it's not usual because we don't think about extension of time for a headache.


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## goldenband

Migraine, heart attack, stroke, seizure, asthma attack = all are acute, specific medical conditions with multiple symptoms and can change significantly in a short period of time, and all take _I am having [a]._

Headache, upset stomach, diarrhea = all are single symptoms, confined to one point in time, and all are preceded by _I have [a].
_
Cold, the flu, the measles, etc. = all are short-term diseases, and take _I have [a/the]_.

Cancer, AIDS, coronary artery disease, etc. = all are long-term conditions, and take _I have_.

Basically, "I have" is for single, unchanging short-term events *and* conditions that define a patient's long-term health, while "I am having" is used for a current health event that's in the process of changing significantly. Sometimes a condition could take either one:

_I have anxiety. _= I have anxiety in general; I'm a person who has anxiety.
_I'm having anxiety._ = At this moment, I'm suffering from acute anxiety.

Generally speaking, if you could imagine telling a doctor "I am in the process of having X" and it would make sense, then "I am having X" is the correct choice.

But there are exceptions, like "shortness of breath", that could take either one with no change in meaning:

_911, what is your emergency?
I have shortness of breath / I'm having shortness of breath.

How have you been feeling since we started you on the new drug?
Well, Doctor, I have shortness of breath / I'm having shortness of breath. _[or: _I've been having_]

I think "migraine" is also that way -- I don't see much difference between _I have a migraine_ and _I'm having a migraine [right now]_. If you wanted to say you get them in general, you'd say _I have migraines_ or _I get migraines._


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## skydown13

goldenband said:


> Migraine, heart attack, stroke, seizure, asthma attack = all are acute, specific medical conditions that can change significantly in a short period of time, and all take _I am having [a]._
> 
> Headache, upset stomach, diarrhea = all are symptoms, confined to one point in time, and all are preceded by _I have.
> _
> Cold, the flu, the measles, etc. = all are short-term diseases, and take _I have_.
> 
> Cancer, AIDS, coronary artery disease, etc. = all are long-term conditions, and take _I have_.
> 
> Basically, "I have" is for single, unchanging short-term events *and* conditions that define a patient's long-term health, while "I am having" is used for a current health event that's in the process of changing significantly. Sometimes a condition could take either one:
> 
> _I have anxiety. _= I have anxiety in general; I'm a person who has anxiety.
> _I'm having anxiety._ = At this moment, I'm suffering from acute anxiety.
> 
> Generally speaking, if you could imagine telling a doctor "I am in the process of having X" and it would make sense, then "I am having X" is the correct choice.
> 
> But there are exceptions, like "shortness of breath", that could take either one with no change in meaning:
> 
> _911, what is your emergency?
> I have shortness of breath / I'm having shortness of breath.
> 
> How have you been feeling since we started you on the new drug?
> Well, Doctor, I have shortness of breath / I'm having shortness of breath. _[or: _I've been having_]
> 
> I think "migraine" is also that way -- I don't see much difference between _I have a migraine_ and _I'm having a migraine [right now]_. If you wanted to say you get them in general, you'd say _I have migraines_ or _I get migraines._



Thank you. I guess I just have to memorize the rules of sicknesses....
But why is "I am having a great time now" correct? Because it's a condition that can change significantly in a short period of time?


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## Andygc

"I'm having a great time" is the normal use of the continuous tense.
Is it a continuing event at this moment? Yes. "I'm having a good time."
Is it an event at another time? Yes. "I have a good time when I go to my granny's."

With illness it also depends on what you are describing.
Is it a continuing event at this moment? "He's having a heart attack."

Is it a disease rather than an event? "I have a cold."

Migraine can cause you some confusion. It can be an event - headache, visual disturbance, nausea, vomiting - "I'm having a migraine".
Or a disease which is asymptomatic now "I have migraine". (Not a migraine) The word "migraine" has two meanings - the disease, and the typical symptoms of the disease.


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## goldenband

Andygc said:


> Or a disease which is asymptomatic now "I have migraine". (Not a migraine) The word "migraine" has two meanings - the disease, and the typical symptoms of the disease.



I wonder if this is a BE/AE distinction? I've heard BE speakers refer to certain diseases that way -- "I have/get _____", with no article + the singular form of the word. One example that comes to mind is "I get cramp".

But I can't say I remember ever hearing an AE speaker say "I have migraine". My intuition would be to say "I have/get migraines", "I have/get cramps", etc.


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## You little ripper!

goldenband said:


> I wonder if this is a BE/AE distinction? I've heard BE speakers refer to certain diseases that way -- "I have/get _____", with no article + the singular form of the word. One example that comes to mind is "I get cramp".
> 
> But I can't say I remember ever hearing an AE speaker say "I have migraine". My intuition would be to say "I have/get migraines", "I have/get cramps", etc.


_I have migraine _is British English; I recognize it from British TV programs shown here. Australians, like Americans are more likely to say _I have a migraine/I get migraines.  _


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## goldenband

I'm guessing you probably thought I meant AE = Australian English, which is one reason I should probably use the abbreviation AmE.

But then, if I had, I wouldn't have seen your informative post!  Very interesting to know that Australians use the plural (i.e. not the British formulation) for long-term suffering with migraines.


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## Andygc

I had no idea that this was a BE idiosyncrasy. The plural form exists here as well - "I get migraines".

PS. "AE" is the standard abbreviation here for American English.  Abbreviations that are accepted in the English Only forum.


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## You little ripper!

goldenband said:


> I'm guessing you probably thought I meant AE = Australian English, which is one reason I should probably use the abbreviation AmE.


I assumed you were referring to American English, goldenband, since your profile says that that's what you speak.


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## bennymix

I have not heard "I have migraine" in AE or CE.   I suppose there is "I have diabetes" and "I have hypothermia."


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## valdazzar

This discussion has been added to a previous thread on the same topic. 
Cagey, moderator 

Hi everyone.

I 've got a multiple choice question and it is this.


Micky couldn't get any sleep because he _______  a terrible headache all night.

a)was having
b)had


The correct answer is b.

The phrase all night stresses the duration.
On the other hand (a) is past continuous so it means that something was happening until another action interrupted the first one.

Can someone explain further why b is correct?

Is there another possible answer?


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## RM1(SS)

B must be correct, because A isn't.  But somebody else is going to have to explain that part....


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## velisarius

When "have" means "possess", we don't use the continuous form.  That must mean that we think of ourselves (in BE) as "possessing" the headache , because we wouldn't say "He was having a terrible headache all night".


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## RedwoodGrove

Well isn't it a bit of a trick question because if you substitute "was suffering from" it's perfectly fine? So it's not a verb tense question, it's a question of idiom. I agree with your answer, veli, I'm just trying to reason it out.


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## Englishmypassion

velisarius said:


> When "have" means "possess", we don't use the continuous form.  That must mean that we think of ourselves (in BE) as "possessing" the headache , because we wouldn't say "He was having a terrible headache all night".



I read in a grammar book that we don't use the progressive tense of the verb "to have" to mean possession or to mean that somebody is suffering from a disease/has a health problem. I'd put "headache" in the second category (health problem), not possession.

_My brother is having a fever._ Wrong (but sounds correct to most Indians)


Cross-posted with RG (Do you have Indian friends, RG?)


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## velisarius

Englishmypassion said:


> we don't use the progressive tense of the verb "to have" to mean possession or to mean that somebody is suffering from a disease/has a health problem.


Yes, that's a better "rule" to remember. As long as we remember that we can use the continuous form to talk about having an attack or episode of something like migraine. _She has a headache. She had a headache all night._ But we say "She is having one of her migraines" and "She is having a heart attack!"


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## Cagey

I have added this more recent discussion to a previous thread. 
Please scroll up and read from the top. 

Cagey, moderator


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## Englishmypassion

velisarius said:


> "She is having a heart attack!"


Viewed against that rule, that now sounds as if she were planning for/to have a heart attack or she were inviting a heart attack.  But natural/native expression!
I know rules have their limitations and unfortunately there are more exceptions then rules in English. 
Thanks.


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## JJXR

_1. I didn't go to bed last night because I *was having* insomnia.

2. I didn't go to bed last night because I *had* insomnia._

Is sentence #1 correct, and sentence #2 is not?


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## heypresto

I'm not entirely sure that 'have' is the right word for 'insomnia', but #2 sounds better than #1.


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## JJXR

Thanks for the response, heypresto.


heypresto said:


> I'm not entirely sure that 'have' is the right word for 'insomnia', but #2 sounds better than #1.


Do you mean that they are both correct?


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## heypresto

#2 sounds distinctly odd - and probably wrong.

Edit: I mean *#1 *sounds distinctly odd. My apologies.


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## Andygc

From post 5


Andygc said:


> With illness it also depends on what you are describing.
> Is it a continuing event at this moment? "He's having a heart attack."
> 
> Is it a disease rather than an event? "I have a cold."


Insomnia is not a continuing event, so that disposes of sentence a. But b is not idiomatic. This is ".... because I couldn't sleep."


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## JJXR

Thanks for your responses, heypresto and Andygc.


JJXR said:


> 1. I didn't go to bed last night because I *was having* insomnia.





JJXR said:


> 2. I didn't go to bed last night because I *had* insomnia.





heypresto said:


> #2 sounds better than #1.





heypresto said:


> #2 sounds distinctly odd - and probably wrong.


If sentence #2 is odd, and sentence #1 is worse than sentence #2, should I say:

_2A. I didn't go to bed last night because I *was suffering from* insomnia._


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## Andygc

You could, and it's a perfectly good sentence, but the word "insomnia" is rarely used in normal conversation.


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## heypresto

Oops - my apologies. In post #23, I meant that #1 is odd. I've edited it now.

But '*suffering from* insomnia is a lot better. Go with that. Or Andygc's suggestion  ".... because I couldn't sleep."


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## JJXR

Thanks for your responses, Andygc and heypresto.


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## You little ripper!

“I didn’t go to bed last night because I suffer from insomnia” works for me.  “I didn’t go to bed last night because I couldn’t sleep” sounds a bit strange to me. I would have thought that you first need to go to bed before you come to the conclusion that you can’t sleep.


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> With illness it also depends on what you are describing.
> Is it a continuing event at this moment? "He's having a heart attack."
> Is it a disease rather than an event? "I have a cold."


That is a clear distinction. However, "I have a headache" doesn't line up with it. Because it's not an event but still it engages the present simple.


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## heypresto

Are you questioning "I have a headache"? 

It's correct, and perfectly common and natural. See post #3.


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## Andygc

Ivan_I said:


> Because it's not an event but still it engages the present simple.


That's correct. It's not a "continuing event at this moment". So following what I wrote, it's "I have a headache".


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> That's correct. It's not a "continuing event at this moment". So following what I wrote, it's "I have a headache".


Wait a second. Why is it not happening at this moment? I thought it was happening right now.


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## heypresto

At this moment, it's not a _continuing _event. We _don't _say 'I am _having _a headache', we say 'I _have _a headache'. It's a thing that we _have_. 

It's the same with 'I _have _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache'. We don't say 'I'm _having _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache.'

You'll just have to accept this.


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## Andygc

A headache doesn't "happen", it just"is". "I'm getting a headache. I have a headache. My headache is getting better. I don't have a headache." Things like strokes and heart attacks happen. He's having a heart attack - it started with a heavy feeling in his chest, then he had crushing chest pain, then he was sick, then he looked very grey, his heart may stop beating, and then he may die. That's a continuing event.


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## Ivan_I

heypresto said:


> At this moment, it's not a _continuing _event. We _don't _say 'I am _having _a headache', we say 'I _have _a headache'. It's a thing that we _have_.
> 
> It's the same with 'I _have _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache'. We don't say 'I'm _having _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache.'
> 
> You'll just have to accept this.


You didn't understand the point I was making. I never said that I didn't accept it. I pointed out that it doesn't line up with a general guideline. 



Andygc said:


> With illness it also depends on what you are describing.
> Is it a continuing event at this moment? "He's having a heart attack."
> 
> Is it a disease rather than an event? "I have a cold."


I have a headache. is like I am having a heart attack.


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> A headache doesn't "happen", it just"is".


It's a philosophical matter.


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## heypresto

Ivan_I said:


> I pointed out that it doesn't line up with a general guideline.


This isn't a 'general guideline' but a fact: We say 'I _have _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache', and we don't say 'I'm _having _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache.'



Ivan_I said:


> I have a headache. is like I am having a heart attack.


But it isn't. That's what we have been trying to tell you. We wouldn't say 'I have a heart attack' or 'I'm having a headache.'


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## Ivan_I

heypresto said:


> This isn't a 'general guideline' but a fact: We say 'I _have _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache', and we don't say 'I'm _having _a cold/an upset stomach/the flu/a toothache.'


For non natives it's a guideline. 


heypresto said:


> But it isn't. That's what we have been trying to tell you. We wouldn't say 'I have a heart attack' or 'I'm having a headache.'


You are completely missing my point. OK. It's not important. Thank you.


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## heypresto

Ivan_I said:


> For non natives it's a guideline.


It's as true for non natives as it is for natives.


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## JulianStuart

heypresto said:


> We wouldn't say 'I have a heart attack' or 'I'm having a headache.'


In general agreement about r_egular_ headaches 

However, there are situations where "I am having a {pain in my head}" is chosen by the sufferer, and extensive speculation over when/why a speaker m might choose having over have:
I'm having a headache...


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## Andygc

That thread refers, among other things, to migraine. Anybody who has never had a migraine may think a migraine is a headache. It's not. I can assure you that it's an event, just as a stroke is. A person who has migraine (the condition) will almost certainly say "I'm having a migraine" when they have an attack. That thread also provides no substantial support for "I'm having a headache". And in my English it has nothing whatsoever to do with whether or not headaches are regular.


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## JulianStuart

Andygc said:


> That thread refers, among other things, to migraine. Anybody who has never had a migraine may think a migraine is a headache. It's not. I can assure you that it's an event, just as a stroke is. A person who has migraine (the condition) will almost certainly say "I'm having a migraine" when they have an attack. That thread also provides no substantial support for "I'm having a headache". And in my English it has nothing whatsoever to do with whether or not headaches are regular.


That's why I put "pain in my head" in braces.  All the dictionaries define a migraine as a_ specific kind_ of headache - I certainly agree there is  a night and day difference between a normal/regular headache and a migraine.  I've never said "I'm having a headache" but sadly, I all too often had to explain "I'm having a migraine".


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## Andygc

JulianStuart said:


> sadly, I all too often had to explain "I'm having a migraine".


Ah. A shared delight.


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## Andygc

Ivan_I said:


> I have a headache. is like I am having a heart attack.


No, it isn't. This is no different from other use of the verb. "They are having an argument." "They have opinions." (Which is why they are having the argument).

We might use "she is having a headache", given a suitable context:
Lucy: "I have a headache, I'm going upstairs."
Unwanted boyfriend: "Where's Lucy?
Malicious little sister: "She's upstairs having a headache." (She doesn't have a headache, and the last person she wants to see is you.)


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> Malicious little sister: "She's upstairs having a headache." (She doesn't have a headache, and the last person she wants to see is you.)


Do you mean it's like pretending to have a headache?


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## Andygc

Yes. That's the only sort of context in which I could use the present continuous with "a headache".


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> Is it an event at another time? Yes. "I have a good time when I go to my granny's."


I am having a good time when I go to my granny's. - is it possible?


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## heypresto

Ivan_I said:


> I am having a good time when I go to my granny's. - is it possible?


No, but you could say 'I am having a good time* at *my granny's'. You would physically be at your granny's when you say this.


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## Ivan_I

heypresto said:


> No, but you could say 'I am having a good time* at *my granny's'. You would physically be at your granny's when you say this.


And this one is also impossible to mean?
I am having a good time when I go to my granny's. ---  I am having a good time while going to my granny's.


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## Andygc

Ivan_I said:


> I am having a good time while going to my granny's.


 
You are on the bus or the train, or riding your bike, or walking to your granny's, and you think that doing that is enjoyable. And you are doing that as you speak.


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> You are on the bus or the train, or riding your bike, or walking to your granny's, and you think that doing that is enjoyable.


Yes! Is it a possible interpretation?


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## Andygc

I edited my post as you wrote.
Yes, that's the only possible interpretation.


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## heypresto

Ivan_I said:


> Yes! Is it a possible interpretation?


It's the only interpretation.


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## Ivan_I

Andygc said:


> I edited my post as you wrote.
> Yes, that's the only possible interpretation.


Let me get it straight.
This one " *I am having a good time while going to my granny's.* " makes sense.   
But this one "  *I am having a good time when I go to my granny's *" doesn't make sense. 
Or do they mean the same?


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## JulianStuart

Ivan_I said:


> Let me get it straight.
> This one " *I am having a good time while going to my granny's.* " makes sense.
> But this one "  *I am having a good time when I go to my granny's *" doesn't make sense.
> Or do they mean the same?


They do NOT mean the same.  The second one has incompatible tenses.  The first one says you are having a good time while traveling to Gran's.


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## heypresto

Ivan_I said:


> This one " *I am having a good time while going to my granny's.* " makes sense.
> But this one " *I am having a good time when I go to my granny's *" doesn't make sense.


That's right.


Ivan_I said:


> Or do they mean the same?


No. I don't know what the second (wrong) one could mean.


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