Do painkillers cure headaches or just stop us from feeling it?

Question

I'm sorry if this is an obvious question. I frequently have migraine attacks, and have to take some pills to stop the pain. Now my question is, does a pill stop the source of an attack, or does it just stop my brain from feeling it?

Let's make a clear example:

You have a broken bone, you take a very powerful painkiller (or maybe even injection), so you can't feel the pain in your broken arm anymore. But still, if you apply pressure on the bone, it will still damage the body, regardless of feeling it or not. So it's not curing the bone, it's just preventing you from feeling it.

Now when i have these attacks, i need to stay in dark and rest (as you already know what is a migraine attack), and if i still continue to (for example) use my computer, it will hurt more and more with each second passing. This is an alert from my brain:

Stop doing what you are doing and rest!!

Now i know a simple pill won't cure a major wound or a broken arm,but still, does these medicines cure a headache, or i will still damage my body by continuing my things when i have an attack and take a pill which stops the pain almost instantly?

Answer 1

How do painkillers work?

When part of your body is injured, special nerve endings send pain messages back to your brain. Painkilling drugs interfere with these messages, either at the site of the injury, in the spinal cord or in the brain itself.

Many painkillers are based on one of two naturally occurring drugs: aspirin and opiates. Aspirin uses a chemical found in willow bark, used by the Ancient Greeks to relieve pain. Opiates all work in a similar way to opium, which is extracted from poppies.

Other Source: http://mentalfloss.com/article/18615/how-do-painkillers-find-kill-pain