Have you ever wondered why your headaches and migraines continue to be such a persistent problem year after year? From laying in the dark with a cold towel on your forehead to taking painkillers, the solution we go to is often for temporary relief. In this post, we dive deep into the root causes of headaches and migraines and explore the ways in which you can get rid of them for good!
What Causes Headaches Every Day?
While headaches may be triggered due to things like dehydration, eye strain from screens or those times you’re very “hangry”, the true cause of recurring headaches is often problems in the neck region aka. the cervical spine. Many of the nerves that go to your head pass through the cervical spine up to the base of your skull.
So when we have tension, stiffness and misalignments in the neck, this can put chronic stress on those nerves. This chronic stress on its own can trigger headaches, but often it’s something else (like dehydration or screens) that pushes us over the edge to experience a headache.
The Different Types of Headaches
Tension Headaches: these present as a squeezing or pulsing pain in the forehead and temple region, sometimes around the eye as well. The major contributors to these are dysfunction in the mid to lower cervical spine as well as the TMJ/jaw.
Suboccipital Headaches: these start as a pain at the top of our neck or base of the skull, and when they get more intense they travel up the back of the head to the top of our skull. They mainly come from misalignment of the top two vertebrae (bones) of the cervical spine and where they attach to the base of the skull.
Sinus Headaches: these manifest as a feeling of pressure or fullness between the eyebrows and beside the nose. They come from a buildup of fluid in the sinuses due to a lack of drainage down the neck.
Migraines and Cluster Headaches: these are the most intense as they feel like a sharp stabbing pain on one side of the face. They come from dysregulation of nerve signalling in your head and neck.
These are the most common types of headaches that are treated through chiropractic care. If your headache doesn’t fit into one of those categories don’t worry! Chiropractic care is effective for all kinds of headaches and migraines.
How Do Chiropractors Treat Headaches?
A chiropractor will first assess the cervical spine by looking for the misalignment of the joints, tension of the surrounding muscles, and sites of nerve entrapment. Once the dysfunction in the neck is determined, they will develop a treatment plan for healing this dysfunction and getting rid of the headaches for good.
This often includes chiropractic adjustments to correct the misalignments and muscle release/soft tissue therapy release to decrease tension in the tight muscles. You will also learn a series of targeted stretches, mobility and strengthening exercises to help you speed up the healing process.
Do You Feel Immediate Relief After a Chiropractic Adjustment?
Many people who have a headache come in for treatment and experience immediate relief after the adjustment and muscle release. Everybody’s body and dysfunction is unique, so some people feel the changes instantaneously while others experience the benefit later that day or the next.
The treatment is focused on healing the dysfunction of the cervical spine and that is what gives you lasting results instead of reaching for the cabinet in search of pills for temporary relief.
Final Words
We’ve seen firsthand the amazing results that our patients achieve with the help of our clinic. From helping someone who had an annoying headache once a week to stopping debilitating daily headaches that had someone on disability unable to work, our patients have transformed their lives through chiropractic care. Stop grasping for temporary relief and don’t wait any longer to experience these true long-lasting results for yourself. Book your appointment now!
