Can Chiropractic Help with Headaches and Migraines?

There are few things worse than trying to get through the day when you have a pounding headache that won’t go away no matter what you try to do. Even worse are the migraines that cause sensitivity to light, nausea, and occasional dizziness. 

It has been shown that nine out of 10 Americans suffer from headaches.

What Causes Headaches?

Headaches and migraines have many causes called “triggers.” These triggers can include, but not limited to:

• lack of food
• dehydration
• environmental stimuli (noises, lights, stress, etc.) 
• body and behavioral triggers (lack of sleep, insomnia, hormonal, excessive exercise, blood sugar levels, etc.) 

About five percent of all headaches are due to these types of triggers. The remaining 95% of headaches and migraines are caused from muscle tension in the neck which can result in a misaligned C1 or Atlas vertebrae. When these particular vertebrae are misaligned, this can cause pressure on the nerves that go to the head. 

How Can Chiropractic Treatment Help with Headaches?

Sitting in front of a computer screen for long hours at a time, poor ergonomics at work, how you sleep, and stress can all contribute to the muscle tension that over time can cause these misalignments in your cervical spine. 

A Chiropractic adjustment or manipulation is often needed to facilitate that joint movement again. This in turn relaxes the surrounding muscles and can immediately take pressure off the nerves that go to the head. Often times this can instantly decrease a headache or migraine. Other times, a few treatments are needed to feel long term relief.

Why Can Headaches Come Back a Few Days After You Get Adjusted? 

It is not uncommon for your headaches to come back even if you get an adjustment and feel great that day. 

Your muscle has memory and is used to a certain tension for a long time.

Often times habits such as your employment and sleeping habits have not changed. The muscle tension tends to come back because of that constant aggravation. Getting into a regular routine of massages and adjustments can help counteract and retrain your muscle memory to maintain homeostasis. 

What Are My Other Options?

There is a chance that your headaches are not caused by muscle tension or misalignments. In this case, finding out what may be causing the headaches or migraines will be paramount. You can explore other options to find relief. We suggest drinking more water, changing your diet, getting medication (if it is hormonal or blood level related. There are many other options that can be explored in order to find relief for your case. 

Many Americans have fallen into the bad habit of just putting a “Band-Aid” over the real cause of their headaches.

People often become dependent on NSAIDS such as ibuprofen and Tylenol. These may relieve the symptoms of a headache or migraine for a small period of time. Eventually you will need to continually take these as this will not solve the underlying issue. This can lead to dependence and addiction to these types of over the counter drugs. 

If you are experiencing headaches and/or migraines that are affecting your daily life, let us help you feel better today! Give us a call at Elevation Chiropractic & Wellness. We will do everything we can to search for ways to assist in giving you a headache and migraine free life.