Frequent Headaches? Your Chiropractor Can Help!

You have a lot on your plate lately, and the stress is mounting. You find yourself experiencing headaches more frequently than usual, and they make getting things done much more difficult. You may need to seek professional help, but you don’t need to turn to a neurologist—you may need a chiropractor like Dr. Wills! Although the pain is located in your head, the problem may actually originate in your upper back and neck. In this blog post, you’ll learn more details about headaches and how your chiropractor can alleviate your discomfort.

Types of Headaches

There are three kinds of headaches: tension, migraine, and cluster. Tension headaches generally make up the majority of headaches that patients face. They are often described as a constant dull, achy feeling either on one side or both sides of the head. Other patients say that they feel as if a tight band were wrapped around their head. Ranging from 30 minutes to several days, tension headaches can be quite intense, but they do not include symptoms that are associated with migraines.

Migraine headaches are intense, throbbing headaches that often come with nausea and sensitivity to light or sound. Similarly, cluster headaches mostly occur just behind the eyes and are excruciating; however, they typically don’t last very long.

Causes of Headaches

When you understand the source and cause of your headaches, you can better treat the problem. Although migraine and cluster headaches are caused by dilating blood vessels, the more common tension headaches are often caused by subluxation, or dislocation of a vertebrae through bad posture, stress, or injury like whiplash. As a result, the tissues that connect the neck to the head send painful signals to the brain.

How Your Chiropractor Can Help

While you have a tension headache, you can certainly take over-the-counter pain medication, but that merely addresses the symptom, not the cause of the problem. Headaches are likely to return unless you deal with the subluxation in your neck and upper back. Although you may be experiencing pain in your head, your neck and upper back are closely connected and can be the reason for your discomfort. When you feel stress, it often manifests as tightness in the upper back and neck, restricting head movement and increasing tension overall. By treating the neck and upper back, Dr. Wills can reduce the external stress that your head experiences, alleviating your headaches.

About the Author

Dr. Chad Wills has more than 20 years of clinical experience treating patients with headaches in the Naples area. In his post-graduate studies, he has become certified in whiplash injury biomechanics and brain traumatology by the Spine Research Institute, allowing him to help those with these types of injuries and ailments. If you have questions about treating headaches, you can reach Dr. Wills at Will Chiropractic by calling (239) 331-6060 or clicking here.