Introduction:
Headaches are pervasive, akin to the common cold, yet frequently resistant to traditional medication. This piece explores effective non-medication approaches for relief.
Key Takeaways:
- Headaches, including migraines, are common but often not effectively treated with medication.
- The primary triggers for headaches include stress, lack of sleep, dehydration, and neck tension.
- Non-pharmacological treatments like massage and chiropractic care offer effective relief without the side effects of medication.
- Regular massage therapy can decrease migraine frequency and severity by improving blood flow and reducing muscle tension.
- Chiropractic adjustments correct spinal misalignments, reducing nerve irritation and headache frequency.
What non-medication treatments provide effective relief for migraines and headaches?
Non-pharmacological treatments, such as massage therapy and chiropractic care, offer significant relief from migraines and headaches by addressing underlying causes like muscle tension and spinal misalignments, without the side effects associated with medication.
If there is one affliction which we are as likely to suffer from as the common cold, it’s headaches. Nine out of ten people suffer from headaches at some point or another. For some of us they occur occasionally, for others, the suffering is more frequent. Anyone who suffers with migraine headaches will know that they can be excruciatingly painful and debilitating, as well as hard to successfully treat with medication.
In fact, medication for headaches of almost any kind, serve only to numb the nerves at the source of pain to provide headache relief. For those of us who suffer rarely, that’s fine and over the counter medication such as paracetamol is usually sufficient to provide the necessary relief. However, it’s not a satisfactory solution for the estimated 45 million Americans who suffer from chronic headache.
The Causes of Migraines and Headaches
Only around 5% of headaches are symptoms of disease. In the other 95%, the headache itself is the primary condition. Usually these “primary” headaches are triggered by some stimulus. Headache triggers are diverse and can include:
- Noise
- Lights
- Stress or anxiety
- Lack of sleep
- Changes in blood sugar levels
- Dehydration
- Over-exercising
- Tension in the neck muscles
Migraines in particular are often triggered by sensitivities to lights, noise or food. However they have also been linked to problems with spinal alignment, particularly neck alignment. Similarly, tension headaches often start with neck pain which radiates into the head, indicating that tense neck muscles or nerve irritation is the trigger.
Medical Treatment for Migraine and Headache Relief
The normal clinical approach to migraines or tension headaches is to prescribe medication. Typical prescription medicines forheadaches include triptans, non-steroidal anti-inflammatories and pain relief medications containing codeine. For more severe chronic headaches, steroids, lithium or calcium channel blockers may be prescribed. Additionally, migraine sufferers may be prescribed preventative medications to try and reduce the frequency with which attacks occur. These preventative medicines range from vitamin B2 supplements through to strong anti-depressants, beta blockers or serotonin blockers.
Unfortunately, many medications prescribed for chronic headache sufferers carry side effects and can be harmful in the long term, causing kidney or liver damage for example. Some are narcotic based and can be habit forming. None of them do more than reduce symptoms and it’s no surprise that around half the people suffering with chronic migraine give up the search for a medical solution.
Where to turn to then, when prescription drugs bring temporary relief to recurrent headaches at best? For an increasing number of sufferers, soft tissue treatments, such as massage, proves to be a more effective treatment than medication. Chiropractors too, are treating a growing number of people for migraines as well as tension and cluster headache relief.
Soft Tissue Treatment for Headaches
As a non-pharmacological approach to treating headaches, massage therapy is safe and effective. Multiple studies have concluded that massage therapy is effective in decreasing migraine frequency as well as duration. Massage treatment works in a way that can prevent headaches as well as provide relief from headache pain.
Firstly, all types of massage work on pain by increasing blood flow to affected areas. Pain levels can often be reduced by improving blood circulation. Neuromuscular therapy is a more specialized type of massage which acts on “trigger points” in the body to relieve pain. Trigger points are areas of hyper-irritable soft tissue which can refer pain into the neck and head. By applying best treatments for migraines to these localized areas, pain referral can be reduced.
Sometimes, tension headaches are caused by very tight muscles or bands of tissue. The sub-occipitals for example, attached to the base of the skull can, when tense, cause headaches which travel up the base of the head and even into the eye. Massage therapy can loosen these muscles and alleviate or prevent the resulting headaches. As well as loosening muscles, massage stimulates the release of endorphins, while reducing the stress inducing Cortisol hormone. Less stress equals fewer headaches.
Many people have found massage therapy to be effective for headache relief and prevention, so now receive regular massage treatment as a safe and side-effect free alternative to medication. One of the main advantages of this type of therapy is that it can also be combined with other non-pharmacological treatments for headaches, such as chiropractic care.
Chiropractic Treatment for Headache Relief
By adjusting the vertebrae in your neck, a chiropractor corrects spinal misalignments, known as subluxations. These subluxations are a common cause of headaches, since they put pressure on the nerves in your neck. A chiropractor will use manipulation techniques to realign your cervical vertebrae, enabling them to move normally and also stop them from irritating the nerves. While this treatment may not immediately stop headaches from occurring, over a course of several sessions of chiropractic adjustment, you should find that headaches reduce in frequency, severity and perhaps disappear altogether.
You chiropractor can also help you by providing a program of relaxation exercises and techniques, along with advice about posture, ergonomics and nutrition. By following the program, you should be able to reduce tension levels in your neck, back and shoulders. This can help to prevent headaches occurring and support thecurative effect of your chiropractic sessions.
Headache Relief at OCWP
Here at Orange County Wellness Physicians Medical Center, we have a team of expert chiropractors and massage therapists, who together can help you with a program of treatment tailored to your specific needs. If you are a headache or migraine sufferer and wish to find an alternative to pharmacological pain management, why not schedule a consultation with our highly experienced chiropractors and massage therapy specialists? It’s easy to book an appointment online or you can contact us by telephone on (866) 303-9355.