Headaches – What to Know

Learn More About Headache Treatment

You know the symptoms: throbbing, blurred vision, pressure behind the eyes. You know what it feels like coming on – that creeping tightness above your temples, or the stiffness at the base of your skull. It’s safe to say that probably everyone will experience a headache of some type at some point in their life. They’re never fun, but sometimes they can be much worse than a minor annoyance. Some people suffer from chronic tension headaches or routine migraines, and these people know the truth: a bad headache can stop you in your tracks.

Why Do We Get Headaches?

Headaches vary in location as often as they do in intensity. The reason for this is that the possible cause(s) of a headache are also varied. Valencia Haguera, of Healthline.com, has culled together an extensive list of headache-inducing lifestyle and environmental factors:

• Muscle contractions in the neck
• Stress
• Certain foods
• Eye strain
• Alcohol
• Dry eyes
• Fatigue
• Smoking
• Cold or flu
• Sinus infection or pressure
• Poor posture
• Emotional stress

These factors–and many more not listed here–mostly lead to one of the five most common types of headaches. Health.com lists these headaches as follows:

● Tension – the most common; characterized by constant aching near the temples or back of the head and neck
● Cluster – happen on one side of the head, and are often debilitating and accompanied by watery eyes and a runny nose
● Sinus – due to inflamed sinuses from infection or allergies
● Rebound – headaches actually caused by taking too many OTC pain relievers
● Migraines – lasting between 4 and 72 hours, and accompanied by nausea, vomiting, sensitivity to light, and throbbing pain

Some take over-the-counter medications to relieve certain types of headaches, but these only address acute discomfort. Medications do not address the underlying cause of acute or chronic headache pain. Stretches, hydration, and regular exercise can also help. There’s also another solution.

What Can a Chiropractor Do?

A popular term in chiropractic care is subluxation. This is when a spine joint, or vertebra, becomes out of alignment. When this occurs, nerves, discs, and fluid sacs can become agitated, inflamed, or worse. Subluxations can lead to headaches. In fact, many headaches can be relieved when these subluxations are corrected by professional chiropractic alignment.

An expert at South Orange Chiropractic Center can intuitively and gently locate subluxations of the spine. By studying your posture, balance, and your ability to twist your head and bend at the waist, the chiropractor will be able to recognize what problem areas you might have in your spine. According to your comfort level, they will realign and adjust your spine to curve as it should. These movements will help relieve pressure on your muscles and tendons that run through your back, up to your neck, and around your skull.

The professionals at South Orange Chiropractic Center provide leading-edge care that helps people live healthy, productive lives–free from the pain of headaches and more.