Is all the stress leading up to the festive season giving you a pain in the neck? And is that neck issue giving you a HEADACHE?
If so, you may be experiencing a type of headache called a Tension Headache.
Tension Headaches commonly occur when there is strain or dysfunction involving pain-causing structures in your neck. This can include the sub-occipital, erector spinae, upper trapezius and levator scapulae muscles (they support the head) and the upper cervical spine joints (they are surrounded by ligaments and allow movement to occur).
When these structures are irritated, they can send pain signals to surrounding areas, where you perceive the pain to be -often called referred pain.
This can occur in cases of Tension Headaches. Whilst Tension Headaches can also have other contributing factors that may need to be addressed (like stress), as an Osteo, I find I have good results when using osteopathic interventions to treat the musculoskeletal components of my patients with Tension Headaches.
Osteopathic interventions for Tension Headaches usually includes massage type techniques, stretching to the muscles and joints, joint manipulation and rehabilitation exercises focussed on the stretching and strengthening of neck and upper back muscles.
This systematic review (link below - published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics) indicates that spinal manipulative therapies can be just as if not more effective at treating tension type headaches than first-line prophylactic prescription medications! It also notes that spinal manipulation can be more effective in managing Cervicogenic Headaches (headaches arising from issues in the neck) than just massage alone!
So if a stressed, rushed, commitment-filled festive period is giving you a headache, why not give yourself a present and book in with Ramsay at Osteopaths of Richmond for an osteo appointment!?
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0161475401994230
This lady seems like she is suffering from a tension headache and may benefit from an osteopathic appointment at Osteopaths of Richmond.