According to the world health organisation it is estimated that 50% of adults have had at least 1 in headache in the last 12 months, and is the worlds 3rd most leading cause of years lived with disability.
Cervicogenic headaches are one sub-classification of headache's that originate from the cervical spine (neck). The reason for this is believed to be because the nerves from the joints and muscles of the neck connect to the trigeminal nucleus in the brain. This nucleus also receives and sends signals from the nerves of the head/face, which is why your headaches can be caused by your neck!
What are the symptoms of a cervigogenic headache?
Headache symptoms relating to neck movement
Pain on pressure over the upper neck / base of skull regions
Restricted neck range of movement worsening headache
One sided neck / shoulder / arm pain
Episodes of varying duration
Many things can cause cervicogenic headaches such as,
Posture
Whiplash
Stress
Tight neck muscles
Neck trauma
So how can chiropractic help?
Your nervous system doesn’t like it when a joint doesn’t move or is restricted so it will send a signal to the local muscle to try and move it, the muscle then contracts but still doesn’t manage to move the joint as its restricted, so the brain keeps sending the message to the muscle to move the joint, and the muscle keeps contracting/getting tighter and so the cycle continues…
An example of this is if you sit in a car for a long period of time your lower back, hips, knees may start to ache and you feel like you just need to get out and move around/stretch your legs…as soon as you do this the pain/ache is reduced.
With chiropractic treatment the joints that are restricted will be able to move more freely which will cause the nervous system/muscles to relax, therefore not sending a painful stimulus to the trigeminal nucleus which is then forwarded on in to your head, causing your headache!
See what our patients say on google
"I’ve suffered from migraines for years. After just a few treatments I have noticed a significant improvement in my headaches and overall mobility. Almost instant results and I always leave feeling much better than when I arrived!" - Pip -
Highly recommended. When i first started going i was getting headaches almost every day but after the first one session i noticed an immediate reduction in the frequency of them. After 1 or 2 more sessions my headaches had immediately disappeared and i am very thankful for it - Owen -
I would highly recommend Rob! I had wanted to see a chiropractor for quite some time as i have almost always suffered with back pain but was apprehensive as to how it would help. I felt relief almost instantly, and left my first session feeling so relaxed, pain free and i had much more range of movement, I also noticed having less headaches. I now visit every 4-8 weeks when i feel i need treatment. - Briony