Is your neck the cause of your Headaches and Migraines?

HeadachesWe’ve all seen those Neurofen ads that tell us that your headaches could be caused by your neck pain and to pop a Neurofen, drink some water and resting is the cure for your headache or migraine but have you ever considered that if your neck is the reason for your headache that maybe you should have your neck assessed by a health professional?

There have been numerous misconceptions and myths about what can be causing headaches including lack of blood flow to the brain, food triggers or the menstrual cycle. However after many thousands of hours of research and clinical experience, Dean Watson has discovered that the most common cause of headaches is stiffness in the high joints in the neck. This stiffness in the C1-2 segments / vertebrae combined with poor neck posture with daily tasks can often lead to tension around the base of the skull and radiating headache pain over the top of the head, across the forehead and behind the eyes. All these symptoms can be caused by

  • Poked neck posture
  • Sitting at the computer / on the ipad or phone for too long
  • Poor strength of the deep neck flexor muscles

And all these symptoms can be resolved with a trip to your physio. Our physiotherapist Deb, is trained in the Watson’s Technique which uses mobilisation of the high neck joints to help relieve the pain from your headache or migraine. It does involve reproducing the headache pain however it is necessary to diagnose which neck joints are contributing to your headache and help to decide which treatment approach to take.

This technique is gentle and does not involve any cracking or manipulation of the neck. It has minimal risks involved (and all risks are screened prior to starting any treatment) and has been effective for a number of Deb’s clients from all different walks of life. Clients have ranged from a hairdresser who has had headaches since she was in primary school and has a job that involves having her head down at customers all day – her headaches resolved within 5-6 treatments and mothers with migraines from the daily stresses in life.

If you have questions about what could be causing your headache or migraine please don’t suffer in silence popping pills – give us a call and see how we can help you. Its’ a whole new world when you can think clearly!

Deb Chen, Physiotherapist