Do your migraine and headache treatments never seem to work? You may have been misdiagnosed. Many people actually have headaches that originate from neck muscle tension. Determining whether you fall into this category could be the key to dramatically reducing the frequency and severity of your headaches.
Shared Pain Nerves
The uppermost part of your spine, along with corresponding nerves, are centered in the neck. Those cervical nerves sync up with the trigeminal nerve. The trigeminal nerve is the main conduit of pain “messages” into your brain. For that reason, stress on neck-area nerves and neck muscles can often be “misinterpreted” by your brain as head pain. This type of headache is known as a “cervicogenic headache.”
Symptoms of Cervicogenic Headaches
Head pain that originate in neck strain include a feeling that noise and light are unbearable. There can also be nausea and throbbing pain. You may have already spotted a problem with these symptoms — they’re identical to migraine pain.
But additional symptoms may lead your doctor to suspect neck-pain headaches rather than migraines. Does twisting your neck or moving your head from side to side make your other symptoms worse? Do your headaches come with a side order of tenderness at the base of your skull? If so, cervicogenic headaches may be what you are suffering from.
How Can You Know For Sure?
Of course, there are a number of different types of headaches, each with their own specific causes. When cervicogenic headaches are suspected, X-rays of the three cervical spinal segments at the base of your skull may confirm the diagnosis. Your doctor may also block each of the three nerves to see if cutting off sensation helps reduce head pain.
Preventing Neck Pain Headaches
Obviously, anything you can do to reduce neck pain tension can help prevent a cervicogenic headache. Make your work area more ergonomic so that there is less strain on your neck muscles. Raising up computer monitors and establishing book stands can prevent you from having to look down as often. Working on your posture, both by consciously sitting up straighter and by strengthening your core through yoga or other workout plans, can also help.
People who are twisting and turning their necks in order to see better may find that a fine-tuned eyeglass prescription reduces neck muscle tension. In turn, headaches become less frequent.
Treating Neck Pain Headaches
Even after you’ve answered the question of can neck pain cause headaches, and have learned some preventive strategies, you may still experience cervicogenic headaches. When this pain arises, a professional masseuse can work the base of your skull and stiff neck. Or enlist a friend can help! If you’re on your own, put tennis balls in a clean sock, and move the back of your neck over the tennis balls, in all directions. When you’re done, apply a heating pad to your stiff neck.
If the pain becomes too much and begins affecting your everyday life, contact our team at STI to help you get back to your best you.
