The Role of Physiotherapy in Alleviating Specific Headache Types

Do you suffer from headaches, that nagging head pain that makes it hard to be a functioning human?

Firstly, well done for surviving.

Headaches come in many types, with many causes. The international classification for headache disorders lists over 200 specific types!

Let’s look at three types that Physiotherapy can help with.

Tension headaches

Tension headaches are caused by tension or fatigue in the muscles surrounding the head and neck. The upper trapezius on top of the shoulders, suboccipital muscles at the base of the skull and jaw muscles are common culprits.

The pain is usually spread across the forehead or temples and is noticeably linked to tightness. The headache usually builds over the course of the day as fatigue increases and eases with rest overnight. An exception to this is if the tension is due to teeth grinding during sleep. The headache can build over the work week as each day compounds and it might become worse during times of stress.

Massage and stretching of the tight muscles is usually all it takes to settle the headache. The challenge is in finding the long-term fix. It takes a combination of strengthening, self-massage techniques, stretches and ideally making life adjustments to reduce stress and tension. Finding a long-term fix is challenging, but possible.

Cervicogenic headaches

‘Cervicogenic’ simply means that the headache is generated in the neck. The top three joints between vertebrae in the neck refer pain behind the eye, to the temple or in the jaw/ear. If any one of these joints becomes stiff or spasms, it can create a sharp knife-like referral pain that paracetamol seems to barely touch. The headache is usually one sided and might even swap sides after a day. Sleeping it off helps, but it can take up to a week to ease fully.

Hands on physiotherapy targeting the spasming muscles and stiff joints can ease these headaches quickly. If you get these headaches regularly, a long-term fix is possible by identifying the cause, commonly a lopsided posture or weakness, and addressing it with specific exercises.

Migraines

Migraines are common and very disabling. It seems that once a migraine is active, the only relief is to put life on hold and rest it out. Medication can help if taken early in the buildup. Some individuals are able to identify their migraine triggers and adjust their life to avoid them. The triggers might be simple like chocolate, red wine or exercise. Unfortunately, some individuals have unidentifiable or tricky to manage triggers like stress, fatigue and hormone fluctuations.

Physiotherapy is not useful during a building or active migraine. If you feel that your migraine begins with the neck or muscular tightness, physio can be helpful. We can help identify and reduce migraine triggers related to postural fatigue, neck weakness, neck stiffness and the effect of stress.

If you have found yourself nodding along and saying, ‘that’s me’, to any of the above, then physiotherapy might help. We use a combination of techniques and aim to achieve a long-term solution for you. Massage and mobilisation of the neck joints is often very helpful in the short-term to ease symptoms. We back this up with education to empower you, advice on changing postures at work or home, exercises to strengthen your neck/shoulders and other little tips and tricks so you can relieve the headaches yourself.

To make an appointment, call our clinics or book online via our website www.goodcountryphysio.com.au.