Headaches and Migraines

Headaches can be hard to escape and can disturb all aspects of your life.

Do you find you can’t be mentally present with your family or work colleagues due to your headaches? Do headaches disturb your focus so that you aren’t getting as much done?  Or are you tired of just pushing through discomfort and pain?

If you suffer from headaches, Barlas Chiropractic near South Lake Union will be able to help you.  Many long-time headache sufferers have come to Dr. Jaffer Barlas and had their headaches relieved within a handful of treatments or even less.

Jamie, a 23-year-old female presented to Barlas Chiropractic with headache symptoms that she had experienced since she was a teenager.  She experienced them daily, sometimes for the entire duration of the day.  Her symptoms involved aching pain of the sides of her head and neck and often intense pain behind the eyes.  She had difficulty concentrating as a result.  Dr. Barlas treated her with very light adjustments to the upper back and cervical spine and Active Release soft tissue therapy to specific muscles on her neck. Within just three visits her headaches were completely eliminated. 

Headaches are not medically normal

Common headache symptoms include a throbbing-aching feeling on the sides of your head or pain wrapping from your neck up over the top of your head to your forehead.  Pain behind your eyes or down the side of your neck are also common.  You may have learned to live with the constant discomfort, but remember that your headaches are not medically normal!

We often refer to extremely intense headaches as “migraines”.  However, a true migraine headache involves several factors that often include visual haziness called an “aura” and possibly nausea and light sensitivity.  Regardless, chiropractic has been shown to be effective in treating headaches whether they are true migraine headaches or intense headaches of another type (Tuchin PJ, 2000).

Because many headaches and migraines are caused by tight joints and muscles around the neck and upper back, chiropractic and Active Release Technique® are the perfect methods to eliminate the associated pain. 

Vertebra of the upper cervical spine (neck) or upper thoracic spine (back) can have restricted movement and be the source of tightness that causes all sorts of headaches.  They can contribute to tightness of muscles such as the suboccipitals at the very top of the neck which refer pain to different parts of your head and even be involved in nerve entrapment of your occipital nerves.

Combining chiropractic adjustments and ART® treatment is the most comprehensive way to end your pain.  While common over-the-counter medications might provide momentary relief, addressing the actual source of your pain and eliminating the cause can finally end your headaches and provide much-needed long-term relief.

Works Cited

Tuchin PJ, P. H. (2000). A randomized controlled trial of chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy for migraine. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 511-519.