How Chiropractic Care Can Help With Migraines
According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 40 million Americans experience migraines. Many also experience tension and cluster headaches, which can be equally painful and debilitating.
While prescription and over-the-counter medications help manage these types of headaches, they often come with significant side effects, such as an increased risk of liver damage or gastrointestinal bleeding.
If your headache medications aren’t giving you relief or you’re concerned about the possible complications of medications, chiropractic care is a non-surgical, non-pharmacological alternative worth exploring.
Chiropractic for Migraines: Does a Chiropractor Help With Migraines?
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke describes migraine as a type of headache that comes in recurrent bouts of moderate to severe throbbing pain on one side of the head.
It also presents varying symptoms besides headaches, but over 75% of migraine patients say they experience neck pain. Moreover, many report neck stiffness, problems with jaw function, neck stiffness, and other similar musculoskeletal complaints.
While there is no known cure for migraine headaches yet, medical professionals believe migraine headaches are caused by issues related to blood flow and nerve signals. This is why chiropractic for migraines can be effective.
Chiropractors are licensed professionals who provide non-surgical and non-pharmacological therapies to alleviate pain, reduce inflammation or strain, and optimize an individual’s health. A skilled chiropractor for migraine headaches employs the proper spinal manipulation techniques and soft tissue therapies to relieve symptoms and help you find long-term relief.
Chiropractic and Headaches: The Role of Spinal Adjustments in Migraine Treatment
Migraines and other types of headaches can be caused by spinal misalignments, especially those in the cervical spine. A misaligned spine can make the muscles in your neck tense up and irritate some of the nerves supplying the head, neck, and face.
Spinal adjustments involve applying controlled force to your spine’s joints to realign the joints in the body, decreasing nerve irritation and managing associated pain without the risk of complications commonly associated with medications. These also help improve the blood flow through the central nervous system, preventing severe migraines.
Soft Tissue Therapies
Soft tissue therapies and massages are other ways to release muscle tension and reduce stress, which are common triggers for headaches.
At Brenner Chiropractic, some treatments we offer that help manage migraines include:
- Fascial Release – A chiropractic adjustment technique stretching the muscles and tissue within the spine to relieve pain and tightness throughout the body.
- Trigger Point Therapy – A soft tissue technique typically used with other spinal adjustment methods to release painful knots in the muscles and fascia. It is effective in treating neck pain, jaw pain, career-related pain, and other conditions.
- Instrument-Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization– Involves using a metal handheld instrument or tool to scrape along the muscle, loosening the muscles and the fascia. This technique is another way to treat headaches and back and neck pain.
These soft tissue therapies aim to not only reduce muscle tension and postural strain but also improve nervous system function and help the body manage the pain caused by migraines better.
Chiropractor for Migraine Relief: Other Benefits of Seeing a Migraine Chiropractor
While chiropractic care can help reduce the frequency and severity of headaches and migraines, its advantages go far beyond managing your pain.
The main objective of chiropractic therapies is to correct misalignments in the spine. This can bring profound benefits, including:
- Improved nervous system function
- Better blood flow and reduced inflammation
- Immediate stress and tension relief
- Enhanced physical function and performance
- Decreased medication intake
- Improved quality of life
What To Expect During a Chiropractic Migraine Treatment Session
Chiropractic for migraines must be tailored to your specific condition. Because of this, your chiropractor will first look into your health history, guide you through a physical examination, and order other tests or imaging necessary to determine the underlying cause of your complaint.
In the actual session, you will be asked to lie in specific positions on a padded table (e.g., face down, on your back, or on your side). Your migraine chiropractor will use spinal adjustment techniques with their hands, pushing, pulling, and stretching sections of your body to move your spine’s joints. Depending on the technique, it may produce popping or cracking sounds, which are the release of pressure and gas bubbles from the spinal joints.
Some individuals experience immediate relief, but others may feel the effects after multiple sessions. Each session is not painful. However, having your body stretched or pushed in specific positions may feel awkward or uncomfortable at first.
Take Control of Your Migraines Without Medication, Chiropractor for Headaches at Brenner Chiropractic
Experiencing migraines and other types of headaches may be painful and frustrating. On top of that, they can cause symptoms that can keep you from carrying on with your daily life, performing well at work, and enjoying quality time with your loved ones.
If you’re ready to take control of your migraines and reclaim your life, get your chiropractic care only from trained and licensed professionals like Dr. Russell Brenner. With his staff, the entire Brenner Chiropractic team listens to your complaints and develops a personalized treatment plan to help manage your migraine without adding to your headaches. Best of all, Dr. Brenner and his staff work together to provide a pleasurable and educational experience from start to finish.
Schedule an appointment at Brenner Chiropractic today. We look forward to helping you overcome debilitating pain and restore your quality of life.