Headache Treatment: An East Greenwich RI Chiropractor’s Perspective
50% of people report a headache every single year and 4% of the world’s population suffers from headaches 15 or more days every single month. Think about the impact headaches in East Greenwich RI have on our productivity, stress levels, and personal relationships. Headaches are clearly very common, but they are far from normal. They are a warning sign from your body alerting you to the fact that something is not right.
Headaches have a wide variety of causes like emotional stress such as anxiety or depression, a medical condition like high blood pressure or an infection, even environmental factors like allergies or changes in the weather. At Greenwich Bay Chiropractic, while we can recommend lifestyle changes that may have positive effects on the frequency and severity of your headaches, our focus in the office is on the mechanical and physical headache triggers like nerve irritation, tight muscles, and injuries to the neck, head, and spine.
Headaches that are a result of a physical problem, like subluxation or lack of mobility in the spine, will not go away by taking pain relievers like Advil, Tylenol, or Aleve. These medications simply mask the symptom but do not address the underlying cause of your headaches. Only masking the symptoms will result in headaches coming back again and again. In addition, pain medications carry a whole host of side effects such as stomach problems, bleeding, and ulcers. When the cause of your headache is mechanical or physical, it is critical to find the root cause of the problem whether that is the muscles, joints, discs, or something else entirely.
How We Treat Headaches in East Greenwich RI
Comprehensive Consultation and Exam
In order to treat your headache, we will go through a very specific process to address the root cause of the problem. We’ll start with a comprehensive consultation and exam. This includes a detailed history and consultation with your doctor who will really listen to understand your underlying symptoms, how they’re affecting your life, and what you would like to see improved. Then, we'll do chiropractic, functional, orthopedic, and neurological exams to determine if your headaches are originating from the muscles, the joints, the discs, or something else entirely. This process is designed to pinpoint the source of the problem rather than just trying to chase the symptoms.
Digital X-rays
It's important to take digital X-rays to assess the health of the curve in your cervical and thoracic spine. A healthy curve in your cervical spine creates a spring in the neck giving the nerves, joints, muscles, and bones a good cushion and strong foundation on which to sit. We'll look at the alignment in your spine as well as the health of your spinal discs. The neck has so many vital structures that are intrinsic to good health and optimal function. That’s why it is critical to know exactly what is going on before starting care and there’s no better way to do that than by taking digital X-rays.
Specific Chiropractic Care in East Greenwich RI
Once we find the root cause of the problem, we will address any subluxations - misalignments in the spine - which place pressure on the nerves that exit out of your neck and can cause a whole host of problems.
Our nerves control everything in our body, the muscles along our spine, how we move, how we function, and how we feel. Misalignments in the spine interfere with our nerves’ ability to do their job and result in dysfunction. Our body sends pain signals to alert us that something is wrong. Once we locate subluxations, it’s critical that we correct them, realigning the spine to take pressure off of the nerves. This will improve circulation and mobility, and allow the spine to function properly. Headaches that are caused by subluxations won't get better until the structural-mechanical issue is addressed. Pain relievers are powerless to provide long-term relief.
Customized Therapeutic Exercise Plan
An exercise plan tailored to your specific situation will address muscle weakness and imbalances that contribute to headaches. Whether you’re dealing with forward head posture or upper-crossed syndrome, these plans will address functional issues in the muscles, bones, discs, and joints. joints, discs, and bones. At Greenwich Bay Chiropractic, we use an online portal filled with video tutorials to easily walk you through proper form and track your progress. Continuing care outside of the office will bolster and support the work that we do in the office to accelerate healing.
Common Types of Headaches
Tension Headaches
Tension headaches are the most common type of headache. They are described as a tight band that wraps around your head creating pressure, dull aching, or sharp pain at the base of your skull. Tension headaches are usually diffuse and broad, ranging from like to moderate pain, and can be triggered by muscle tension and spinal dysfunction.
Migraine Headache
Migraines can be an extreme experience, characterized by throbbing or pulsing pain oftentimes on one side of the head. The pain can be so debilitating that it can cause nausea, vomiting, and a sensitivity to light and sound. Many migraine sufferers see an aura - a sequence of temporary visual or sensory disturbances - shortly before a migraine attack.
Allergy or Sinus Headache
Most prevalent during allergy season or when you have a cold in the winter, an allergy or a sinus headache feels like pressure around your eyes, cheeks, and forehead. It can be caused by a sinus infection or inflammation from allergies and the pain typically worsens by increasing the pressure if you bend forward or lie down.
Cervicogenic Headache
This is a secondary headache, meaning it exists because of another cause such as spinal dysfunction, an injury, or an infection. Cervicogenic headache pain results from a problem specifically in the neck (cervical spine) but is felt elsewhere in the head replicating the symptoms of a headache. Pain typically starts at the back of the head and wraps around to the front. You may also experience pain or stiffness in the neck. We often see cervicogenic headaches in patients who sit for long periods, typically doing desk work or work on the computer.
Whiplash Headache
This is one of the many common symptoms that can occur after a whiplash injury - such as a slip and fall, sports injury, or a car accident. Pain typically starts at the base of the skull and can be exacerbated or worsened by any neck movement. Depending on the severity of the accident or the fall it can be accompanied by concussion-like symptoms.
Frequently Asked Questions
Chiropractic is phenomenal for headaches! As chiropractors for headaches, we can address the root cause of the headache as opposed to simply treating the symptoms. Addressing the underlying issues allows us to get rid of your headaches quickly and permanently.
Medical doctors will often recommend chiropractic for headaches to address the functional and structural issues in your spine related to the cause of the headache. This is a much better option than prescribing pain pills, which we know can be highly addictive.
Chiropractors are covered by insurance for most conditions in the spine. As it relates to headaches, we will do a complimentary benefits check in the office to let you know what your benefits are so you can make the best decision moving forward.
The origin of many headaches can be from misalignments in the neck, irritating nerves that travel into the head or creating muscle, ligament, or joint tightness. For this reason, getting your neck adjusted is a very effective, safe, and gentle way to get rid of headaches.
There are many causes of migraines and many migraine causes that are still unknown. Assessing the overall function of your spine and your neck is vitally important to your overall health and often this health improvement can improve migraine symptoms.
OFFICE HOURS
Monday
9:00am - 12:00pm
3:00pm - 6:00pm
Tuesday
9:00am - 12:00pm
3:00pm - 6:00pm
Wednesday
9:00am - 12:00pm
3:00pm - 6:00pm
Thursday
9:00am - 12:00pm
3:00pm - 6:00pm
Friday
Closed
Saturday & Sunday
Closed
Greenwich Bay Chiropractic
16 Main Street
East Greenwich, RI 02818
Phone: (401) 408-4430
Fax: (401) 443-8818