How often do you suffer from a headache? The World Health Organization (WHO) states: Headaches are extremely common and nearly everyone has a headache occasionally. About 1 adult in 20 people have a headache everyday or nearly every day. There are many different types of headaches one can have and that is not including migraines.

Types of Headaches

The most common type of headache is a tension headache. Tension headaches affects over one third of men and over one half of women. Tension headaches feel like a band around you head (like a baseball cap was too tight). They can be triggered by not getting enough rest, poor posture, emotional and physical stress and bad diet.

The most common type of secondary headache is a sinus headache. Headaches sometimes happen as a result of an allergic reaction. The pain from these headaches is often focused in your sinus area and in the front of your head. People who have chronic seasonal allergies or sinusitis are susceptible to these kinds of headaches.

You can get headaches from cutting caffeine out of your diet, caffeine changes your brain chemistry, and withdrawal from it can trigger a headache. Headaches can happen quickly after periods of intense physical activity, which are called exertion headaches.

High blood pressure can cause headaches called a hypertension headache. Usually it will occur on both sides of your head and is typically worse with any activity. It often has a pulsating quality and you may experience changes in vision, numbness or tingling, nosebleeds, chest pain, or shortness of breath.

Treatment

As there are many types of headaches, there are several different treatment options depending on what kind of headache you are experiencing. Some treatment options are easy. Such as, a caffeine headache, drink a little caffeine and ween yourself off of caffeine slowly. Or if you have high blood pressure make sure to stick to your medication or keep track of your blood pressure. If you are stressed take some time to relax.

There are over the counter medicines you can take for different headaches. But, you don’t want to take Tylenol or Advil everyday! There are serious problems that can arise from overuse of over the counter medicines. Not limited to kidney, liver and stomach damage. (Along with a whole list of other side effects.)

Best thing you can do is to determine the root cause of your headache. If you are experiencing a headache frequently, it is your body telling you something is wrong and you need to figure out what it is.

Chiropractic

Chiropractic care can help you determine what kind of headaches you are having. In my office we get a through history and every single visit we take blood pressure. This gives us a good read on what is your normal and if we need to have you see a medical doctor to get a high blood pressure pill.

Almost every time someone says that they are experiencing daily headaches, I take an x-ray. Cervical curve and anterior head carriage can tell me a lot when it comes to headaches.

In the picture above you can see how when your head gets too far out in front of you it pulls on your upper back and base of your skull (trying to keep your head on). This can cause constant headaches. With chiropractic care we can help work on your posture which will take the pressure off your spine and nerves.

If you have any questions about if chiropractic care can help you, give us or a chiropractor near you a call! Daily headaches can interfere with your quality of life!

~Dr. Lacey~
Carder Chiropractic Clinic, INC.
El Reno, OK 73036