Sometimes I experience really bad headaches. Could they be migraines? And what’s causing my headaches?

Types of headaches that can be wrongly referred to as a migraine headaches are cervicogenic (meaning originating at the neck) headaches. These can be brought about by an injury to the neck, arthritic conditions, stress and/or by compromised posture.

Cervicogenic headaches normally originate where the upper neck meets the base of the skull. An area called the suboccipital region. These suboccipital muscles have nerves and blood vessels that penetrate through them. These nerves and blood vessels feed the scalp with nervous input and blood. When these suboccipital muscles go into spasm or become tight they can impinge on the nerve giving off a dull or achy headache along the distribution of that nerve. They can also impinge on the blood vessel which can cause throbbing or pulsating symptoms along that distribution.

At Oak Park Health Clinic we’ve evaluated and successfully treated hundreds of patients with this condition. A postural analysis along with therapy consisting of moist heat, electrical muscle stimulation, ultrasound, stretching and massage and chiropractic adjustments these patients experience significant and rapid improvement.