Headaches are common but not normal.
Headaches are something that we treat on a daily basis here at Lake Effect Chiropractic. Headaches can make everyday activities unbearable.
Patients we treat commonly deal with:
- Sinus or allergy Headaches
- Cervicogenic Headaches
- Tension Headaches
- Cluster Headaches
- Migraine Headaches
- Hypertensive Headache
- Caffeine Headaches
- Neck Pain
- and many more.
Why do I experience headaches?
You may experience headaches from a number of different reasons, most commonly we find these to be the biggest culprits:
- Poor Posture
- Stress
- High Blood pressure
- Overuse injuries
- Job demands
- Old injuries
- Mild Dehydration
Watch This!
Check out one of the ways we treat Migraines and Headaches!
How We Treat Headaches
- Chiropractic Adjustments: The goal of a chiropractic adjustment is to mobilize the joint fixation to increase the range of motion, reduce nerve irritability, and improve mobility.
- PulStar (low force chiropractic adjustments): If you are uncomfortable with the more traditional manual adjustments, the PulStar is an amazing option for light force, gentle chiropractic adjustments.
- Active Release Technique: Active Release Technique (ART): is a soft tissue therapy designed to rid injured areas of scar tissue.
- Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Manipulation (IASTM): The goal is to trigger an inflammatory healing response. This will stimulate the production of new collagen and proper, functional, pain-free healing.
- Therapeutic Exercise: Different but specific exercises will be given at the proper time to support your care, from beginning pain care through maintenance and wellness care.
- Class IV Medical Laser: Improved healing time, pain reduction, increased blood circulation and decreased swelling are the major effects of laser energy. Summus Medical Lasers are designed to treat pain and accelerate the healing process.
- McKenzie Method (MDT): The McKenzie method is a standardized assessment tool, defining and classifying movement problems and recommending appropriate treatment. More simply, if applicable we teach you to continue treatment at home between visits!
When should I see a chiropractor for headaches?
This is an important question to ask and to answer! Chiropractic care can be tailored to many scenarios of headaches. Whether its acute pain, its angry and very flared up, or it is more of a chronic headache and you’ve been dealing with it on and off for years.
It excites us to have new patients who have had other chiropractic experiences, what we do at Lake Effect Chiropractic is target the source of the problem and work to extinguish it! Getting the body moving, from the joints to the muscles, we know MOVEMENT IS MEDICINE!
Even though headaches are common, the level of severity and the conditions responsible differ. What we do is different, your headache treatment is always individualized and we are here to help you with whatever pain you may be experiencing here in Bay City, Michigan.
We work together with the medical community to make sure you receive the proper care no matter what your condition may be, new or old, minor or serious, we want you to get back to a pain free life and enjoy it!
How can chiropractic care help my headache?
Chiropractic care helps many types of headaches as mentioned above. They can be generated from joints, muscles, or even nerves. With a thorough history and exam, we identify which structures are the primary pain generators and which structures are stressed due to poor structural function.
Fixing the source of the pain is what we do. By restoring function to each of the named structures above, we help your body take time for it to HEAL and function at 100%. The body is a unique mechanical system and all structures need to be treated to return to 100%.
We don’t just treat the joints here at Lake Effect Chiropractic, headaches can, and most likely will, involve multiple structures... which we will identify and correct during your healing journey!
Types Of Headaches
- Cervicogenic Headache: These occur when pain is referred from a specific source in the neck up to the head. This pain is commonly a steady ache or dull feeling, but sometimes the pain intensity can worsen. CGH symptoms are usually side-locked, which means they occur on one side of the neck, head, and/or face. These headaches typically respond WONDERFULLY to chiropractic care.
- Sinus/Allergy Headaches: You may feel pressure around your eyes, cheeks and forehead. Perhaps your head throbs. Decreased muscle tension in the neck can help improve lymph drainage, helping to speed up the recovery from any sinus trouble.
- Tension Headaches: These are generally a diffuse, mild to moderate pain in your head that's often described as feeling like a tight band around your head. A tension headache (tension-type headache) is the most common type of headache. Posture awareness, strengthening exercises for the upper back and improved joint motion are great ways to improve these headaches.
- Cluster Headaches: A cluster headache commonly awakens you in the middle of the night with intense pain in or around one eye on one side of your head. Occipital nerves can often be a culprit for these headaches, we treat the suboccipital muscles where those nerves “live”. Through Active Release Technique and other techniques, we look to improve neck function.
- Migraine: A migraine can cause severe throbbing pain or a pulsing sensation, usually on one side of the head. It's often accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and extreme sensitivity to light and sound. Chiropractic has been shown time and time again to decrease intensity, duration, and frequency of migraine headaches.
- Caffeine Headaches: Caffeine narrows the blood vessels in your brain. Without it, your blood vessels widen. The resulting boost in blood flow could trigger a headache. Normalizing cervical spine function, can help eliminate any intensifying factors of a headache.
What Patients Have To Say!
Awesome job. Loosen up back and neck and no more headaches
- Mike V., // Saginaw, Michigan
Lake Effect Chiropractors have helped me a lot. If anyone needs a chiropractor I recommend this place. The ladies are wonderful.
- Gloria F., // Bay City, Michigan
Great experience thus far after having neck pain and headaches for more than 30 years. Never thought I would know what it feels like to be almost pain-free. Dr. Ashley is a positive force and I am starting to believe I may someday become pain-free or very close! Thank you, Lake Effect!
- Su H., // Bay City, Michigan
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No one on our staff ever wants to see you in pain from headaches.
That is why we are dedicated to helping you feel better. Our qualified and compassionate chiropractors will do everything that they can do get you back to how you felt prior to the headaches. We are also here to answer any questions that you may have along the way. No question is ever silly to us, and we never want you to feel confused when you leave our office.
If you are experiencing headaches, we are happy to help. Contact us today at (989) 686-6808.