Tension type headaches

Tension Type Headaches typically occur later in the day. Most of the time they show up as mild to moderate pain in the back of your head, then spread forward into a ‘tight band’, occasionally directly above or behind the eyes. They can occur infrequently (called ‘episodic’) or happen more than 15 days a month and last longer than a few hours or a day (‘chronic’.) They can also present as severe headache pain. Tension headaches are often related to muscle tension, spasms, and trigger points – in the neck, face or upper back. You may have additional symptoms as well; sensitivity to light, loud sounds and insomnia. Sometimes these other symptoms can make your tension headache present as a migraine and can be misdiagnosed. Tension headaches do not affect your strength, vision or balance.

Stress of any kind: These headaches can be caused by almost any kind of stress:

Not drinking enough water (stress)
poor posture (stress)
work (stress)
lack of quality sleep (stress)
raising a family (stress)
finances (stress)
illness of yourself or a loved one (stress)
caring for family members as they age (stress)
even during the (supposedly stress free) activity of taking a vacation

Driving (stress) has become a highly stressful undertaking as well, with rush-hour slow-downs, road rage incidents, accidents and higher speed traffic in general. We are forced to have unblinking attention on the road ahead, the cars to either side and behind, how much gas we have left, how many miles to go, dogs and cats and deer wandering onto the roadways, oh,my!

You get the idea, stress of any kind (mental, physical or emotional stress) can bring on a tension type headache…

Many things can help tension headache pain, including gentle chiropractic adjustments to the spine, including the neck and upper back. Chiropractic can also help with pain in the low back, hips, legs or arms too! If your body is in pain anywhere, these places that are ‘far away’ from the head may not be free of blame. Pain in ANY area of the body can induce stress and cause these types of headaches. Stress reduction, eating right, getting adequate sleep and a relaxation massage are good places to start to help prevent these headaches.

For the occasional tension type headache , OTC pain medication may help take the edge off. However, determining the root cause of the headaches, especially if they are increasing in intensity or frequency should be of the most importance.

Throwing medication at this type of headache, though perhaps effective temporarily, will not solve the issue. You may have stress inducing issues that will continue to push you away from homeostasis (that state of health where your body is operating as intended, can take care of stress, relax and heal itself.) You may well continue to have symptoms, until you make appropriate life-style changes:

hydrate properly for your weight and working conditions
proper nutrition
less sitting in front of a computer and more moving
making time for adequate sleep
learning to meditate
etc.

Talk with your chiropractor and other healthcare providers and always consider the conservative care approach first. You may be surprised at the outcome.

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