Headaches (cephalalgia in medical terminology) are our country’s most common ailment and the number one reason why patients visit the doctor. 

There are five types of headache: vascular, myogenic (muscle tension), cervicogenic, traction, and inflammatory.

• Muscular/myogenic Headaches. Muscular (or myogenic) headaches involve the tightening or tensing of facial and neck muscles; they may radiate to the forehead. Tension headache is the most common form of myogenic headache.

• Cervicogenic Headaches. Cervicogenic headaches originate from disorders of the neck, including the anatomical structures innervated by the cervical roots C1–C3. Cervical headache is often precipitated by neck movement and/or sustained awkward head positioning. Restricted cervical range of motion, ipsilateral neck, shoulder, or arm pain of a rather vague non-radicular nature or, occasionally, arm pain of a radicular nature often accompanies it. 

• Vascular Headache. The most common type of vascular headache is migraine. Migraine headaches are usually characterized by severe pain on one or both sides of the head, an upset stomach, and, for some people, disturbed vision. Migraine headaches are more common in women. The cause of migraine headaches is eurologic, not vascular. Other kinds of vascular headaches include cluster headaches, which are very severe recurrent short lasting headaches, often located through or around the either eye and often wake the sufferers up at the same time every night. Cluster headaches are more common in men than in women.

• Traction/inflammatory Headaches. Traction and inflammatory headaches are symptoms of other disorders, ranging from stroke to sinus infection.

Chronic Headaches - The Statistics

Forty-Five Million (45,000,000) Americans suffer from chronic headaches. According to the World Headache Alliance, between 70-80% of all Americans experience chronic headache pain at least once per week.

Headache Remedies and the Marketplace Effect 

With over 78% of adults experiencing tension-type headaches and 30% of the general population suffering chronic migraines, is it any wonder that the market for headache medicines are booming?Whether your headache pain is chronic or occasional, or is the result of a migraine, allergy, stress or a wide variety of other maladies, slick marketing campaigns assure you that a pill has been developed to cure all your ills.

Is Medication the Answer?

But is medicating ourselves really the answer?  Are you comfortable with the potential interactions these drugs, including the over the counter variety may have with other things you may be taking, as well as what the long term health effects may be as we live longer?  If this has not been a concern to you, perhaps it should be.The National Headache Foundation recently published compelling information warning those with frequent tension headaches of the dangers in overusing headache pain relief products such as aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol, Motrin or ibuprofen. It is now widely known that overuse has been directly linked with irreversible, and sometimes fatal, kidney and liver damage, or even liver failure and death. Just looking at the side effects associated with many of the migraine medicines today should make looking at natural cures at least an important consideration.

Common Causes of Headaches

Common causes are tension, migraine, eyestrain, dehydration, low blood sugar, and sinusitis. It is important to note, that like other types of pain, headaches can serve as warning signals of more serious disorders, therefore if a headache is associated with extreme pain that does not go away, you should immediately contact a medical professional to determine if the headache is a symptom of a more serious disease.

Attacking Headache Pain Naturally - First Trying to Determine the Cause.

To be able to treat a headache it makes sense to what is actually causing your pain and address it.

• Is the cause due to Noise?

• Hunger?

• Stress?

The National Library of Medicine reports that the most likely causes of occasional to chronic severe headaches are stress and tension. There is large body of research indicates that poor posture and spinal misalignment may be responsible. And yet, a surprising number of traditional medical practitioners fail to recognize the connection between healthy cervical spine alignment and headaches. The fact is that bad posture and poor workplace habits have been proven to be extremely relevant factors in many types of chronic headaches. Poor posture tightens the neck, shoulders and upper back muscles all primary causes for headaches.

• Do you sit in front of a computer all day, every day?

• Have you had an ergonomic evaluation to determine if you are sitting to close or to far from your PC?

• Is your monitor at the right height or are you looking to far up or down putting stress on your neck?

• Do you reach too far for you mouse?

• Is your desk/chair to high or low?

• Do you sit at the PC without taking frequent breaks?

• Do you cradle the telephone on your shoulder during phone conversations?

• Do you drive all day without taking stretch breaks?

• Maybe you sit all day with a phone crooked between your neck and ear?

• When you get home, you continue practicing this poor posture by curling up in front of the T.V., or sitting hunched over in your easy chair.

• Maybe you also continue this poor posture by sleeping in the fetal position, or without proper neck and back support that relieves the tension and restores the proper curve to your neck?

How does our posture contribute to headaches?

Poor posture tightens your neck, shoulders and upper back. The continual strain on your neck, shoulder and upper back muscles causes these muscles to tear (on a microscopic level). Your body tries to prevent this tearing by forcing these muscles to knot up which results in muscle spasms. But despite these spasms, some tearing does occur because of the continual strain you're putting on them. Over time, these microscopic tears heal, but when they do scar tissue is left behind. These scar tissue fibers effectively lock your spasms into place. The constant tightness and spasming restrict blood flow to the back of your head and irritate nerve endings in the back of your neck and head which are a likely cause of headaches experienced by so many people each day. If this sounds like you, chances are, you suffer from migraines or headaches with neck and shoulder pain.

You Don’t Need to Endure Chronic Headache Pain!

Today’s workplace environments and our hectic lifestyles may be causing an epidemic of chronic headache pain, but you do not have to simply endure it.  Fight back with knowledge! You do not need to continue the ongoing process of self-medicating.

Seek Out Natural A Chronic Headache Pain Relief Remedy

The majority of headaches are caused by tension, which tightens the muscles in the head. Vascular headaches, such as migraines and cluster headaches result from constricted blood vessels. Medications relieve headache temporarily. Long-term use of medications such as Demerol, ibuprofen, aspirin and codeine may increase the frequency of headaches or make them more severe. Natural remedies can offer relief, without side effects, by promoting relaxation or dilating constricted blood vessels. There are many tips and treatments that can be employed to eradicate chronic headache pain due to tension. Chiropractic CareHeadaches and neck pain are often cased by a simple problem, loss of the normal neck curve, form spinal misalignment.  Therefore, by restoring the natural curve in the neck you can actually eliminate headache, arthritis and neck pain Chiropractic care has a strong track record of incredible success in treating most forms of benign headaches. It has even proven to be very successful in treating and eliminating debilitating migraine pain – without the danger of potentially harmful drugs. There are many reasons to consider chiropractic care if you believe your posture may be the cause of your headaches.

• Clinical studies have repeatedly shown that chiropractic treatment of headache pain enjoys consistently spectacular success rates ranging between 72-98%.

• Unlike prescription medications, there are no adverse or allergic reactions, no potential drug interaction, and you never have to worry about drug-induced drowsiness.

At Home Remedies

If you can not afford or do not have the time to visit a chiropractor (or masseuse) here are some ways you can find relief, without medication, that you can employ at home.Stretching:A sore and stiff neck, as well as a sore or staff back and tight shoulders are often experienced by people first thing in the morning as well as at the end of a long work day. Gentle stretching exercises can help alleviate the aches associated with tight muscles of these regions. Keeping your flexibility is important to preventing discomfort, including headaches, as well as minimizing chances of injury.The following stretches should be performed upon wakening as well as during breaks at work to minimize tightness and decrease the potential of tension related headaches.

• Neck Stretches. Day to day living, poor posture, and injury often result in tight neck muscles which can contribute to chronic headaches. Gentle neck stretching exercises can be quite effective in decreasing muscle tightness. The exercises can be performed without fancy equipment and only takes a few minutes. Four simple neck stretching exercises include:

• Flexion Stretch - Chin to Chest,

• Extension Stretch -Eyes to the Sky,

• Rotation -Side to Side, and Lateral Flexion - Ear to Shoulder.

• Shoulder Stretching. Stretching your shoulders can feel good, especially for those of us who spend long hours hunched over a computer. It can also improve your posture. Some good examples of stretches that can help relieve tightness include:

• Arm Circles

• Twisted Shoulder Stretch

• Anterior Shoulder Stretch

• Posterior Shoulder Stretch

• Shoulder Rolls

• Back Stretching. 

• Back Stretch

• Wide Back and Shoulder Stretch

Other Home Remedies for the Treatment of Tension Headaches

• Tension headaches result from stress and reduced blood flow to the brain, causing the neck muscles to tighten. To soothe the neck muscles apply heat. Applying a heating pad or taking a hot bath can provide relief. Take a hot shower. A hot shower can also be relaxing, while also loosening tight muscles of the neck, shoulders and upper back.

• Apply an ice pack to the painful area of your head. Try placing it on your forehead, temples or the back of your neck.

• Apply gentle, steady rotating pressure to the painful area of your head with your index finger and/or thumb. Maintain pressure for 7-15 seconds, then release. Repeat as needed.

• Ask someone to rub your neck and back,

• Take a nap.

• Rest, sit or lie quietly in a low-lit room. Close your eyes and try to release the tension in your back, neck, and shoulders.

• Meditate to reduce the stress.

• Get adequate sleep each night. A lack of sleep is a known headache trigger in some people. Also, getting adequate sleep can help decrease stress. In general, it is recommended that people with headaches try to maintain a regular sleep schedule every day. Try aromatherapy. Aromatherapy can promote relaxation and relieve stress and pain. Some of the herbs that are effective in relieving headaches include:

• Chamomile--calming, soothing

• Cinnamon--reduces stress, loosens tight muscles

• Lavender--reduces pain, relaxes, eases tension

• Lime Essence-reduces anxiety and stress

• Marjoram-eases muscle tension

• Peppermint--reduces pain, reduces tension

• Valerian--reduces tension and pain, relaxes 
  
  

Employ a Headache Friendly Diet

Foods cause headaches by affecting your brain chemistry or changing the size of your blood vessels, Marks says. The five most common dietary triggers of headaches are:If you suspect that what you eat is the source of your pain, document how you feel and determine if the food is actually triggering your headaches. Use a diary to track your headaches. If the foods do not cause any change in your headache pattern, you are not sensitive to them. Common food headache triggers include: Foods to consider avoiding:

• Aged cheeses such as Swiss, Blue cheese and cheddar. In general, the longer a cheese has aged, the more tyramine it has. Tyramine, a natural compound that can cause dilation and constriction of your blood vessels, triggers headaches in some people.

• Alcohol, particularly red wine.

• Black tea.

• Too much caffeine. A little caffeine is OK, but drinking beverages every day that give you more caffeine than what you would get in two 8-ounce cups of coffee can cause headaches.

• Chocolate. Marks recommends cutting it totally from your diet, unless you know from doing the headache elimination diet that you are not sensitive to it.

• Food additives, such as monosodium glutamate or MSG, a common ingredient in canned soups, sulfites (used to preserve dried fruit) and nitrites (used as a meat preservative).

• Limit foods with saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol, sodium (salt), and added sugars

Natural Foods and Supplements  

• Coffee can moderation may provide relief for a headache when taken with aspirin. Coffee, which constricts blood vessels, increases the pain-relieving properties of aspirin. Intake of coffee should be limited to about two cups a day and no more than two aspirins should be taken a day.

• Studies have shown that Feverfew and Ginkgo reduce migraines and vascular headaches. The leaves of the Feverfew contain parthenolide, which inhibits the production of substances that dilate blood vessels and cause inflammation. Ginkgo also relieves ringing in the ear, and dizziness often associated with headaches. Feverfew and Ginkgo are available at health food stores. Ginger relaxes blood vessels in the head and reduces swelling in the brain. It activates natural opiates in the brain that relieve pain. Ginger can be taken in the form of tea or in tablets available at health food stores.

Resources 

For information on headaches contact: The National Headache Foundation (888)NHF-5552; Always consult a physician before proceeding with any remedies. Headaches can e a sign of a very serious medical condition that can lead to death.