Headaches Suck!

Headaches suck! For the sake of this blog, let’s start with one fact, not all headaches are Migraine Headaches. Yes, they are a common type of headaches and yes, they are very commonly diagnosed. Here are some signs and symptoms doctors use to diagnose you with a Migraine headache:

• ·         Pain in usually on one side of the head

• ·         Sensitivity to light and/or sound

• ·         Nausea and/or vomiting

• ·         May have aura (perception of a strange light, an unpleasant smell or confusing thoughts before the actual headache)

You may experience slight variations of these signs and symptoms, and you may have tried different types of medications with little or no results, which denotes to the debatable lack of understanding in the origin and cause of this disease.

Other common examples of headaches are Cluster Headaches, Frontal Headaches (usually due to sinusitis) and Suboccipital headaches. These are just few examples of headaches classified by the International Headache Society (IHS), which has a good website for more information. (Google it!)

The type of headache I really want you to be familiar with is Suboccipital headaches, which I commonly see in my practice. I have had many patients wrongfully diagnosed with Migraine whom suffer from Suboccipital headaches who got significantly better after few treatments.

Suboccipital Headache (aka Muscle Tension Headache)

This is a headache caused by a specific muscle spasm (tenderness) at the base of your skull, named Suboccipital Muscles. This is the most common type of primary headaches. The signs and symptoms of these types of headaches are outlined below:

• ·         Pain usually on two side of the head

• ·         No nausea and/or vomiting

• ·         Pain starts at the base of the skull, moves to the side of the head and behind the eye

• ·         It can co-exist with neck pain and lack of range of motion in the neck

The primary way of treating this headache is to work with your spine and the muscles surrounding your spine in the neck region by manipulation, stretches and corrective posture.

Keeping in mind the different types of headaches, the purpose of this blog is not to diagnose you over the internet; it is for you to have enough information about the differences between the Migraine and Suboccipital headaches (which are more common!), and a possible alternative treatment to pain medications.

Dr. Ali Masoumi
www.facebook.com/drmasoumi