Headaches

Headaches are an extremely common and often persistent and painful condition that affects many people. From young children to older individuals, most people have experienced at least one in their life. If you suffer from headaches, it is important to understand the what they are, what can cause them and how a physiotherapist might be able to help you manage your condition.

What is a headache?

Headaches can be experienced in different ways and different forms depending on the individual. It is a pain in the head or upper part of the neck. It is one of the most common pains in the body and has several causes. The pain can vary in severity and longevity.

What are the different types of headaches?

There are a number of different types of headaches, all of which have different causes and varying levels of related concern. Headache Australia list these types as:

• ‘Normal’
• Recurring which include tension-type, migraine and cluster.
• ‘Nerve’  ie produced by direct irritation or compression of the nerves supplying the head, face, or neck such as trigeminal neuralgia, glossopharyngeal neuralgia, neuralgia after shingles, atypical face pain, pain from the eye, sinusitis, head pain caused by teeth, temporomandibular joint dysfunction, and neck headache
• Muscle-contraction
• Medication-misuse
• Head injury headache
• Serious causes such as hydrocephalus, sub-arachnoid haemorrhage, meningitis, encephalitis, brain tumour, cerebral oedema, high blood pressure, stroke, temporal arteritis and benign intracranial hypertension.

How does Physiotherapy help with headaches?

Physiotherapy has proven to be an extremely effective tool to be used to treat different types of headaches. Through careful adjustments and restoration, your physiotherapist should be able to reduce the presence of nerve irritation and muscle tension. This release is able to help alleviate or reduce the root pain or cause.

If you suffer from chronic or recurrent headaches, Book Now with the Greenwood Physio team to see how we are able to help you manage your pain.