How A Chiropractor Can Help Your Tension Headaches

If you struggle with frequent tension headaches, you should consider seeing a chiropractor. Tension headaches have many causes, but one of them is a misalignment of the vertebrae in your spine that sometimes results from poor posture. If you slump over a computer at work all day, you could be at higher risk of tension headaches. Here's how a chiropractor might be able to help.

What Causes Tension Headaches

Tension headaches can be caused by stress and anxiety if you hold tension in the muscles of your back and neck. They can also be caused solely by physical tension due to poor posture. Poor posture stresses the muscles in your neck when you're sitting at a desk. Eventually, it can cause your muscles to develop tension knots, and it could even pull your vertebrae slightly out of alignment. When that happens, the vertebrae pinch against nerves when you move your head and neck. The end result is a chronic tension headache that constantly comes and goes or never really goes away at all.

How Chiropractic Adjustments Help Headaches

When your chiropractor gives you a spinal adjustment, he or she pushes firmly on your spine to realign the vertebrae. This could bring instant relief of a headache, but it usually takes multiple treatments to get rid of your headaches for good. In addition to taking the chiropractic treatments, you should also work on improving your posture so you don't pull your spine back out of alignment. As you take the series of treatments and practice good posture at work, you should notice your headaches become less frequent and eventually fade away.

Why Massage Therapy Helps, Too

In addition to the spinal adjustments, your chiropractor may give you a trigger point massage. This massage technique focuses on the sore spots in your muscles where they are knotted together. The massage breaks up sore knots and the tension is released as well. With less tension in your muscles, there is less risk of spinal misalignment and less referred pain from the trigger points.

Keep in mind, there are several types of headaches and they are caused by different things. Chiropractic treatment might not be suitable for every headache, but your chiropractor will assess your symptoms and medical history before work begins to determine if your headaches can be helped by spinal adjustments and massage treatments. If so, you may finally get relief from the annoying pain that plagues you at work and can sometimes be so bad it makes you feel nauseated and weak. Contact a company like Stroud Chiropractic Clinic to learn more.