Is your tension headache stressing you out?
If you’re living in the same world as everybody else, the brutal truth is that stress (hopefully to a manageable degree) will pop into your life from time to time. While a certain amount of stress is unavoidable (and although it may seem counterintuitive, healthy), the headaches that can accompany it can be treated.
In this blog we talk you through three of the best natural remedies for those infuriating headaches.
Stretching
Bear with us here, we promise we’ve not gone mad. Although people are often willing to accept that back ache can originate in the feet, or that problems with the ands can be tracked back to the shoulder, there’s often a quiet reluctance to consider that the cause of a pain in the head can be tracked to a different part of the anatomy.
The truth is, many headaches are rotted in a problem that starts with the posture and muscles in the neck and shoulder area. All to often, those with a headache are quick to reach for the over the counter cure instead of trying something as simple and immediate as stretching.
If your head is giving you grief, try sitting completely upright with a beauty contestant’s posture. Holding this pose, pull your chin as far back as you can, almost as if you were trying to get your chin to where your spine currently is. Make sure the rest of your body is kept stationary and do you do not tilt your head up or down whilst performing the stretch. Hold the pose for a couple of seconds before returning to normal.
About 6-8 reps should help you to alleviate any tension that could be contributing to your headache.
Hot and cold treatments
Depending on the cause of your pain, hot or cold treatments might have you nodding your head to your favourite tune in no time.
Take a heat pack and apply it to the base of the neck if you feel a headache coming on. Applying head will help the muscles in the area to relax, whilst also promoting blood flow to the affected area.
Alternatively, the use of ice or a cool pack can help to reduce any inflammation you may have at the base of the neck. Inflammation can lead to radiated pain up to and through the head, and increased tension through the shoulders.
Massage
Although a little more difficult to do yourself (and almost guaranteed to generate concerned/bemused looks if you do attempt self-treatment), massage is perhaps the greatest tool in the fight against tension headaches. The most common areas which yield success are again the base of the neck (if you hadn’t guessed already, this is a pretty important area when it comes to all things cranial) and the area surrounding the eyebrows.
If you’re experiencing frequent and prolonged tension headaches, a myotherapist may be able to quickly and effectively treat your symptoms using one, or a combination, of the above. You may book for a consultation to our professional myotherapy expert by calling us on 03 9078 9953.
