How often do you suffer with a headache that just won’t let up? Dull or shooting, headache pain is one of the worst, most-dreaded types of pain. No doubt you’ve taken your fair share of over-the-counter painkillers in hopes of experiencing pain relief. Or, like thousands of others, perhaps you’ve taken prescription painkillers for your headaches and STILL not gotten the results you wanted. This is a beyond-frustrating predicament to be in.
Medications May Cause Headaches
Did you know that painkillers can cause headaches in some people? Kimberly Holland, writer for Healthline, says, “Frequent use of headache medication can cause medication-overuse headache (MOH). MOH is also known as rebound headache. Eventually, these people may develop chronic migraines.” While medications sometimes help with headache pain, many times they do not.
Are you frustrated because no amount of medication is stopping your headaches? Are you sick and tired of feeling helpless against headaches? Do you have hope enough to consider one more treatment aimed at pain relief? If so, here is some great news: physiotherapy may ease the pain of your headaches in a gentle, medication-free manner.
Physiotherapy Can Heal Headaches? Really?
Many people are totally unaware that physiotherapy is a viable treatment option for headache sufferers. Kanchan Masand, writer for Kelowna Capital News, tells us that “soft tissue therapy to the muscle and fascia of the cervical region aimed at releasing tight muscles and fascia followed by mobilization or manipulation of the upper segments of the neck, jaw and pelvis to correct joint abnormalities is found to be effective (in treating headaches).” Masand goes on to explain that many people who deal with headaches can be helped by postural retraining, which can be taught by a physiotherapist. He says that physiotherapists can assist patients in “(improving) shoulder girdle and thoracic posture with mobilization, manipulation and scapular exercises. The position of the pelvis also dramatically influences thoracic and cervical posture.” Improvement of posture can ease headache pain, and physiotherapists know just how to help a patient obtain better posture.
Are You a Candidate for Physiotherapy?
It’s important to understand that not everyone who has headaches will find physiotherapy to be helpful. Some headache sufferers will need to go a different route in order to experience pain relief; it all depends on what is causing a person’s headaches. Headaches caused by viral illness, such as respiratory infections and sinusitis, for example, will probably not be cured by physiotherapy. However, headaches caused by strained muscles, soft tissue tension, joint strain, ligament tension, etc., might respond excellently to physiotherapy.
The best way to determine if physiotherapy will ease your headache pain is to meet with a physiotherapist. He or she will let you know if physiotherapy will be beneficial to you.
Want to get rid of your headaches for good? Start by contacting a physiotherapist today.