Head Pain
Migraines, Tension Headaches
Headaches and head pain are due to a variety of causes. Mainstream medicine seeks primarily to “manage” the pain with medications (Sumatriptan, Imitrex, aspirin, pain medications) and coping mechanisms. However, a more holistic, osteopathic approach involves digging deeper into the root causes of the pain. Many patients claim to have impossible-to-treat, debilitating “migraines,” but upon further evaluation, these headaches are often precipitated by a injury to the head (eg. concussion) or neck (eg. whiplash) or due to some environmental factor (mercury fillings, root canals, paint, gasoline exposure, food allergy, EBV, chronic viral illness, neurotoxins, etc) or even hormone imbalances that can be resolved. Getting a proper diagnosis of the source of the headache pain is key to discovering the most effective treatment, especially a treatment that does not require lifelong medications.
Aspen Integrative Medicine offers unique treatments for headache due to concussion such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, osteopathic manual therapy (including cranial therapy), IV therapy, intranasal insulin, and intranasal bioactive plasma (active, ozonated, live platelet rich plasma). See https://tbitherapy.com/ for more information about treatment for concussion. If you are unsure of whether you may have a concussion that’s leading to your headache pain, see https://tbitherapy.com/testing-for-tbi/ to learn about some of the diagnostic imaging and testing available for your injury.
Tension headaches are the most common headaches that affect patients and stem largely from tight muscles in the neck that create constrictions of blood flow and tension often at the base of the skull. Many mainstream orthopedic doctors, neurologists, and primary care medical practitioners prescribe pain medications (Norco, Vicodin, Percocet, Tramadol), anti inflammatory and steroid medications (Meloxicam, Medrol Dose packs, Prednisone, Advil, Motril, Naproxen), or muscle relaxers (Valium, Soma, Flexeril), even botox or steroid injections along with some physical therapy and maybe dry needling. Unfortunately, most of these medications and therapies fail to provide long-term headache or neck pain relief to the patient because they do not address the root cause of why the muscles are actually tight or in spasm. In 90 to 95% of the cases, tight muscles are the result of weakened, lax ligaments or strained tendons in the neck and upper back. If you attempt to relax the muscles (with massage, chiropractic, PT, meds, steroid or botox injections) without healing a weakened ligament or tendon, you will rarely ever get any long-term relief from neck muscle spasms or tension headache.
So why do most practitioners fail to treat ligaments and tendons of the neck and upper back?
- It is much easier to diagnose and treat a muscle spasm than it is to determine which tendons and ligaments are injured. It takes a skilled osteopathic or like-minded practitioner with the ability to manually diagnose a ligament sprain or laxity and tendon injury or strain.
- MRI or Xray reports rarely ever discuss the tendons and ligaments of the neck or back so most practitioners just assume they are not damaged. MRI reports primarily just show disc pathologies which often are not the primary cause of neck pain or muscle spasms.
- Most medical practitioners and many physical therapists don’t know how to treat ligament and tendon injuries in the neck and back.