Headaches are not normal.

Too many people live with headaches and accept them as normal. Studies show that approximately 95% of all headaches originate in the cervical spine (neck). Tension headaches, migraines, stress headaches, and cluster headaches — these headaches are primarily caused by pressure on the nerves in the neck.

The cervical spine (neck) contains 7 vertebrae labeled C1 to C7. Nerves exiting the cervical spine supply the head, neck, and shoulder areas. When the vertebrae in the neck are misaligned (a subluxation), or if the bones in the neck are not moving properly, it causes interference in the nervous system that can cause pain and headaches. If this is not corrected, your headaches can continue and other problems may develop.

Causes of Headaches

The #1 cause of headaches is subluxations (misalignments) in the cervical spine that put pressure on the nerves. The main causes of subluxations in the neck can be divided into 3 types of stresses; physical, emotional, and/or chemical stresses.

Physical Stresses including but not limited to:

  • Poor posture while sitting, standing, and sleeping.
  • Physical trauma such as muscle strains/sprains or injuries from slips and falls, accidents, or sports.
  • Spending a lot of time looking down at your phone to text, play games, or use social media.

Emotional and Mental Stress

  • Work-related stress
  • Financial stress
  • Stress in relationships
  • Health stress
  • Poor self-esteem
  • Lack of sleep and rest

Chemical Stresses: What we put into our bodies

  • Not getting adequate amounts of water
  • Poor water quality
  • Poor nutrition — too much processed or fried and fatty foods, sodas, white flour and sugar
  • Medications and drugs
  • Poor air quality

Abnormal Curvatures and Degenerative Changes in the Cervical Spine can Cause Headaches

Headaches can also be caused when your cervical spine has degenerative changes (like osteoarthritis), herniated discs, or even an abnormal curve (which may have been caused by an accident or injury). These problems can interfere with the function of your nervous system leading to headaches and other problems. You may not even be aware that you have these problems. Some of these problems may be from old injuries.

Often when people have reversed cervical or neck curves, they can also experience:

  • High blood pressure
  • Anxiety and/or Depression
  • Numbness and tingling into the arms and hands
  • Problems sleeping, insomnia
  • Allergies
  • Feeling fatigued a lot
  • Weakened immune system
  • Neck pain/stiff or achy neck
  • Ear infections
  • Sinus congestion, runny nose

A proper chiropractic exam can help identify if your headaches and other health problems are caused by abnormal curvature or other degenerative issues in the cervical spine.

Chiropractic care is a safe treatment for headaches and has no negative side effects.

Headaches are a common problem for which people seek chiropractic treatment. Harvard Medical School says that 75% of the population has tension/stress headaches, which they rank as the most common type of headache.

Dr. Mike Berardis successfully treats patients for headaches without the use of drugs or surgery. The goal of chiropractic care is to identify and correct the underlying cause of your headaches so you don’t continue to suffer needlessly. Chiropractic care corrects the subluxations, relieves pressure on the nerves, and allows the headaches to subside.

Some people believe headaches are a normal part of their life, but they are not! There is no need to suffer unnecessarily from headaches. Due to chiropractic care, many of our patients can stop taking prescriptions and over-the-counter medications for headaches, saving their stomach and liver from side-effects due to medications.

Call Dr. Berardis at 914-962-1234 to set an appointment or use our convenient appointment form. If you find this article helpful, please recommend it to your friends and family.