Low Back Pain

Innovative treatment relief for migraines and headaches with Upper Cervical Care

Nearly everyone has had headache pain, and most of us have had it many times. In fact, headaches and migraines affect 38 million people in the United States and is a leading cause of disability. The disease can be managed, but there is no cure, and many medications used to treat migraine have disabling side effects. Patients often prefer to avoid daily medication and seek nonpharmacologic options, including complementary and integrative therapies. Although migraine is a disease with multivariate symptoms that vary by patient, over 75% of migraine patients report associated neck pain, and many note musculoskeletal complaints, such as neck stiffness, muscle tension, or problems with jaw function. Most common triggers include:

  • Genetics: When studies are done on twins, there is as much as a 51 percent likelihood that they will both develop migraines. This is more likely in those with aura than those without. 

  • Triggers: Migraines often begin with triggers. Things like food, exhaustion, and weather have been known to trigger headaches. In fact, the majority of people who have migraines report having triggers as well. The trigger can occur as many as 24 hours before the migraine hits.

  • Physiological characteristics: Psychological stress has been reported to be a trigger for migraines in as many as 80 percent of the cases. Other things associated with migraines are PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder), abuse, menstruation, oral contraceptive use, pregnancy, perimenopause, and menopause.

  • Dietary considerations: As many as 60 percent of people say they have food triggers. Some report such things as aged cheeses, red wine, chocolate, alcohol, MSG, too much or too little caffeine, and aspartame as possible triggers. However, no substantial evidence exists to prove this. 

  • Environmental features: Such things as changes in weather, barometric pressure, allergies, bright sunlight, lightning, and indoor air quality are potential triggers for some migraine sufferers.

It is most likely that migraines start with a neurovascular disorder that begins in the brain and spreads to the blood vessels. The central nervous system is definitely a contributing factor, along with brainstem malfunction. Can anything be done to alleviate migraine pain? An innovative treatment using The Blair Upper Cervical Care method focuses on treating the underlying problem that causes migraines and headaches. 

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The missing factor: The Upper Neck 

Chronic Migraine headaches are caused by many different factors. An important factor is the relationship between chronic migraine headaches and the upper neck. Specifically how the base of your skull connects to the top couple of vertebrae in the cervical spine. C1 and C2, or Atlas and Axis, as they are called, are the most freely moving vertebra in the entire spine. This gives us a great range of motion in our neck but also means that when the body has trauma, it is an area that is likely to mis-align. A misalignment at the skull base interferes with nerve pathways, blood flow, and cerebrospinal fluid flow. Compromise to any of these systems can result in the symptoms of migraine headaches. At Areté Chiropractic we are experts in evaluating the alignment of the head and neck and how that affects spinal health and body balance. If a misalignment in the C1-C2 vertebra is a contributing factor to migraine headache, then reducing or correcting that misalignment will make a significant difference in how your body functions. We can often help people's bodies function better with less symptoms, or even recover completely.

A Study Gives Hope for Migraine Relief

In 2012, the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine relayed the findings of a study that involved a woman suffering from migraines and tremors. They were observing how the Blair technique, a specific type of upper cervical adjustment given by upper cervical chiropractors, would impact her health.

The woman was 39 years old and was having a migraine as many as 2 or 3 times a week. She had a history of having migraines since she was 10 years old. Her family doctor prescribed various medications —  acetaminophen, sumatriptan, Isometheptene, dichloralphenazone, propranolol, and numerous other over-the-counter pain medications — to no avail. While they gave her some relief, it was only temporary at best. 

She agreed to give upper cervical chiropractic care a try. She received specific adjustments to her upper cervical spine, specifically the C1 (atlas) and C2 (axis) bones of the upper neck. After her very first adjustment, she noticed that her migraines and tremors were both improved! She continued seeing good results over the next four months. 

The headache disability scale was used in her evaluation. This is a scale using 1 – 100 points (52 for emotional and 48 for functional disability) to indicate how much damage the headache being endured is causing in one’s life. The higher the score, the greater the disability. These were her results before having her adjustment by the chiropractor:

  • Total: 68/100

  • Emotional: 28/52

  • Functional: 32/48

After four months of care, she was re-evaluated and these were her new scores:

  • Total: 14/100

  • Emotional: 4/52

  • Functional: 10/48

This is truly good news if you suffer from migraines!

Upper Cervical Chiropractic | Cranio Cervical Syndrome

What is Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care? 

Upper Cervical Chiropractic spinal corrections provide relief to millions of migraine sufferers by releasing pressure and stress from the spine and nervous system. Research from 2015 showed that people who received upper cervical manual adjustments reduced their drug consumption by 80%, lowered days of migraines per month by 97%, and experienced an amazing decrease in pain and functional disability associated with migraines by 100%. 

Nutrition, stress, hormones, and other lifestyle factors also play a role in the intensity and extent of migraines. The core of all of these factors connects to the role of the central nervous system. The brain and nervous system direct the control and function of the entire body. Chiropractors assess and address specific areas of function in the nervous system through appropriate care of the spine. Every Upper Cervical Chiropractic adjustment helps improve communication between the brain and the body, reducing stress from the central nervous system. 

Five lifestyle tips to address the cause of migraine headaches:

1) Chiropractic adjustments to correct spinal alignment and pressure in the upper neck

2) Remove dietary neurotoxins (artificial colors, sweeteners, and preservatives)

3) Increase water intake

4) Increase high quality sleep

5) Engage in regular body movement through exercise and increased heart rate

WHY MEDICATION IS OFTEN INEFFECTIVE FOR CHRONIC MIGRAINES

While medication may temporarily help with the symptoms of a migraine, there is no miracle pill that will stop the next migraine from occurring. Plus, many medications can produce more headaches when taken frequently and for long periods of time. The result is a cycle where one medication is taken to deal with migraine headache pain until it begins causing them and then the medication is switched, and the process starts again.

Other treatments involve dangerous Botox injections or a journal in which you record foods, activities, etc. to determine potential migraine triggers and avoid them. Are you tired of the run-around, the trial and error, and the side effects?

Portsmouth best chiropractor

UPPER CERVICAL CARE FOR MIGRAINES

Using the Blair technique, we locate and correct very specific misalignments of the upper neck. Such misalignments can result in reduced blood and cerebrospinal fluid flow to the brain. They can also affect communication in the body by placing pressure on the brainstem, as well as creating muscle tension and joint dysfunction. Once these issues are relieved through an adjustment, healing can begin.

So, if you or someone you know suffers from migraines, Upper Cervical Chiropractic care may be a very helpful tool to regain quality of life and function. Call our office today to find out more or to schedule an Initial Consultation today. 

603-380-9184






Vertigo, TMJ, and neck pain helped with Upper Cervical Care

Jeremy came in 6 months ago with severe bouts of vertigo. He had a concussion during a hockey game 3 years prior and had been struggling with vertigo for the last two years. The symptoms had progressed to the point where he wouldn’t be able to get off the floor or leave the house for days because he was too dizzy and nausea and couldn’t trust his balance. Jeremy experienced constant whooshing in his ears with temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain and dysfunction (TMD). He also had neck and low back pain and stiffness.

Jeremy has been under upper cervical chiropractic care now for six months. He has not had any bouts of vertigo since starting care and his neck pain, jaw pain, whooshing in his ears and his low back pain are all much improved. Jeremy is back outdoors hiking and doing the things he loves again!

Low Back Pain and Headaches Improved with Upper Cervical Care

We all know that pain and fear of injury can stop us from doing the things in life that we really want to do and make us feel...well...just not like ourselves. Ryan came to us experiencing low back pain, which was keeping him from exercising. Ryan was becoming frustrated because when he would exercise, his low back would flair up. He was also getting headaches two to three times a week and neck pain. Ryan’s upper cervical spine was corrected and immediately he felt the pressure off his low back. He has now had four upper cervical corrections and his low back pain, neck pain and headaches are all dramatically improved just by getting his head on straight! Is your head on straight?

Whiplash Relief with Upper Cervical Care

Craig was in a bad head-on motor vehicle accident about five years ago, which had suffered from bad whiplash.  When he first came in about eight months ago, he felt unstable in his spine, he had left arm pain, numbness and tingling, as well as low back and neck pain.  Also after the accident, he found that he couldn't work out with being in pain or injuring himself. After the first four weeks of corrections, Craig was reporting dramatic improvements and was able to get back in the gym. Now he has been holding his alignment for about six months - meaning he hasn’t needed to be adjusted! He has his confidence back and is feeling strong!

Is your Back Pain shrinking your Brain?

Chronic Back Pain is Associated with Decreased Prefrontal and Thalamic Grey Matter Density

Apkarian V.A., et al.  Journal of Neuroscience, Nov 2004, 24(46):10410-10415

This research was out of Northwestern University in Chicago Illinois in 2004.  It was the first study to correlate chronic back pain (CBP) with decreased grey matter in the brain.  As we work with patients every day, people who have chronic unremitting back pain for 1 year or more have an accelerated neurodegenerative process underway in their brain.  If we are able to help them we are playing an active role in slowing that process!

The researchers studied 26 people with chronic back pain (unrelenting pain localized around lumbosacral area for greater than 1 year) and 26 control patients.  They performed 2 different types of analysis for estimating global grey matter in the brain and adjusted statistics for age, gender, and type of pain (musculoskeletal and neurogenic/radicular). 

Clinical Pearls:

Normal whole brain grey matter atrophy is 0.5% per year.

Atrophy caused by CBP was measured at 5-11% per year, the equivalent of 10-20 years of aging.

The reduction in grey matter was localized to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and the thalamus.  The DLPFC is responsible for inhibition of the orbitofrontal activity of the brain.  The orbitofrontal area is responsible for perception of pain.  The researchers then extrapolated that with loss of inhibition of the orbitofrontal areas of the brain, chronic pain suffers perceive increased pain.

Patients with neuropathic pain showed a greater loss of cortical grey matter.