Headaches have a bad habit of making their appearance at the most inconvenient times. The middle of the workday, early in the evening when you have hours of responsibilities ahead of you, or even first thing in the morning when you are trying to pay attention to your morning meeting — headaches don’t care how important the work ahead of you is. When they start, they are hard to stop.
HEALTH &WELLNESS The Newsletter About Your Health And Caring For Your Body
INSIDE The Problem With Posture • Free 15 Minute Consultation Exercise Essentials • Staff Spotlight • Patient Success THE CONNECTION BETWEEN NECK PAIN & HEADACHES
HEALTH &WELLNESS The Newsletter About Your Health And Caring For Your Body
THE CONNECTION BETWEEN NECK PAIN & HEADACHES
Headacheshaveabadhabitofmakingtheirappearanceatthemost inconvenient times. The middle of the workday, early in the evening when you have hours of responsibilitiesaheadofyou,orevenfirstthing inthemorningwhenyouaretrying topayattention toyourmorningmeeting—headachesdon’tcarehow important the work ahead of you is. When they start, they are hard to stop. Thereareallsortsof reasonswhyheadachesmaydevelop.Fromenvironmental factors like weather changes and exposure to certain perfumes or other scents, to stress and allergies, headaches happen to the best of us. However, there are someheadachesthatmaybeabitmorepredictablethanothers.Factors likeyour posture, the type of mattress you sleep on, the pillow you use, or even the desk chairyousit inatworkcanall impactyourriskforexperiencingregularheadaches because of the intricate network of nerves and muscles in your neck. HOW TO DEAL WITH ACHES AND PAINS The majority of the time, neck pain starts out as a seemingly small concern. A crick in your neck here or there may start to develop more frequently, and before you know it, your experience of neck pain is something you are dealing with
daily. It isn’t always the result of something large. While being in a car accident orexperiencinganothersortof injurycandefinitely lead tochronicneckpain, the cause of the issue isn’t always as simple to identify. Sometimes it is a bad habit that you don’t really think twice about, like your habit of watching TV as you fall asleep, keeping your neck at an odd angle as you rest for the evening, or maybe as a result of your posture as you type at your desk every day, hunched over at the shoulders with your neck catching the brunt of your slouch. These poor habits are common, and most of us consider them to be harmless. Sure, you know it isn’t great for you, but what is actually going to happen? It’s a lot easier to slouch as you type, and who doesn’t want to catch a few late-night laughsas they fallasleep?But the reality is that theseseemingly irrelevanthabits could be putting undue stress on your neck, and if you aren’t careful, this could translate to regular and uncomfortable headaches that are difficult to get rid of.
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T H E P R O B L EM W I T H P O S T UR E
Working with a physical therapist can help you to identify whether or not your headachesmaybetheresultofneckpainorstrain.Oneofthemostcommoncauses of headaches due to neck pain is forward head position. Forward head position means that when you are resting your head, you are continuing to hold your head slightly forward, which is a type of slouching position. Youcan identifywhetherornotyouhaveaforwardheadpositionbystandingstraight against the wall and determining whether or not your head rests against the wall as your back does. If your head does not touch the wall when you are standing straight, thenyouaren’t fullystandingupstraight!Asyearsgobyanddayafterday youcontinue toholdyourhead in this forwardposition,youcanstart toexperience pain as a result of strain in the muscles of the neck. Whenthis isan issue,workingwithaphysicaltherapistmaybeabletohelp.Stretching themuscles inyournecktoalleviateneckstraincanreducetheseverityandregularity of your headaches. Stretching the muscles that have grown tight along the back of your neck as well as those along the shoulders can help you find relief from the tension that is causing your pain. When dealing with neck pain, it is important to remember that safety has to come first.While therearemanysimpleactivitiesyoucan tryathome tobeginstretching yourneckmuscles,workingwithaphysical therapist is theonlyway toensure that you are stretching in a way that won’t potentially lead to greater injury. For more information, contact us.
E XERC I SE E S SENT I AL S
H E A LT HY R E C I P E GREEK TURKE Y BURGERS
If you suffer from headaches, try these recommended exercises. For the first three days, perform Exercise 1 ( Head retraction in sitting ) 6-8 times a day, 10 repetitions each time and whenever you feel a headache developing. If this reduces your headaches but does not abolish them completely, you should add Exercise 2 ( Neck flexion in sitting ). In particular, headaches that spread over the top of your head to above or behind the eyes are often relieved with this exercise. In case your headaches are not relieved by these two exercises, try sustaining the end range position for 1-2 minutes.
INGREDIENTS
• 1 cup chopped spinach • 1 lb 93% lean ground turkey • ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• ½ tsp garlic powder • ½ tsp dried oregano • ¼ tsp salt • ¼ tsp ground pepper • 4 small hamburger buns, preferably whole-wheat • 4 tbsp tzatziki • 12 slices cucumber • 8 thick rings red onion (about ¼-inch)
Exercise 1
Sit in a chair with good posture.Tuck your chin as if you are nodding yes. Hold for 2 seconds then return to the starting position. Repeat as specified above.
DIRECTIONS Preheat grill to medium-high. Squeeze excess moisture from spinach. Combine thespinachwith turkey, feta,garlicpowder,oregano,saltandpepper inamedium bowl; mix well. Form into four 4-inch patties. Oil the grill rack. Grill the patties until cooked through and no longer pink in the center, 4 to 6 minutes per side. (An instant-read thermometer inserted in the center should register 165°F.) Assemble the burgers on the buns, topping each with 1 tablespoon tzatziki, 3 cucumber slices and 2 onion rings.
Exercise 2
Sit in a chair with good posture. Lower your chin as if you are nodding yes, using your arm to assist until you feel a slight stretch in thebackofyourneck.Hold theposition, then return to thestartingposition.Repeatasspecifiedabove.
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“On my first visit with Dallen and Rachael in mid-February 2019, I had severe pain in my right arm. Rachael was an intern at that time. She performed several diagnostic motion procedures to determine the source of my pain. Both Dallen and Rachael believed my diagnosis was tough to figure out, but after performing significant diagnosis procedures, they found that my upper neck area had a pinched nerve. This diagnosis was perfect! As a result, my treatments of 2-3 times per week have been outstanding. Today, I have no pain. I have my life back! Thanks so much to the team at Balanced Body Physical Therapy & Sports Medicine.” - Garth D.
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