It’s hard to believe, but 75% of Australians wrestle with headaches each year. This isn’t just a dry statistic on a page; it echoes the real aches and disruptions many people deal with daily. These headaches can throw a spanner in the works – be it work, hobbies, or even simple joys of life.
Our dedicated osteopaths at Healing Hands Osteopathy frequently engage with patients suffering from these painful conditions. Let’s delve deeper into the most prevalent types of headaches and their unique presentations.
Unravelling the Headache Mystery
Headaches aren’t just random pains that pop up; they have root causes to them. It might be that desk job nudging you into a slouch, daily stresses knotting up your muscles, or even the buzzing lights overhead.
This is why diving deep into these causative factors is essential to understanding how to relieve your headaches, either by yourself or by utilising neck pain treatment in Croydon.
Tension Headache
- Location: Forehead, temple, and/or the back of the head, impacting both sides.
- Cause: Excess tension in the muscles surrounding the jaw, and both the front and rear of the neck, often arising from injury or sustained muscle overuse due to stress and anxiety.
- Symptoms: A mild to moderate dull pain that can linger for a day or stretch for several weeks.
- Prevalence: These affect nearly 30% of people annually.
Cervicogenic Headache
- Location: Predominantly felt on one side, originating from the base of the skull, spreading to the temple and encircling the eye.
- Cause: Restricted movement of the vertebrae in the upper neck, often due to whiplash, tensed upper neck muscles, or arthritis.
- Symptoms: A moderate to severe ache, spanning from an hour to several weeks.
- Prevalence: Nearly 5% of individuals encounter this headache type each year.
Migraine
- Location: Typically envelopes one side of the head.
- Associated Symptoms: Visual anomalies, nausea, vomiting, and an aversion to light.
- Cause: Factors such as stress, hormonal shifts, disrupted sleep patterns, specific foods or drinks, and disruptions in nerve signals and blood vessels play a role.
- Symptoms: A moderate to severe throbbing or pulsating pain, persisting anywhere from 4 to 72 hours. For those experiencing migraines, maintaining a headache diary can be beneficial in pinpointing everyday triggers.
- Prevalence: Migraines affect 20% of the populace, with women comprising a significant 70%.
The Real Impact of Frequent Headaches
Beyond the obvious discomfort, headaches can throw a wrench into our daily plans. They can slow us down at work or even make us miss out on personal activities. Continual pain can sometimes dampen our spirits, straining our relationships with those we cherish most. What’s more, it’s easy to fall into the trap of relying on over-the-counter painkillers for quick relief without addressing what’s causing the headaches in the first place.
Osteopathy: A Holistic Solution to Headaches
Osteopathy offers a hands-on approach to healthcare, emphasising the interrelationship between the body’s structure and function. When it comes to headaches, osteopaths don’t just focus on alleviating the pain but seek to understand its root cause.
Through personalised osteopathic treatment, osteopaths work to balance the body’s muscles, joints, and nerves, ensuring optimal circulation and nerve function. This holistic approach not only provides relief from headaches but can also prevent their recurrence, offering patients a pathway to a pain-free lifestyle.
How Can Our Osteopaths Help?
If you’ve been searching for an ‘osteopath near me’ to help relieve you of your headaches and potential neck pains in Croydon, you’ve found the right place.
At Healing Hands Osteopathy, our osteopaths undertake a comprehensive case history analysis, coupled with a detailed physical assessment, to determine the precise nature and root of your headache. This paves the way for a personalised, hands-on remedy tailored to your unique symptom presentation.
Moreover, we also devise an intuitive, customised management blueprint to expedite your healing journey, fortify preventive measures, and ensure you swiftly resume your beloved activities.
Don’t let headaches hinder your daily life. Contact us today at 9723 2233 or visit www.healinghandsosteopathy.com and embark on your journey towards holistic well-being.