 A high proportion of headaches are caused by something that you can easily address, such as postural problems, neck dysfunction, dehydration, poor diet etc. However, in small number of cases, headaches may be a warning sign of a more serious problem. In this post I wanted to mention a few of these 'warning signs' or 'red flags' as we often call them. Continue reading to see what these may be.
 The next headache we will look at is the Migraine headache. The classic migraine presentation is an intense throbbing or pulsating pain on one side of the head and is often accompanied by sensitivity to light and sound. Migraines can also be accompanied by an "aura". This is a visual pattern of flashing lights, lines or blind-spots running across your visual field. Want to know more? Continue reading to find out.
 The second common type of headache we are going to look at is the classic tension-type headache.
Tension headaches are commonly referred to as stress headaches. They can be periodic or can be more constant in nature. People often describe them as a mild to moderate, constant band-like tightness, or pressure around the forehead or back of the head and neck. They can last a few minutes or can last days. People don't often get the visual changes that other headache types can create. How do you stop them?  In the next few blog posts I will look at some of the more common types of headaches that I see in practice. The first being the cervicogenic headache. Basically, these are headaches that originate in the neck and there is referred pain into the head. They call this a secondary headache as it arises secondary to another problem. How can a problem in the neck cause a headache you may ask? continue reading to find out.
The static back position, also referred to as the 90/90 position is something that I show almost everyone that comes into see me in practice. It is a great postural reset and works for all areas of the back. In this post I will show you how to do it with a few progressions and regressions. Continue reading to see how to do it.
In recent times, concussion has become a major talking point. More and more well-known players in many sports have been suffering from the effects of concussion. In this post I wanted to discuss a media release from the New Zealand Chiropractors Association (NZCA) which looked at how concussion injuries not only affect the brain but also the neck upon which the head moves during impact. Continue reading to see the link between concussion injuries and the neck and how you may be able to help.
A brain freeze or ice-cream headache is a fairly common thing that most people get at some point when eating ice cream or drinking an ice-cold drink. Have you ever wondered what causes them? And did you know that migraine sufferers are more likely to experience them than people who don’t get migraines? Brain freeze headaches may also share a common mechanism with other types of headaches as well. Continue reading to find out what causes them.
Help ease your upper back pain and improve your posture with the Bruggers Relief Position23/5/2016 It is common knowledge that we all tend to sit for too long and that too much sitting is bad for us. You may have also heard the latest slogan that “Sitting is the new smoking”. One of the problems with sitting for too long is that it can lead to postural deviations and dysfunction. This, of course, leads to aches and pains, headaches etc. The Bruggers Relief Position was developed by Alois Brugger, a Swiss neurologist. It is a very simple exercise that is best done as a micro break and can help improve your posture or at least minimize the damage from sitting in front of the computer all day. It is well worth trying. Continue reading to see how it is done.
Recently I did a 2 part blog series on Upper Cross Syndrome. In this series I showed how our poor posture often leads to this head forward, rounded shoulder syndrome which can cause, upper back and neck pain, shoulder injuries, headaches etc. Most people I see in practice have this syndrome to some degree. It is the slouching that we do that causes our shoulders to roll forward leading to forward head carriage and then the symptoms of Upper Cross Syndrome. The second part of the series discussed several ways to help this syndrome. If you want to read the original posts, and try the simple test to see if you have it, you can read them here and here. In this post I wanted to show you a very simple standing or sitting position that can dramatically improve your posture and take the strain off of your upper back and shoulders. Continue reading to find out how to do it.
If you follow my blog posts you will remember a series on headaches that I did recently. These included posts on several different types of headaches, tips for helping yourself at home, chiropractic care and headaches and then headache warning signs. I came across an article that was published in The Lancet in July 2014 that caught my attention. The paper was titled “Chronic subdural haematoma secondary to headbanging”. I will explain what the title means soon, but this paper is a great case study of what can happen with headaches and why you need to be aware of certain headache types and when you need to seek help. Continue reading to find out what happened.
As you have learnt from my previous 4 posts on headaches, a lot of headaches are often caused by something simple like postural problems, neck dysfunction, lack of sleep, poor diet etc. However, in a small number of cases, some headaches can be a warning sign for a potentially more serious issue. In this post I wanted to discuss some headaches that are more of a medical emergency and need to be looked at quickly. These headaches are important to know and be aware of so if you, or someone you know gets one, you can act quickly. These are often referred to as “Red Flags”. Continue reading to find out what they are.
In this 4th blog post in my headache series, I will be discussing migraines. If you have read the previous posts you will see that there are similarities between the cause and possible treatments of the headaches. Migraines have some similarities but they do have a few differences, especially in the presentation of the migraine. A migraine is usually described as an intense throbbing or pulsating pain on one side of the head. It is often accompanied by sensitivity to light and sound and can cause nausea and vomiting. Migraines are more common in women and some people can predict the onset of a migraine by an “aura”. This aura is a visual pattern of flashing lights, lines or blind-spots running across your visual field or even pins and needles in an arm or leg or unpleasant smells. Continue reading to find out possible causes and some treatment options for them.
So far in my headache blog series, I have discussed how chiropractic care can help people that suffer from headaches. I have given 7 useful tips for helping ease the pain of headaches at home and finally described what a cervicogenic headache is and how to help stop it. In this 3rd post I will discuss one of most common types of headaches – Tension Headaches.
Tension headaches are commonly referred to as stress headaches. They can be periodic or can be more constant in nature. People often describe them as a mild to moderate, constant band-like tightness, or pressure around the forehead or back of the head and neck. They can last a few minutes or can last days. People don't often get the visual changes that other headache types can create. How do you stop them? Continue reading to find out. In my previous post, I talked about how chiropractic care is an effective way to help ease headaches. I also gave 7 ways to help ease headaches yourself at home (you can read it here). Hopefully you have tried some of these tips and found them useful. In the second part of the headache series, I wanted to talk about a specific type of headache called a cervicogenic headache. These are one of the more common types of headaches. It is a headache that originates from the neck. They call this a secondary headache as the headache arises secondary to another problem. In this case, the problem is in the neck but there is referred pain into the head. This is an important point to understand as simply taking something to ease the headache pain will help it feel better, but it won’t fix the cause of the problem. How does a neck problem cause a headache you may ask? Continue reading to find out.
Headaches are an extremely common occurrence in many people. The severity ranges from an annoyance to debilitating pain. They can also be short lived or last hours to days. People often think of headaches as a ‘normal’ thing. When inquiring about headaches during our initial assessments I often get the response of “I get the odd normal headache” or “I get the usual headaches”. This is an interesting response to me because headaches are not normal, you do not have to put up with headaches. In a lot of cases, they can be dealt with reasonably easily. Chiropractic care is an effective approach to helping headaches and there are several things you can do at home to help. My aim is to write a blog series on headaches and focus on several of the key types that I come across regularly in practice. For this first post I will show that chiropractic care is an effective treatment option for headaches and then I will discuss several things you can do at home to help ease the discomfort if you are unfortunate enough to be suffering from headaches. Keep reading to find out.
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Dr Craig BuscombBringing you news, research and advice on health, wellness, exercise and chiropractic care to help take your health to the next level 
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