Are You Living Life Around Stress-Related Headaches? We Can Help
Stop Letting Your Headaches Control Your Life! Find Relief with Physiotherapy
Are you planning your daily life around persistent tension or stress headaches? If so, you don’t have to live that way any longer.
Tension headaches involve the sensation of a “band of pressure” around your head, as well as tenderness and achy feelings. Stress headaches come from muscle tension and emotional stress.
Stress headaches are no joke, and sometimes, a pill just doesn’t cut it when it comes to getting rid of one. The reasoning behind headaches have left many medical professionals baffled as well, however, according to Physiopedia, “researchers think that tension-type headaches occur due to an interaction of different factors that involve pain sensitivity and perception.”
Luckily, physiotherapy in For Health’s Sake in Leslieville and in Downtown Toronto can provide relaxation and posture correction to alleviate symptoms associated with these kinds of headaches. Receiving therapy will not only give you relief from your current pain, but also decrease the number of stress headaches you may experience in the future.
Headaches and posture
Did you know that the ways we stand and sit can influence how much pressure we’re putting on our muscles? It’s true.
Poor posture can compress muscles and nerves in the shoulder, chest and neck area. These are the areas that trigger painful tension headaches, so it’s important to make sure you’re checking your posture often and sitting up straight if you’re at a desk!
Your physiotherapist will demonstrate to you the proper ways to move, stand, and sit. They will also be able to evaluate your posture and show you how you can improve it to place less stress on your overworked muscles.
There are many modifications a physiotherapist might suggest for you to carry out at home or in your work station.
Raising your computer monitor, getting a special computer chair with lumbar support, or even purchasing a rubber mat to stand on while doing dishes in your kitchen are all simple suggestions a physiotherapist could make. All of these changes can have a positive effect on your posture.
Headaches and flexibility
The less pressure you put on the major muscle groups in your neck and shoulders during the day, the more you’ll be able to move those areas.
This can also alleviate some of your stress headaches and make them easier to deal with. Your physiotherapist can show you moves that will stretch your neck as well as loosen up your chest and shoulder muscle groups.
Doing these stretches regularly helps limber you up overall and keeps your muscles from getting too tight.
Pain relief through manual therapy
Not all prevention techniques have to be done in your physiotherapist’s office, but your physiotherapist will know how to give a more targeted approach to your stress related headache pain.
Switching between hot and cold compresses is a very simple but effective strategy. These kinds of compresses can be used along with gentle electronic pulse wands to soothe muscles and ease strain.
Manual therapy can also include targeted massage to treat your headaches. Soft tissue mobilization helps to relax tense muscles, and massage can provide immediate relief.
Relaxing the muscles in and around the head can prevent the chain of events that result in painful contractions. Patients with chronic tension headaches report a dramatic decrease in overall pain after receiving manual therapy. They also experience headaches less frequently.
As an added bonus, people who get regular therapeutic massages report getting a better night’s sleep, which leads to less stress during the day.
Physiotherapy massage also helps ease the emotional stress that causes you to tense those muscles. Who doesn’t like getting a massage?
Strength training for the upper body
When it comes to keeping you supported throughout the day, your back, neck, and shoulders do a lot of the “heavy lifting.”
These muscles will get overworked if they’re not strong enough. Physiotherapy treatment for the neck and upper back muscles involves resistance training to build up the muscles.
For many patients, having strong upper body muscles means fewer (and less intense) stress headaches. Exercises to prevent these headaches might start with chin-to-chest nods to build up strength in your neck.
Resistance bands and free weights may also be involved to build up your shoulder and back muscles. Your physiotherapist will be able to do a full assessment of your abilities to find out which method works for you.
Discover effective pain relief for stress-related headaches
Ready to make your chronic headache days a thing of the past? We’ve got you covered.
We all think we know exactly how to relax…until it comes to our health depending on it. Then we might need some help!
So if you’re suffering from constant stress related headaches and want to learn more about relieving the frequency and severity of your own, contact For Health’s Sake in Leslieville or Downtown Toronto to learn more.
We can set up an evaluation for you to see one of our licensed physiotherapists, and figure out a course of treatment to help you relax your muscles, sleep better, and get back to enjoying life without pain.