Headaches can be painful and disrupt many parts of your life. You may find that you’re struggling to complete daily tasks or be involved in special moments.

Some causes of injuries could be easily explained if you’ve been in an instance such as a car accident. However, there could be underlying causes that result in uncomfortable headaches. But regardless of the reason, you should seek help if you’re experiencing chronic headaches.

You may be wondering whom you should see to solve the problem. This guide will explain if a chiropractor can help with cervicogenic headaches and what treatments might look like.

Are you interested in a chiropractor? Contact CINIC NAME* to schedule an appointment!

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What Is a Cervicogenic Headache?

A cervicogenic headache is a pain perceived in the head from a source in the neck. This type of headache is a secondary headache because the cause of it is something else, such as an illness or physical issue.

In the case of cervicogenic headaches, the reason is a disorder of the cervical spine and its component bone, disc, or soft tissue elements. You have many pain-sensitive structures in your cervical (upper neck) and occipital (back of the head) regions, making these headaches extremely uncomfortable. The skull and cervical vertebrae junction have pain-generating regions, such as the cervical spine, joints, ligaments, cervical nerve roots, and vertebral arteries.

The term cervicogenic headache can sometimes be misused. Not all headaches associated with neck pain are a cervicogenic headache, although many headache disorders include neck tension. A cervicogenic headache must include evidence of a disorder or lesion within the neck's cervical spine or soft tissues. Some disorders can include tumors, fractures, infections, and rheumatoid arthritis of the upper cervical spine.

People with these types of headaches often have a reduced range of motion in their neck and may worsen with certain neck movements or applied pressure. The headaches are often side-locked, so you may only feel them on one side. The pain may radiate from the neck or back of the head up to the front of your head or behind your eye.

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What Can Cause Cervicogenic Headaches?

Many things can cause a cervicogenic headache, and sometimes you may not find out exactly what it is. Since this type of headache is associated with the vertebrae, joints, or neck muscles, problems of cervicogenic headaches can be caused over time. Certain jobs may be more likely to result in this injury. Due to how they hold their heads at work, hairstylists, carpenters, and truck drivers are more likely to develop cervicogenic headaches.

Sometimes the headaches are caused by holding your head in a forward motion, which puts excess weight on your neck and upper back. Even nerves that are being compressed can be a cause of this headache. However, the most common reasons are due to other severe scenarios, such as a fall, sports injury, whiplash, arthritis, or car accident.

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What Are the Symptoms of Cervicogenic Headaches?

Many people know the achy feeling that you can get from headaches. They’re uncomfortable, and sometimes you have to step away so you can relieve some of the tension. You may only feel the pain with specific movements of your neck or if your neck remains in the same position.

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Some symptoms that you may experience may include:

• Feeling pain on one side of your head or face
• Having steady pain that doesn’t throb
• Experiencing head pain when you cough, sneeze, or take a deep breath
• Attacking pain that lasts for long periods
• Stiffening neck so you can’t move normally
• Experiencing pains in one spot such as the back, front, or side of your head or eye

Although cervicogenic headaches are unique to themselves, they can share similar symptoms to migraines. It’s also possible to have a cervicogenic headache and a migraine simultaneously. You may experience other symptoms such as:

• Feeling sick to your stomach
• Throwing up
• Having pain in your arm or shoulder
• Feeling sick or uncomfortable in bright light
• Feeling sick or uncomfortable with loud noise
• Having blurry vision

A telltale sign that you’re experiencing a cervicogenic headache is that you’ll only feel pain on one side of your head. They’ll start from the base of your skull and radiate to one side. They’ll also limit the mobility of your head which may worsen your headache when you move. Since this is a unique trait to cervicogenic headaches, you may use that as a sign and then seek help.

Are you looking for a chiropractor that could help you? Schedule an appointment with Excellence In Health today!

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Severe Symptoms of Cervicogenic Headaches

Some people may seek treatment at the first sign of chronic headaches. However, there are still many people who try to put off seeking help. By not getting help, your chances of worsened symptoms become higher.
Although rare, it can be a sign of a tear in one of the neck arteries, the common cause of stroke for people under the age of 45. If you experience any of the following, you must seek emergency care right away:

• Sudden, severe neck pain
• Double vision or droopy eyelid
• Dizziness or vertigo
• Slurred speech
• Numbness or weakness on one side of your body

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How Can a Chiropractor Help Treat Cervicogenic Headaches?

Since there are many kinds of headaches, you should seek appropriate help to treat the problem. Seeing a chiropractor is one of the best ways to treat a cervicogenic headache.

To properly diagnose the headache, they’ll have to do an exam that might include the following:

• X-ray
• Computerized tomography (CT) scan
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan

If you seek help from a physician, they may suggest a “nerve block.” This is a shot done by a specialist that puts numbing medicine into certain nerves in the back of your head. This will help take the pain away if your headaches are caused by nerves in your neck.

However, since cervicogenic headaches are unique and may be caused by many other issues, seeking help from a chiropractor can help fully treat the problem. Chiropractic treatments include spinal manipulation, neck flexing exercises, trigger point therapy, and joint mobilization. This combination can be a successful management technique for treating cervicogenic headaches.
Seeking help from a professional chiropractor can help you avoid needing headache or pain-relieving medication. Cervicogenic headaches are specific and need proper treatment, so the symptoms don’t persist or worsen.

When you get help, it can help you return to your everyday life. It’s common for chronic headaches to become a reason why someone may not be able to complete tasks or miss out on life events. You should consider seeking help before it starts affecting your life and the symptoms worsen.

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Why Should You Choose Excellence In Health for Your Care?

Excellence In Health is the best place to seek chiropractic care. Our friendly, experienced chiropractors are dedicated to helping you recover and feel the best version of yourself.

If you’re suffering from headaches, you can get full treatment care from chiropractic sessions to chiropractic massages. We can help you get care for your concussions, spine-related injuries, or car accident injuries.

At Excellence In Health, we will take care of you so you can get back to your life. If you’re concerned about the implications that a cervicogenic headache has on your life, seek help from us so we can get through it together.

Are you suffering from headaches? Schedule an appointment with Excellence In Health today to get treatment!