Headaches: Which Kind Is It and Where to Find Help

Headaches happen so often that almost everyone has experienced them at one time or another. There are various kinds of headaches, each with their own set of symptoms. Understanding which headache you are suffering from can help when trying to find a way to care for it, as they do not all respond equally.

Five Common Headache Types

• Rebound headaches: This headache is brought about by using too much pain medication to care for other headache types. It can be more intense than a migraine.
• Migraines: This is one of the most intense, painful head pain. It generally involves pain on one side of the head, starting with an aura in 20% of people, nausea and vomiting, visual disturbances, sensitivity to light and sound, and may last anywhere from 4 to 72 hours.

• Tension headaches: The most common type of a headache, it is known for a tight feeling around the head, temples, and back of the neck. It is a mild headache that usually allows you to complete your daily tasks.
• Cluster headaches: These severe, chronic headaches happen in cycles. They come on suddenly with pain being felt on one side of the head. Other symptoms are a congested and runny nose and a watery eye on the same side as the pain.
• Sinus headaches: Often caused by a swollen nasal cavity because of an allergy or infection. Pain is experienced around the face and the eyes and may be accompanied by nasal discharge, congestion in the ears, and fever.

Where to Find Relief for Headaches

Here at Upper Cervical of Sioux Falls in Sioux Falls, SD, we have seen much success caring for our headache patients. Headaches are often linked to a misalignment in the top bones of the neck, the C1 and C2 vertebrae. The brainstem is also located in here and becomes stressed due to the misalignment. The central nervous system, as well as the nerves that run through this area, are negatively impacted.

Using a gentle method, we help the neck vertebrae to move back into place, releasing the pressure on the brainstem. This is often all that is needed to see an improvement in the pain of headaches, no matter what type they are.