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Neck-related Headaches Physiotherapy

• Have you ever had a headache that seems to stem/originate from your neck?
• Maybe when you had a stiff neck...coincidentally, you get a headache?

The medical and physiotherapy community terms this "cervicogenic headaches", pain that originates from cervico meaning "of/from the neck"

the usual complaints from patients who suffer from cervicogenic headaches

Most patients who suffer from cervicogenic headaches report experiencing a sort-of vague and deep but dull ache-pain that begins from the base of the skull that may go as far as to the top of the head, sometimes ending up on:

• behind the eyeball(s)
• discomfort/pain in the jaw/joint of the jaw
  
• one side of the head

Sometimes, this cervicogenic pain can be in both sides of the head (full head) if they had neck pain and neck stiffness on both sides of the neck. Another tell-tale symptom that confirms this diagnosis is then pressure is applied by hand over the neck/cervical area under the skull.

For some patients, if this pressure at the cervical area is applied for a long enough time, they may feel some pain and/or symptom relief from the headache.

What are some of the activities that aggravate this condition?

Usually, the activities that causes the neck to be overly used or strained over a period of time will cause and/or aggravate cervicogenic headaches, such as:

• reading
• using computer/laptop
• using smart devices such as handphone/kindle
• looking up too long
• watching movies/TV too long
• head/neck in one posture for too long eg side of theatre/hall/etc
  

- the issue isn't in the activities themselves BUT the issue is the:

• posture/position of neck that isn't good, usually due to "forward head posture"
• insufficient rest and micro-breaks to stretch the joints, ligaments and muscles of the neck
  

hmm...Why do these activities aggravate cervicogenic headaches?

Sometimes, we get too engrossed in an activity (or sometimes we're annoyed) so we may adopt the

1. forward head/neck posture (see picture on right) without realizing it, and this posture isn't good at all for our necks: It basically stress loads our upper spine (C1 and C2 - the first 2 vertebraes of our spine).
2. side turning/tiling compresses the C1 and C2 on the same side

Do this repeatedly and over a period of time...and the muscles, joints, cartilage will begin to wear out, gradually resulting in pain, stiffness at the upper neck.

is there a connection between the C1-2 levels and headaches?

At every vertebrae of our spine, there are nerve roots that "exit" the vertabrae which is then connected to other part of our limbs/bodies for function, movement and sensation.

The nerves that exit C1 and C2 (and sometimes C2), these supply movement and sensation to

• the back of our skull
• top of the head
• jaw area (for some individuals)

The nerves that exit on the right side supplies the right side, and left side only for the left.

This means that when these joints are affected, stiff, malaligned or injured, it may affect the nerves which exit from those vertebraes, irritating them...and in turn, these nerves being irritated will cause other repercussions eg headaches.

What will our senior physiotherapists do?

First of all, we will assign a senior physiotherapist to you, and better still, a senior physiotherapist who is:

• either senior spine physiotherapist or
• senior physiotherapist with has experience and/or interest in spine

Most of the time, physiotherapy starts off with indepth assessment to understand the core problem that caused and aggravates your headache, and determine if it's truly cervicogenic (neck-related), and once we confirm that:

#1 we will need to improve the improve the movement (mobility) and alignment of the C1 and C2 joints (upper neck joints) to decrease and remove the compressive forces.

This will reduce nerve irritation and the symptoms.

However, if your cervical facet joints are slightly rotated (which can happen/contributed due to tight muscles of the neck), then the affected joints already have compression which will decrease function and range. If this is the case, then our senior physio will work on the soft tissues using techniques such as:

• deep tissue release
• muscle energy technique (MET)
• dry needling
  
• deep stretch
• myofascial release
  
• etc

- to decrease the muscle tightness, and this is to realign and reposition the neck joints.

Only when the cervical joints are in neutral position can we then accurately assess how stiff or mobile the neck joints truly are, and from there, then we will treat with mobilization (such as the ones mentioned above) and where suitable, manipulation techniques.

Only once mobility and movement in the neck is restored, one's cervicogenic headaches will be resolved for long term. Patient will need to adopt good ergonomics practice too to keep these kinds of headaches from coming back.

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• Email your preferred physiotherapy appointment slot to contact@phoenixrehabgroup.com or
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Phoenix Rehab Singapore Core Services And Specializations

Phoenix Rehab Group works with specialist physiotherapists and specialist rehab therapists who are highly trained, qualified, experienced and passionate to provide high level of expert care to our patients.

PHYSIOTHERAPY & PHYSICAL THERAPY General Orthopedic Physio Back and Neck Physio Sports Physio Post-surgery Physio Women's Health Physio Indiba (Radio-Frequency) Physiotherapy Dry Needling Physio

HAND THERAPY &  SPLINTING Patients who sustained injuries to their elbows, forearms, hands, wrists (sprains and fractures) and fingers, and requires Hand Therapy to increase the function of their hand following injuries or post-operations and custom made hand splints.

CLINICAL PILATES & WELLNESS PILATES Clinical Pilates is a form of physical exercise that focuses on posture, core stability, balance, control, strength, flexibility, and breathing. It is a system of safe and effective exercises, which meet specific individual needs, to treat a wide range of injuries and conditions.

TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE (TCM) Pain Management TCM Acupuncture TCM Gua Sha TCM Cupping TCM

DEEP TISSUE RELEASE & SPORTS MASSAGE THERAPY Sports and deep tissue release massage helps to increase nutrient-rich blood flow to tired , tight and tense muscles to accelerate recovery and shorten downtime. It also helps prevents muscles from scar tissue micro-tears (and future ruptures), and increases muscle performance. When done regularly it will keeps your muscles and you healthy and fit and have body/movement-confidence.

PERSONAL TRAINING Having a dedicated personal trainer/personal training helps you get faster and better health, fitness and wellness results. You can expect better fat loss and muscle gain, have reduced risks of injury, establish effective exercise and health habits as well as overcome those annoying "flatline plateus" to breakthrough to your next level of fitness and weight loss.

All our allied health therapists and TCM physicians are fully insured and registered with Allied Health Professions Council (AHPC) and Traditional Chinese Medicine Board (TCMB).

See our entire team here by location and specialization.

At the first session, our specialist physiotherapists will carry out a thorough assessment, helping them to select the most appropriate treatment to help you recover as well as provide treatment in the same session. 

Follow up sessions are inline to provide expert treatment for your pain as well as prescribing specific exercises to reduce your risk of re-injury and giving you a long term solution.

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We appreciate you as a patient and want you to know that the #1 (and only) way we grow as a clinic is through word of mouth referrals from valued patients like yourself.

We do not rely on advertising - instead, we prefer and appreciate the goodwill and positive reinforcement from patients. When you have the opportunity, please take the time to tell your family, friends and physicians about the positive results and experience you have had in our clinic.

book a physiotherapy appointment today

• Email your preferred physiotherapy appointment slot to contact@phoenixrehabgroup.com or
• SMS your name, preferred date, time and clinic location to +6588001830 (Novena).
• Clinic locations: see how to get to us here