Hammer out Headaches and Migraines

I see many patients who experience an occasional headache to raging migraines on a monthly basis. And unfortunately most pharmaceutical medication has side effects and offers only a temporary solution. If you are tired of dealing with the headstorm, read on the learn more about how to hammer out headaches and migraines.

Not everyone I see for headaches is on prescription medication. Some simply just don’t want to get into the habit of taking medication all together.

One of the things that I love most about East Asian Medicine is that it always is searching for the root cause of the problem. And unfortunately, most of the time Western over-the-counter medications only act as a band-aid until the next problem creeps up. Now, I’m not saying all pains are bad, oftentimes it’s the only way our body can gain our attention to tell us something is awry. However, once we feel the pain, and if it it keeps coming back we need to address the source.

There are many causes of headaches and probably just as many ways to treat them.

Common causes of headache

• muscle tension (#1 cause of headache)
• stress
• fatigue
• low blood pressure
• high blood pressure
• food allergies
• dehydration
• cold/flu
• hormone fluctuation

When you come to see me about your headaches I’m going to do some detective work to find out the underlying cause. Is your headache over your temples, behind your eyes, on the top of your head, in the back on your head? The answers to those questions indicate a different type of treatment.The great thing about this is that I have many methods in my skill set to give your body what it needs to decrease the severity and frequency of your headaches.

My headache solutions include

• Acupuncture
• Cupping
• Tuina
• Relaxation Techniques
• Herbal Medicine
• Gentle exercise
• Dietary review
• Discussion of sleep habits

So before you think you have to go down the medication route, check to see if there are things you could be doing in your day to day routine that correlate with your headaches. Do they only happen after a night of poor sleep? Do you notice that you’re always dehydrated when they start? Have you eaten enough today?

If you’re not feeling better after making some minor changes, give us a call at (773) 669-5724.

It’s hard to be yourself and live your best life when you’re in pain.