Whats a Headache?

Headaches. If you’ve ever experienced one, you’ll know its a headache. Its painful, its irritating, it may throb, it may be unrelenting, & its certainly disrupting. However, not all headaches are created equally. There are a handful of subtypes such as (HA = short for headaches; not all re listed, but here are a few common ones)…

1. Cluster HA - extremely painful, described as knife stabbing behind eye. Can be due to allergies

2. Migraine HA- can be with or without aura prior to onset. Commonly with light and/or sound sensitivity. Can be associated with nausea and vomiting. Hormonal changes for women can lead to migraines before menstruation.

3. Tension HA - typically stemming from the neck musculature. Patients often describe this feeling as pressure from wearing a tiny hat.

4. Caffeine like, rebound HA - too much caffeine can lead to migraine like HAs. Withdrawal can also lead to a headache

5. Exertional HA - physically induced exertional headache. Feels more like pounding sensation into the head.

6. Sinus HA - infections or allergies can cause irritation to the sinus, thus building up pressure within.

Rhyme and reason

Different causes will create different effects. Caffeine like headache are caused by caffeine. Sinus headaches are caused by allergens or infection. Migraines can be a hormonal issue. Or it can also be a biomechanics issue of the upper neck. According to migraine headache study, 82% of all migraine sufferers had mild traumatic brain injury. There are no head injury without neck injury and vice versa. The upper neck has a very vital role in balancing the heavy bowling ball size head. When there is a trauma that disrupts that balance, the body will then struggle to hold the head upright. This leads to strain of the neck muscles causing tension in the neck, shoulders, even down to the mid back, and even up into the head creating tension headaches for some; migraines for others.

Solution

For many, self medication with an over the counter pain killer can do the trick in alleviating headaches. Other at home remedies include heat packs, massage chairs/hand device, muscle relief gel creams, etc. However, for many sufferers, headaches recur often times in a very predictable schedule and in very unrelenting ways that at home remedies fail to work. The next course of action for many are massage therapy and physiotherapy. Both can work wonders. There are also those who turn to chiropractic care. Upper cervical techniques in particular look at the specific dynamic between the head and neck. The very first bone that cradles the head is called the Atlas, aka C1 vertebra. Did you know, 77 TRILLION nerves flow through from that very first bone? Often times, a precise calculation of the atlas misalignment is just what’s needed to allow the proper nerve and blood flow for painfree and optimal health.

Are you suffering from headaches? Want to see if NUCCA can help?

My Bite AND My Spine?

After years of working closely with a handful of dentists and TMJ specialists from the United States and Sydney, Australia; there’s one absolute trend that I see all too often. It is how the bite influence posture. This can then manifest problems such as headaches (including that of debilitating migraines), neck pain, hip pain, joint discomforts and even nerve pain. When a bite is “off”; it can stem from the temporal mandibular joint or it can be from the teeth. Whenever we bite down, there should be an even pressure throughout. If not, it is like having a pebble in your shoe making neutral walking practically impossible. Just as a pebble can shift the entire spine and posture; so can an abnormal bite. **see picture below. The lab rat on the right has a normal bite. As the bite shifts, so does the spine (picture left).

One of the biggest components to consider, however, is how the craniocervical junction plays into the bite. Which comes first? The upper neck misalignment that causes the cranial nerve (specifically CN 5 - trigeminal nerve that controls the muscles of mastication) or the TMJ displacement (or bite) that influence a misfire of the nerves that results in a distorted spine? It can actually be 50/50. Until we get one fixed, we will not be able to know its influence on the other. However, because the TMJ’s delicacy and changes to the bite is often permanent; the upper neck misalignment should be addressed first.

If you’re unsure if your health problems are an influence of the upper neck, contact us for a no obligation consultation.

These are no ordinary lab rats. What you can profoundly see is their shift in spinal posture as the bite is manipulated. How does this translate to our spine if we have dental malocclusion?

Part 2: How to "Hold" the C1 Correction

In part 1; we talked about what holding the correction means. For reference (Part 1). In this post; we’re going to go into the Do’s and Don’t in order to hold the C1 correction.

Do’s and Don’ts

Whether you just had your upper cervical correction or are doing your research to see if this procedure should be in your health repertoire; Congrats on taking charge of your health. A big part of that is knowing how to protect the alignment so the nerves can have that continuous healing. As every body may react differently, take into consideration that the listed items below are a general possibilities.

1.     You may get a little sore because we have changed the position of one or more bones and your muscles may need to do some adjusting of their own

2.    The correction may also change your posture.  Some muscles that have not been utilized for a while may get a little sore just from being exercised

3.    You may also have instant relief. That is a great, however, the bone in your neck that was moved back into alignment will eventually fall out of alignment and can cause you to experience some discomfort.  

4.    Lastly, there is the chance that you will not notice any significant differences in how you feel after just one correction.  This is common if your condition has been present for a while. It just means that it will take a little bit of time for your body to adjust to being properly aligned.  Please do not get discouraged if you do not feel better immediately.  It probably took several years for your health to get in shape it was in when you had your first spinal correction.

 Do’s

·     DO sleep on your back

·     DO get plenty of rest – your body does most of its healing while you are asleep so resting properly is very important right now

·     DO drink plenty of water – As your body heals it will need to do a little detox and some house cleaning.  Your body will need the exra water to help it flush out the bad stuff from your body

·     DO show up for our scheduled appointment.  We will design a treatment plan specifically for you to get better as quickly as possible.  It is important that you follow this plan in order to achieve the best results in the shortest amount of time

DON’Ts

·     Don’t sleep on your stomach – Try to sleep on your back, that’s ideal. If not, sleep on your side

·     Don’t sleep on a stack of pillows – it is best to sleep on a cervical pillow that gives you some support under your neck

·     Don’t lift anything over your head (for the first several days)– This puts undue stress on your neck

·     Don’t do any exercise that places stress on your neck or back – this can cause you to lose your Upper Cervical correction

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Do you have questions about the C1 alignment process and how it can benefit your life? Schedule your no obligation consultation now.

Do I have a short leg?

"Leg length discrepancy”; that’s a fancy term for having one shorter leg compared to the other.  Often times, prospective patients come and cite they have been told by a doctor or physiotherapist that there is a short leg which results in their hip pain, back pain, and/or poor posture.  With concern in their eyes, the followup question being:  Is that treatable? YES! It absolutely is! (read on)

When someone presents with a short leg, its usually not because of an actual short leg, but from the nervous system. All muscles and organs are controlled by nerve signals. In a misaligned spine, nerves that over react lead to spastic (tight) muscles throughout parts of the body; pulling said side of the body up to give the illusion of a short leg. This commonly also lead to back and hip pain.  So the solution to a leg length inequality is to clear the nerve miscommunication from the source in order for the proper transmission to corresponding muscles.

BUT…

Where is this misalignment coming from?  What is the source?  Believe it or not, the source is not the low back or pelvis.  The nerve control comes from the brainstem which is in a very delicate area of the upper neck involving the Atlas (Cervical bone #1 aka C1 for short). The atlas cradles the head and support the weight of the head on its condyles. When our first vertebra is misaligned, the weight of the head is no longer evenly distributed over the neck and the rest of the body. The many postural muscles that are constantly contracting and relaxing in response to normal body movements to prevent us from falling over and keeping us in an upright posture now have to respond to this imbalance by contracting different postural muscles in an attempt to maintain an upright posture. It is the reflexive contractions of the postural muscles that result in the contracted/ shortened leg.

A leg length difference can be an indication of imbalance tone in your body’s musculature and therefore is one of our objective measures to determine whether or not you are in need of an adjustment. After an adjustment we will often check leg-length again and find that legs to be of balanced length.

Want to see and visualise if you may be out of alignment? Stand in front of a mirror. Close your eyes and shake the body up as a reset. Don’t move a muscle. Open your eyes…what do you see? Is your head tilting to one side? Is one shoulder higher? Is your torso rotated? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, there’s a high likelihood you may be out of alignment. If you’re still unsure. Contact A Balanced Atlas for a free consultation. & for more information check out: www.mymisalignment.com/abalancedatlas/

Catch your Zzz’s

Sleep:  Can’t live without it..literally.  We need it to process the things we learn, to rejuvenate cells, to heal the body through the immune system, and now there’s even statistic on how it affects the cardiovascular system.  Annually, with daylight sayings when we loose an hour of sleep in the spring.  There’s a marked 24% increase in heart attacks the day after.  In the autumn, when we gain an hour of sleep.  There’s a 21% reduction in heart attacks respectively (Dr. Matt Walker).  This also applies toward auto accidents.  All of this change from just a simple one hour change to sleep.  Needless to say, sleep is quite an important aspect of daily living.  In fact, its 1/3 of our life.  Any health professional can agree that a person’s overall health is at its best with adequate sleep.

Which is why through out time, there’s always been debates, studies, discussions surrounding sleep. So many different articles on the best sleeping position, the best pillow, the best mattress, and even the best temperature to fall asleep in. Of course, the best of the best would be whatever works well for your Zzz’s. With so many consumer options to perfect your sleep (including numerous apps available for white noise, sleep tracker, & the likes); sleep has been muddled with seemingly infinite combinations. In reality, its a simple yes/no question: did you sleep well?  with many follow up questions of “do you feel well rested? are you tired/groggy? and did you dream?”

Aside from following the typical rules that have been written serving as a guideline for “good” sleep:  limiting caffeine by a certain time, cutting the alcohol, working out, eating the last meal before 7pm, avoiding triggers such as the news and screen time at night.  There are additional physical factors to focus on.  As a chiropractor, I have to be slightly biased and say the key to great sleep and energy the morning after is the neck positioning during sleep. Why? Your upper neck specifically houses your brainstem, which allows for proper nerve flow and sensory that control your whole body. Neutral positioning of your head, neck, and shoulders allow for a stress free brainstem, leading to a betters sleep for a better morning after, which leads to a healthier you.

How do we achieve that neutral head/neck position? Choice of mattress is a very personal one and it needs not be discussed for the purpose of this piece. Find one that you are comfortable with and can fall asleep with easily based on comfort and temperature. With more and more mattress companies including a free trial run with purchase, its easier to find the perfect mattress to your spinal liking. The pillow, however, can be a little bit more complicated. The ultimate goal of a pillow is proper (and neutral) neck and head support. Imagine as you are upright, a straight line running midline down from centre of your skull, thru the glabella (between the eyebrow), nose, and sternum (aim for midline between your shoulders).  That line as you are vertical needs to be maintained when you are on your side.  Any pillow that influences the integrity of said line is not a good pillow.  Seems simple enough right? When in doubt, ask your local chiropractor for help. Sometimes, your general physical discomfort upon waking up or even pain during the night can be a result of the nervous system misfiring due to the atlas misalignment.

Sleep is as important as eating and breathing. Without it, our bodies will shut down.

Why am I having Neck Pain?

According to the Australian pain management association, neck pain affects 1/5 people right now as you are reading this sentence. The 4th leading disability worldwide? Neck Pain! 30% of neck pain sufferers will develop chronic symptoms. Are you a statistic right now?

The basic background of the head and neck junction is essential to understanding why neck pain occurs. The lower 2/3 of your neck is fairly stable due to the anatomy of the bone structures. However, the upper 1/3 of your neck is far more mobile. This typically translates to be a complex and fairly unstable joint region. The atlas, the very first bone that supports the big bowling ball head, is a ring structure. Because there are no interlocking aspect to this bone, it sits freely sandwiched between the head and rest of the spine. This craniocervical region has major influence on brain communications with the rest of the body, including that of the muscles holding the head upright. Trauma, accidents, or injuries to the head &/or neck can disrupt this balancing act of the atlas and its surrounding supportive muscles which can lead to neck pain. The muscles of the neck must then work harder to maintain the head level and balanced against gravity.

Atlas: the very 1st cervical vertebrae supporting the head. If the atlas is out of alignment in relationship to the head and neck, pain and discomfort can result.

Although neck pain can come from a variety of causes, by far the most common is muscle tension. Disc pain and other soft tissue strains can also be a culprit. Misalignment in the upper cervical spine can exacerbate these conditions. Thereby, correcting of the craniocervical junction (the atlas misalignment) can typically allow those muscles to relax and the neck to return to a more balanced and relaxed state. This also has the potential to relieve strain on discs of the cervical spine.

*** Neck pain often times can be a precursor to headaches. Read more about headaches here

To see if you may benefit from a craniocervical assessment, contact your local NUCCA chiropractor.