Are you Looking for a Solution for your Head Migraine?

How are they affecting the quality of your life? Your work? Your recreation? Your relationships?

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How frustrating has it been looking for answers but not finding them? If you are like most people who experience migraines, you may have even give up hope that you’ll ever find a solution! You’ve been to everyone - doctors, specialists, chiropractors, physiotherapists, massage therapists and acupuncturists - looking for answers, only to be disappointed.

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You can always take more and stronger mediation, but you probably don’t want that either. Even if they do help, they only cover up the symptoms. And you’d prefer to get to the cause of your migraines in the first place!

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Even if you think you’ve already tried everything, there is a natural approach that probably have not tried that could be the key to finally experiencing relief from your migraines? Would you be interested? If so, let me explain the role of your upper neck in migraines, and how a unique form of healthcare may be able to help you.

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What no one has ever told you about Migraines

Did you know that your brain doesn’t have any pain receptors? So why do your migraines so feel terrible like your brain is tearing itself apart? It’s because the connective tissue that protects your brain does. This connective tissue is called the meninges, and it contains a dense array of blood vessels and sensory nerve receptors. The reason this matters is because any kind of irritation to the meninges including emotional, chemical and physical stress can produce migraines.

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You are likely aware that there are many different categories of migraines: classic migraines with or without aura, cluster migraines, vestibular migraines, visual migraines, abdominal migraines, etc. You can spend thousands of dollars out of pocket seeing specialist after specialist just to get the name of your condition … So that you understand my perspective, it is less important to know the name of your migraines than it is to know what is causing them in the first place. And even more important what you can do about them!

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You are probably familiar with migraines triggered by stress or chemicals (e.g., alcohol, caffeine, etc). However, these triggers are often just that: triggers. They aren’t the underlying cause of why the meninges are irritated in the first place. Granted, there is also a genetic susceptibility that causes migraines to run in families. Even then, that may not the be full story.

What is important to consider is a physical cause to migraines: i.e., something mechanical is pulling or irritating the meninges so that all it takes is just a little more stress to produce a migraine. And that physical cause may have everything to do with the alignment of the top bones in your neck.

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What is the Role of your Upper Neck in Migraines?

Many people don’t realise that your brainstem descends down to the level of the C1 (atlas) and C2 (axis) vertebrae in your neck, just under the base of your skull. Among the many important vital life functions that your brainstems control, there are two important clusters of nerves that deserve attention when it comes to migraines.

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The first is called your vagus nerve (cranial nerve #10). There is a small but very important branch of this nerve located just in front of your C1 vertebra that is sensory for the meninges on the inside of your skull and at the base of your head. And isn’t that where so many of your migraines start?

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The second is called the spinal trigeminal nucleus, which is the main processing centre for all the pain information on your face, skull and neck. The point is that mechanical irritation of either the vagus nerve or the supper part of your spinal cord that includes the spinal trigeminal nucleus may spark the sensation of migraines.

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And how does this happen? The top bones in your neck - the C1 and the C2 - physically tether onto the meninges! Normally, this arrangement is to support and protect your brainstem. However, if you have ever suffered an injury that has causes either of these vertebrae to misalign in such a way that your body is not able to self-correct the problem, the resulting tension can cause migraines.

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Unlike vertebrae elsewhere in your spine, the C1 and C2 are not shaped the same at all. They can actually misalign in any of a potential 360 degrees of movement. Unfortunately, this specific relationship is not considered by many body therapists including general chiropractors, physiotherapists and massage therapists, who traditionally work on misalignments where these vertebrae may have misaligned backwards.

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So imagine what would happen if instead, either your C1 or your C2 was misaligned forwards? If so, you have have been seeing the right kinds of therapists over the years to help your migraines … but a key piece of information has been missing that is needed to get you the breakthrough that you’re looking for.

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Here is where Blair upper cervical care may be able to help you with your migraines.

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Can Upper Cervical Care Help your Migraines?

Blair upper cervical care is a unique method of chiropractic that was developed in the USA. The purpose of case is on the correct alignment of the C1 and C2 vertebrae for the ultimate purpose of taking pressure off the brainstem so that your body is able to achieve its optimum and natural healing potential. You may see the word “chiropractor” and think to yourself that you’ve already tried it for your migraines, but that it didn’t work. As I mentioned before, Blair upper cervical care is different.

If you’ve not heard of upper cervical care for migraines before, it’s not surprising. There are only a small handful of practitioners in all Australia who have completed the advanced study to provide this form of care. At present, we are still the only advanced certified Blair upper cervical practice in the entire country.

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Unlike general spinal manipulation commonly used in Australia, Blair upper cervical care is a precise and personalised approach that focuses on the degree of misalignment by considering things not done elsewhere in any other chiropractic or medical office.

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The procedure first involves a detailed analysis of your health condition including custom-tailored digital x-rays that allow us to see things in your neck that are not visible on standard x-rays or even MRIs … including if your C1 or C2 have misalignment the exact opposite way than you’ve had worked on before! If so, we are able to make a specific correction to your alignment using the amount of pressure that you need to feel your pulse. The procedure is done without any twisting or cracking. But as light as it is, people are surprised at how powerful a Blair upper cervical adjustment is in helping to reduce the symptoms of migraines.

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Have you Tried Upper Cervical Care to Help your Migraines?

As I mentioned before, migraines are often a multifactorial problems that involve a combination of genetics, emotional and chemical stress. However, there is also often a significant physical cause that you may have considered, but never had completely resolved, which is why your migraines persist. if your C1 and C2 are not properly aligned, it may well be the missing link in your search to find a solution for your migraines.

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For all the challenges and frustrations dealing with migraines, remember that at the core the problem is one that is affecting your nervous system. So even if you’ve tried general chiropractic and been to “migraine specialists,” if you have not tried a Blair upper cervical care, it might be the very thing that you actually need to help your migraines.

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If you or a loved one is looking for a natural solution for migraines, please feel free to contact our practice in North Lakes at 07 3188 9329 to speak with one of our doctors about how may be able to help you. Even if you are outside of the Brisbane area, still feel free to contact us, and we will be happy to help find you a qualified doctor in your area.

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References
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Viana M, Sances G, Terrazzino S, et al. When cervical pain is actually migraine: an observational study in 207 patients. Cephalalgia. First Published December 7, 2016: https://doi.org/10.1177/0333102416683917.