The Headache Roadmap
Did you know that where on your head you feel your headache can tell you where in your body the problem is? A lot of headaches are actually referred pain from other muscles. These can be in the back, shoulders, neck and face/jaw! Today we’ll run through some of the ones we see the most in clinic. If you find this helpful and want to learn about more referral patterns then let me know and I’ll do a follow up post!
Up the neck & side of head
This is the most common headache placement we see in the clinic. It’s a classic upper trapezius referral pattern. Are you stressed? Do you hold your shoulders up high?
What to do:
Get yourself an electric massager! Use it on the muscles at the tops of your shoulders - the ones that you tense when you shrug your shoulders. I do this as soon as a feel a headache brewing to stop it from developing into a full blown headache.
Also try this stretch! Do 2x 30 second holds.
Ears & eyes
Your sub occipital muscles at the base of your skull love to refer to the front of your head. When I get a headache I can feel the base of my skull and eyes pulsating in unison.
What to do:
If you have a willing friend, get them to hook their fingers into the base of your skull while you’re lying down and get them to gently pull towards themselves as if they’re trying to make you taller. Hold for about 10 seconds, then relax and repeat another 2 times.
Try this stretch and make “deep neck flexor” exercises part of your routine as sub occipital headaches are often due to forward head posture.
Ears, eyes & slap bang on the top of the head!
They sternocleidomastoid (or SCM for short) runs near your ear, down to your sternum and clavicle. This muscle has a few favourite hang outs, why refer to one place when you can have 3?!
What to do:
To find this muscle tilt your head towards your clavicle and tense. Once you’ve found it go back to a neutral head position and give the muscle a nice squeeze. It will likely be sore, but in that lovely “nice pain” kinda way you know? Those of use who like a firm sports massage will know what I mean!
These examples are intended as a guide - your body might not be wired up the exact same way as the textbook says! You can find out a bit more about how you’re wired by putting pressure on a muscle and seeing if you feel pain anywhere else at the same time.