By Steve Kravitz, PT, DPT, CST
Carrying the weight of chronic pain from migraines is becoming all too heavy for Americans. In fact, research shows that migraines currently affect 39 million men, women, and children throughout the United States. It is the third most prevalent illness in the world, and yet, it is one of the illnesses that has been challenging to treat.
It should come as no surprise that the most common way migraines are treated is with medication. It’s even more troubling that medication overuse can contribute to a series of episodic migraines becoming chronic. It may seem easier to treat migraines with medication amid our busy lives, but there are options that can actually help clear the fog inside of your head instead of contributing to it.
What Causes Migraines?
Some of us who suffer from migraines can clearly track the cause to certain foods or behaviors, but the rest of us can only identify symptoms that signal an oncoming migraine. Migraines are generally accompanied by nausea, vomiting, tingling sensations in arms and legs, and an increased sensitivity to light and sound. Genetics and environmental factors may influence chronic migraines, but there are also other factors that trigger chronic migraines. Changes in sleep patterns, stress, food, medication, as well as changes in the environments all affect how frequently migraines occur. It’s a natural process for the human body to undergo stress and strain, which helps explain why tissues in your body tighten, contract, and distort and create restriction.
Why CranioSacral Works to Clear The Fog In Your Head
Considering the constant battles of stress and strains we are exposed to, maintaining our bodies in a healthy state of balance can be a challenging task. More than 90% of sufferers claim to be unable to work or function properly during a migraine. Many also agree that it significantly diminishes their overall quality of life. The CranioSacral system is what surrounds and protects both our brain and spinal cord. In other words, it plays a crucial role in the proper functioning of our central nervous system and overall state of optimum health. During this type of treatment, my hands can detect and release the areas of body where there is a lack of motion that may be disrupting the CranioSacral system. When I correct these restrictions, your body is then able to access your natural self-corrective mechanisms around your brain and spinal cord. Releasing these restrictions within the tissue may alleviate a wide variety of conditions causing your headache or migraine.
CranioSacral Therapy Restores Balance and Quality of Life
CranioSacral Therapy encourages fluid movement and drainage to make your body function more efficiently and restore your health. I gently address and remove these compensations from your system via soft tissue, fascial mobilization, and nervous system balancing to treat your pain and increase your mobility. When I use this type of manual therapy on patients, I focus on releasing the deep tensions to restore the natural motion of tissue throughout your body so your physical, mental, and emotional well-being improves. Essentially, this allows patients a better opportunity to live a more active, healthy and happy life.
Craniosacral Therapy is just one part of a unique, personalized approach to Physical Therapy which has been developed over twenty years by Dr. Steve Kravitz of Steve Kravitz Physical Therapy. To learn more about how Craniosacral Therapy can help you with your headache or migraine, contact us or read more on our blog.
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Read More of Our Blog Posts:
Getting to the Root of Neck Pain
Know Pain, Know Gain: How Myofascial Release Can Help Relieve Chronic Neck Pain
