Ralston Neck Pain & Headache Chiropractor
Many people will experience occasional headaches or neck pain, but if these affect your ability to get through your day or get a full night’s sleep, it may be time to consult with a headache and neck chiropractor in the Omaha and Ralston area.
Omaha Headache Chiropractor – How Chiropractic Care Manages All Types of Headaches
Some common types of headaches are:
- Tension Headaches – These typically present as band-like tension around the head.
- Migraines – These typically result in pain on one side of the head and are often accompanied by nausea, sensitivity to light, and sensitivity to sound.
- Cervicogenic Headaches – These bring pain about in one or more areas of the head and/or face but the problem is sourced in the neck.
Chiropractors can help with headaches as current evidence suggests that chiropractic care can be effective in treating both cervicogenic and tension headaches. Studies also show that chiropractic care can decrease the intensity and duration of migraines. A headache chiropractor in Omaha will assess, diagnose, and manage the headaches through the following treatment options:
- Manual therapy
- Soft tissue therapy
- Modalities including electrical stimulation, acupuncture, and ultrasound
- Rehabilitation
- Lifestyle changes and education
- Referral and co-management
Finding the Root Cause of Headaches
Beyond relieving your chronic headache pain, our team of chiropractors will be able to help you find the root cause of your headaches. This may be stress, excessive screen time, certain foods, the environment, insomnia, or an underlying condition.
Chiropractor for Neck Pain
We also specialize in treatments for neck pain in Ralston, Elkton, and the Omaha Metro area. The neck, or cervical spine, starts at the base of the skull and contains seven small vertebrae that support the weight of your head. The cervical spine is very susceptible to pain and injury.
The most common causes of neck pain include:
- Injury and Accidents: Whiplash from a sudden forced movement of the head or neck injures the surrounding and supporting tissues of the neck and head. Muscles react to whiplash by tightening and contracting, leading to muscle fatigue with pain and stiffness. Severe whiplash can also be associated with injury to the intervertebral joints, discs, ligaments, muscles, and nerve roots.
- Aging: Degenerative disorders associated with growing older such as osteoarthritis, spinal stenosis, and degenerative disc disease directly affect the spine.
- Osteoarthritis: This common joint disorder causes progressive deterioration of cartilage leading to the formation of bone spurs that affect joint motion.
- Spinal Stenosis: This causes the small nerve passageways in the vertebrae to narrow, compressing and trapping nerve roots. It may cause neck, shoulder, and arm pain as well as numbness.
- Degenerative Disc Disease: This can cause a reduction in the elasticity and height of intervertebral discs. Eventually, a disc may bulge or herniate.
- Lifestyle Factors: Various lifestyle factors can bring about neck pain including poor posture, obesity, weak abdominal muscles, stress, emotional tension, and more.
A neck chiropractor in Omaha will perform an examination to locate the source of the neck pain. They will observe your posture, range of motion, and physical condition. They will also feel your spine to gauge its curvature and alignment and will feel for any muscle spasms. In some cases, a chiropractor may order tests such as an x-ray, CT, MRI, or EMG to help diagnose the source of your neck pain.
What a Neck Chiropractor Can and Cannot Treat
A chiropractor will first rule out a neck pain condition that will require surgery such as a neck fracture or an indication of an organic disease. You will be referred to the appropriate medical physician or specialist if your neck pain would be better treated by surgery or another medical intervention.
If a chiropractor believes they can help to reduce your neck pain, they will begin a treatment regimen of neck adjustments to improve the mobility of the spine and restore range of motion. The care plan may also include mobilization, massage or rehabilitative exercises, or something else depending on your needs. Different types of neck conditions that chiropractors can treat include:
- Cervical intervertebral disc injuries that don’t require surgery
- Cervical sprain injuries
- Degenerative joint syndrome of the neck
- Facet joint sprain
- Whiplash
Contact Restore Chiropractic Center today to get started with top-notch chiropractic care for headaches and neck pain.
