The Anatomy of a Headache

It’s Rarely Just Your Head

The “Holding Pattern”

Most people treat a headache by rubbing their temples, I look at the holding pattern of your upper body. When you are stressed or hunched over a desk. your body goes into a protective curl, your shoulders round forward, your chin just out, and your chest tightens. This creates a “Tug of War” that pulls on the base of your skull. The back side of the upper body and neck are being over stretched and over used.

Three Common Culprits

The Suboccipitals: These are tiny, deep muscles right at the base of your skull. When they tighten up, they can compress the nerves that travel up the back of your head. if these are tight, no amount of temple running will fix the underlying pull.

Levator Scapilae (Neck to Shoulder Bridge): This muscle connects your neck to your shoulder blade. If you spend your day with your shoulders shrugged up towards you ears. This muscle can easy work overtime. Causing pain that can radiate from the neck all the way to eye socket.

The Sternoceidomastiod (SCM): This is the prominent muscle on the side of your neck. It’s often overlooked, but it is a massive player in tension headaches. When it’s tight it can cause pain that feels like a vise around the forehead.

I approach headache relief by decompressing the structures that are locked short.

Releasing the Upper Traps: I gently lengthen the shoulders to take the load off the neck.

Suboccipital Release: Using specific, rhythmic pressure to melt the tension at the base of the skull, which is often where the nerve signals for headaches are being triggered.

SCM & Scalene Balancing: Carefully addressing the side of the neck to open up the airway and reduce the vise grip sensation.

Thoracic Integration: I also address the mid back (Thoracic spine) if your upper back is rounded.

Kody’s Reset Tip

If you feel a tension headache creeping on. Don’t look up- look back. Imagine your ears sliding backwards over your shoulders. This cervical retraction could take the pressure off those deep neck muscles. Combine with talking a full deep breath into your belly to signal your nervous system that it’s safe to stop protecting your neck.

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As a Licensed Massage Therapist, I provide education on muscles, anatomy, and how soft tissue tension affects movement. I DO NOT diagnose medical conditions or prescribe treatments. Please consult a physician for medical concerns.