Neck Pain and Headaches

Too often when we ask people about their headaches we hear "Oh, it's just my normal everyday headache." There is nothing normal about experiencing headaches on a regular basis! Many people attempt to just "learn to live with it" and, unfortunately, all they are learning is how to suffer.
Tension headaches are the most common type of headache, according to the American Academy of Neurology. In fact, 85-90 % of headaches come from tension in the neck.

What causes neck pain and headaches?
• Chronic poor posture
• Loss of the normal curve of the neck
• Trauma (falls, sports injuries, and whiplash from car accidents)
• Stress
• Lack of sleep

Migraines and tension headaches occur when there is excess strain on the supportive muscles of the head and neck, often a direct result of poor spinal alignment and posture. When the head is out of alignment (for example: carrying your head too far forward or tilting it to one side) the muscles must work much harder to simply hold the head up against the force of gravity. Over time this abnormal stress creates changes in the muscles making them much less efficient. When the stress builds up to the point where your muscles are fatigued, they begin to refer pain to other muscles in your head which lead to headaches.

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Low Back Pain and Sciatica

If your back aches, you're not alone. Four out of five adults experience at least one bout of severe back pain at some time during their lifetime. That's 80% of the population! In fact, low back pain is the fifth-leading cause of trips to the doctor in the United States.

What causes low back pain?
• Chronic poor posture
• Loss of the normal curve in your low back
• Improper lifting techniques
• Sedentary lifestyle
• Car accidents and other traumas such as falls and sports injuries

Can chiropractic help?

According to the National Institutes of Health, a new study (Nov 2005 in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics) found that chiropractic care produces better outcomes for treating chronic low back pain than medical care. It also found that chiropractic care costs were 16% lower than medical care costs, not including the cost of over the counter drugs, hospitalizations, or surgical costs.

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Extremity pain

Shoulder, wrist, hand, hip, knee, ankle, and foot pains often come from poor posture and spinal problems. We can determine this through an examination and sometimes x-rays. If you have a extremity problem that we think we can help you with, we use a combination of soft tissue work (like massage), spinal and extremity adjustments, exercises, and more to give relief and correct the problem.

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Sinus Trouble

Chronic sinusitis is caused by swelling in the lining of the spaces in your forehead, cheeks, and temples. When your sinuses get inflamed, they fill with mucus and you become congested.

This leads to symptoms such as:
• Sinus headaches
• Difficulty breathing
• Waking up with a stuffy head
• Chronic post-nasal drip
• Sore throat
• Tenderness and/or pressure in your face near your cheek bones, nose, and forehead
• Feeling like you always have a cold

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