The coronavirus pandemic has definitely altered various aspects of life, including how people go to work. For example, a significant fraction of the country’s workforce has to complete their tasks remotely instead of doing it in the office.
However, while this approach aims to curb the spread of the disease, many argue that it’s causing new health problems, including migraine stiff neck. But, how does the pandemic aggravate or trigger migraines and neck pain? What’s the connection between these different things? More importantly, is there a way to experience relief?
Many aren’t aware that migraines and neck pain have a strong connection. The explanation for the migraine stiff neck lies in the flexibility of the neck structure. Do you notice how easy it is to tilt your head in any direction or angle? That’s because the upper cervical bones have a unique joint that allows for maximum movements. Sadly, the same advantageous feature makes you quite susceptible to spinal misalignment.
When the joint gets exposed to even the slightest pressure from a repetitive lousy sitting position, the bones will shift from their original alignment. As a result, the rest of the spine has to conform to these changes. This way, your spinal structure can still provide ample support to your head.
However, these unwarranted changes affect the brainstem’s function. As the bones press on the tissue and the nearby muscles and nerves, various health issues can get triggered or aggravated, including migraines and stiff neck.
If you notice, migraine attacks during this pandemic period usually come with a stiff or sore neck. That’s most likely because you have a spinal misalignment.
The most unfortunate part about having migraines is that they can come in various forms. Some types are more severe than others. And some come with additional symptoms that could significantly impact your daily routine. Unfortunately, regardless of the migraine type you have, the pandemic situation may cause your symptoms to worsen due to factors like poor posture and increased stress and anxiety levels. Let’s take a look at the most common migraine types below.
It’s entirely possible that the migraine stiff neck you currently experience stems from stress because of the country's concerning health situation. As you may already know, stress tends to aggravate all kinds of diseases, disorders, and symptoms, which include migraines and headaches. If you think your main migraine trigger is stress, you should practice relaxation techniques like exercising, yoga, and deep breathing. These may help deter an attack.
Besides stress migraines, many people during this pandemic period experience retinal or ocular migraines, which most likely stems from digital eye strain. While it does always come with a headache, ocular migraines can be quite debilitating. If you experience this health concern, you might also notice accompanying symptoms like seeing wavy lines or flashing lights, feeling extra sensitive to sounds, vomiting, neck pain, and nausea.
In some cases of migraine attacks, patients may experience vertigo attacks. If you observe the same symptom, you likely have vestibular migraines. Studies reveal that roughly 40 percent of migraineurs experience vestibular symptoms such as dizziness, loss of balance, and spinning sensations. If you have vestibular migraines, you should be extra wary of food products that can trigger an episode. It would help if you also avoided excessive movements when a vertigo attack occurs along with your migraine episode.
Did you know that about 6 out of 10 women experience menstrual migraines? Unfortunately, this equally disabling form of migraine occurs each month in response to the sudden estrogen level drop in a woman’s body. Studies explain that estrogen plays a significant role in managing pain, so its fluctuating levels could contribute to your migraine problem.
Headaches aren’t the sole symptom of a migraine attack. If you have silent migraines, you won’t experience pain but notice other symptoms common during the prodrome or pre-headache phase. These symptoms include neck stiffness, frequent urge to urinate, unexplainable food cravings, fatigue, excessive yawning, and terrible mood swings.
Now that you’re well-acquainted with various forms of a migraine attack, you may be wondering how you can cope with them, especially during these trying times. Do you have alternative options in case pain medications don’t provide you with enough relief?
As we’ve discussed earlier, migraines and neck pains often happen together because of a spinal or neck bone misalignment. As a result, the symptoms you currently experience may slowly disappear once you restore your neck bones' neutral position. To do that, you will need the help of an upper cervical chiropractor.
Upper cervical chiropractic is among the leading methods used to seek lasting migraine stiff neck relief. It’s a special procedure that involves gauging the degree of neck bone misalignment and performing gradual and precise adjustments. Depending on the severity of your neck bone situation, you may need to come back several times each week so you can encourage your body into healing independently.
This all-natural pain relief method has helped thousands of ailing patients. If you suspect having a neck misalignment because of poor posture and prolong working hours during this pandemic, you should try consulting with an upper cervical doctor.
Have your neck bones assessed and find out more about how upper cervical chiropractic care can help you live a pain-free life. Contact a migraine chiropractor near you today to start your life-changing journey of healing and recovery.
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The content and materials provided in this web site are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to supplement or comprise a medical diagnosis or other professional opinion, or to be used in lieu of a consultation with a physician or competent health care professional for medical diagnosis and/or treatment. All content and materials including research papers, case studies and testimonials summarizing patients' responses to care are intended for educational purposes only and do not imply a guarantee of benefit. Individual results may vary, depending upon several factors including age of the patient, severity of the condition, severity of the spinal injury, and duration of time the condition has been present.
