For chronic headache sufferers, pain is a pesky and often debilitating thing. Most people attempt to gain relief through over the counter medication or drugs like Imitrex, without ever addressing the root cause of their problem and with side effects. In truth, though many people have heard that acupuncture and/or Chinese Herbal Medicine can relieve headache pain, some of these people don’t realize that it is possible to resolve the underlying problem that leads to headaches. Unfortunately, too many acupuncturists are limited in their acupuncture tool kit or do not prescribe customized Chinese Botanicals. While these acupuncturists can often still relieve pain, it might take them longer to produce results and they are less likely to be able to resolve the root problem.
At Return of Function Acupuncture, at MindBody Wellness Atlanta, we use an effective two pronged approach, or a Headache Solution System (HSS) to both rapidly relieve pain and keep it from coming back. First we provide symptomatic relief with either acupuncture alone or acupuncture plus a customized herbal formula. The practitioner at Return of Function Acupuncture in Atlanta is one of the 3 % or so of acupuncturists who use advanced acupuncture techniques such as motor point therapy to treat referred pain from muscles that are tight and overly inhibiting other muscles that are antagonists to their actions. Following a session of motor point therapy, the practitioner also provides a session of distal needling to alleviate both the soreness that can result from motor point needling as well as to more effectively stimulate the mid-brain to adjust the neural threshold on the proprioceptive pathway in the area of pain. When appropriate, the acupuncturist also prescribes a customized Chinese Botanical formula. While it is important to treat the root cause, the first priority is to provide relief in the present moment.
The second aspect of the Headache Solution System (HSS) is to address that root cause, treating the origin of the pain. This can sometimes be done at the same time that one is taking away the manifestation of the root disharmony, but the main thrust of the initial stage of care is to stop the suffering.
When a patient comes in for a first visit, the practitioner conducts a thorough case review to identify the location, quality, severity, and frequency and length of the particular headache. In the orthopedic evaluation, the practitioner palpates trigger and motor points in neck and head muscles commonly implicated in the headaches of a majority of patients. Then, the acupuncturist and herbalist can compare the patient’s present pain distribution with typical referral patterns from one or more of these neck, and head muscles. The practitioner at Return of Function Acupuncture at MindBody Wellness Atlanta also asks questions that illuminate hormonal/lifestyle/work related/postural factors that might be an influence on or the source of the pain. Finally, the acupuncturist and herbalist palpates the radial pulse of the patient to get a clearer picture of the headache’s origin, whether neck related, or related to both neck and for example, an hormonal imbalance. Through these steps, the acupuncturist and herbalist is able to customize a Headache Solution System for each patient. This system includes the first and additional acupuncture treatments and if appropriate, a Chinese Botanical formula, along with lifestyle, nutritional recommendations, and stretching instructions, so that there is an comprehensive approach to the location of the pain, its special qualities, along with the source of the pain. This Headache Solution System (HSS) is not only effective at ending the pain cycle, it is cost effective for it enables a patient to be more productive and to have a better quality of life via an end to crippling headaches!
Patients who have trouble managing stress, which is often THE or one of the sources of the headache problem, also have the chance to benefit from Primordial Sound Meditation classes held on a monthly basis at MindBody Wellness Atlanta. These classes teach patients how to meditate with effortlessness and how to set up a regular practice that has enormous benefits for the long term health of both body and mind.
To begin your path to no more headaches, call now for a free, Freedom from Headaches consultation. (678) 631-7965
