Q I keep getting a headache that feels like a band tightening around my head. Why does this happen?
A When the muscles around the neck and shoulders stay continuously tense, blood flow to the brain decreases, producing a bilateral pressing headache. Stress, poor posture, and lack of sleep are the main causes.
Detailed Answer
Tension-type headache accounts for about 70% of all headaches and is the most common primary headache. Trigger points form in the fascia around the cervical spine and the pericranial muscles, and sustained muscle contraction reduces blood flow to the brain, creating a bilateral, pressing, non-pulsating pain. Unlike migraine, it is not throbbing and is not accompanied by nausea or vomiting.
Korean Medicine Clinic Perspective
In Korean medicine, this is explained as neck stiffness (hang-gang) and Qi stagnation with blood stasis (gi-che-hyeol-eo). When the neck and shoulder muscles stiffen, the clear Yang Qi (cheong-yang-ji-gi) cannot rise to the head, and the flow of Qi and blood is blocked, triggering pain. At Dongjedang in Dongincheon, correcting cervical alignment (Chuna manual therapy) and restoring Qi-and-blood circulation are the central pillars of treatment.
Related FAQs
-
Q
Is it possible to cure tension headaches completely, or do I have to manage them for life?
#Possibility / Realistic Goals
-
Q
Whenever I have a tension headache, neck and shoulder pain always come with it. Do they all get better with the same treatment?
#Comorbidities
-
Q
I have insomnia and anxiety along with my tension headache. Are they related? Can Korean medicine treat them together?
#Comorbidities
-
Q
Are there stretches or posture corrections I can do at home to reduce tension headaches?
#Lifestyle Management
-
Q
How important are sleep and stress management for tension headaches? Please tell me specific methods.
#Lifestyle Management