Talking about headaches is itself a headache! There are so many different varieties and different reasons for this pain. From low-level-lingering pain to confined-to-bed-for-days migraines, headaches are terrible. An estimated 47% of people each year experience this kind of pain, which affects more women than men. Headaches are as complicated as they are common, but let’s take a introductory look at these crippling events.
As an acupuncturist, I examine many patterns of dis-ease concerning headaches.
1. Constitution
The factors include:
a. the parent’s health in general
b. the parent’s health at the time of conception
c. the conditions of the mother’s pregnancy
In traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), the following factors are thought to contribute to potential headaches later in life.
2. Emotions. Anger, worry, fear, shock, and excessive mental work can all be contribute to headaches.
3. Overwork. Working long hours and not resting property depletes the body and can lead to headaches.
4. Excessive Sexual Activity. While this is a relative concept (based on a person’s constitution and overall strength of his/her “essence”), this activity be very depleting when it is excessive.
5. Diet. This can be a huge component to headaches. Many people have food triggers that lead to headaches. Allergies, food intolerances, gluten, dairy, sugar, salt, caffeine, and alcohol can all contribute. Nuts, tomatoes, vinegar, garlic, avocados are common food triggers.
6. Physical Trauma. Head trauma can create immediate pain, or lead to headaches years later. There are many factors, such as emotions, that can trigger headaches in the same location as past trauma or blow to the head.
7. Childbirth. Too many childbirths in a short time can create an internal deficiency and is very depleting on the body as a whole. It takes time to recover after birth. Many women are tired and potentially anemic from blood loss. Not only is giving birth debilitating, but adding a new responsibility to one’s family can also be hard emotionally and physically, not to mention the lack of sleep, lack of adequate time to eat, lack of quiet time, and potentially even a lack of time to breathe.
8. External pathogenic factors. Wind and dampness in the immediate environment, in addition to the weather, can be headache culprits. Wind can affect the top of the head, causing acute headaches. It can also create neck stiffness, leading to more acute headaches. Dampness can create a kind of congestion that affects good circulation to the head, leading to headaches.
Headaches are often also diagnosed according to their channel and location sites, according to the types of pain, and according to what makes a headache better or worse.
In Chinese medicine, there are several different meridian channels that run to the head. The top and behind the eyes include the liver. The sides and temples of the head run to the gallbladder and liver. The forehead connects to the stomach. Back of the head, kidney and bladder. Whole head the kidney, bladder, liver.
The qualities of pain also taken into consideration include dullness, heaviness, distending pain, stiffness, pulling, stabbing or boring, and a feeling of emptiness.
We also look at what makes it better or worse: activity or rest, weather, emotions, sexual activities, food, posture, menstruation, or pressure.
Headaches are quite complicated and have a range of causes. Headaches remain one of the most popular reasons people seek acupuncture treatments. Treatments and diagnoses are unique to each person, based on the factors associated with the headaches.
Contributor:
Acupuncturist, herbalist, Maya abdominal practitioner, and reflexologist Christina Morris is the founder of Element Natural Healing Arts. Writing about health and wellness gives her an outlet to express her care and concern for her beloved community. She believes everyone can achieve better health and happiness–emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually.