HEADACHEVoltex Physical Therapy · North Austin
Headaches from the base of your skull, tight shoulders or a clenched jaw? A Doctor of Physical Therapy at our North Austin clinic finds what’s driving them and treats it one-on-one.
Most clients feel a difference within the first few visits.
The short answer
About half of all adults have at least one headache a year. Many tension-type and neck-related headaches are driven by stiff upper-neck joints, tight neck and jaw muscles or long hours at a desk.
At our North Austin clinic, physical therapy finds which one is behind your headaches, eases it with hands-on care and dry needling, then builds neck and upper-back strength so they come less often.
Understand your pain
The 6 most common causes we treat at our North Austin clinic, and the signs of each one.
Feels like: pain that starts at the base of the skull on one side and spreads toward the forehead, temple or behind the eye.
Often caused by: stiff or irritated joints and muscles in the upper neck that refer pain into the head.
Feels like: a dull, pressing band around the head, often on both sides, that builds through the day.
Often caused by: stress, poor sleep, long screen time and tight neck and shoulder muscles.
Feels like: aching at the temples or face, often with jaw clicking, clenching or pain when chewing.
Often caused by: an overloaded jaw joint and chewing muscles, often from clenching or grinding.
Feels like: headaches that show up late in the workday or after long laptop and phone sessions.
Often caused by: holding the same head-forward position for hours, which overloads the neck and upper back.
Feels like: headaches with neck pain and stiffness in the days or weeks after a car accident or a hard hit in sport.
Often caused by: a fast back-and-forth movement of the head that strains neck muscles and ligaments.
Feels like: deep aching that can feel like a migraine, often around the eye, temple or back of the head.
Often caused by: tight, sensitive spots in the upper traps, suboccipitals and neck muscles that refer pain into the head.
Sound familiar?
Neck pain too? See neck pain treatment in Austin. Jaw pain or clenching? See TMJ physical therapy.
What the research says
In people with neck-related headaches, neck exercise and manual therapy each cut how often and how badly headaches hit, and the benefit lasted a full year.
Tension-type headache is. About 1.9 billion people had it in 2016, compared with about 1 billion with migraine.
In a population study, 76 to 89% of people with migraine or tension-type headache had neck pain in the past year, compared with 57% of people without headaches.
Your plan at Voltex
Every visit is one-on-one with a Doctor of Physical Therapy for the full session at our North Austin clinic.
A 75-minute evaluation of your neck, upper back, jaw and daily habits, plus a screen for anything that needs a doctor.
Manual therapy, joint mobilization and dry needling for the neck, shoulders and jaw.
Deep neck and upper-back strength so your neck handles desk days, lifting and sport.
A home plan plus workstation, sleep and jaw habit changes that last.
