Massage and Headache Relief

Combat headaches with massage therapy and learn what you can do at home for some quick relief.

Headaches! We all get them, and we all hate them. But it’s no secret that massage is one of the best forms of immediate relief. Here we'll go over home remedies and self massage tips to relieve headaches on your own, and some techniques I practice on my clients to relieve headache pain.

Types of headaches:
There are multiple different types of headaches that occur from different reasons, whether it be lifestyle factors, environmental, or a medical diagnosis. The two main types of headaches include:

Tension headaches- very common and can often be treated with over the counter pain meds. Tension headaches can be caused by multiple factors such as muscle tension, bone misalignment or eye strain.
Vascular headaches- migraines (aura and aura less), cluster headache, sinus headache. These headaches can be more severe and usually have more of a pounding sensation.

How massage can relieve headaches
For the sake of time let’s just talk about the most common; tension headaches. Recurring headaches is one of the more common complaints that my clients have when booking a massage with me. And the biggest cause? Stress. When we’re stressed, we tense up. Our shoulders tend to creep up towards our ears, putting tension on the traps and the levator scapulae. This in turn puts strain on the neck and occipital muscles, which connect at the base of the skull.
When working out headaches, I will target a group of corresponding muscles including traps, levators, occipital muscles, sternocleidomastoid, and even the scalenes.

My top techniques for headache relief:

Occipital pull: I’ve never met a therapist who doesn’t do this technique, because even without headaches, it just feels amazing. With the client lying supine (face up) place fingers under the head in between the base of the skull and neck. Depending on the muscle tension of the client, it should be easy to feel the dip. Gently push fingers directly upwards, you don’t need a lot of pressure, and begin to rock your fingers back and forth. Dropping, lifting again, and repeating the process.
Trigger point: Placing a thumb at the top of the sternocleidomastoid (lateral to the occipitals but not quite on the side of the neck) and begin to roll the head towards the thumb, creating pressure. Hold for 5-10 seconds, release, and begin again. This muscle can be extremely sensitive and the technique can be painful.

What you can do at home to relieve headaches

First things first, drink some water! Dehydration can cause tension in the muscles and bring on headaches, and hydrated muscles will release more easily.
Alternating between hot and cold packs placed behind the neck.
Pinching the skin of the brow and doing a rolling-like motion. This is a type of myofascial release technique that is meant to loosen the fascia tissue and can bring release to some headaches.
Lay down on the floor to use gravity to create pressure. Place a tennis ball under the occiput, and begin to slowly roll your head in various directions over the ball. You can simply use your fingers as well for self massaging the muscles in the neck and scalp.

Using essential oils for headache relief
There are many different essential oils that have been known to help relieve headaches. You can rub one drop behind each ear, or put a few drops over a washcloth and place over your forehead for aromatherapy. You can place the washcloth over the eyes as well, just make sure to not place the oiled side directly over the eyes as this may cause irritation.
Some essential oils that are great for pain relief are: