Hey ladies! If you’re among the many women juggling chronic migraines and neck pain, this post is for you. We’re diving deep into how these two pesky issues are connected, helping you understand the science behind it all. Ready to feel smart and in control of your health? Let’s get started!

Neck Pain and Migraines: The Painful Duo

Research has shown that neck pain is a common trigger for migraines. Up to 80% of individuals with migraines report experiencing neck pain prior to or during a migraine episode studies found. This close relationship between neck pain and migraines can make you feel like you’re caught in a never-ending loop of discomfort. But don’t worry, we’re here to break it down for you!

The Pain Pathways: How Pain Travels Between the Neck and Brain

Pain from inside the head can travel out into the neck, and pain from the neck can travel back up into the head research into migraines and nerve anatomy. This is because nerves in the brain also extend down to the neck. When these nerves get activated during a migraine, they send pain signals through the trigeminal nerve. This nerve runs from your brain, across your forehead, scalp, and upper eyelid, and down into your neck nerves around your brain become activated. Imagine it as a busy highway where pain signals can travel both ways, making the pain in your head and neck feel even worse pain signals to go back the other way.

Migraine-Driven Neck Pain: How Migraines Can Cause Neck Pain

When you have a migraine, the nerves around your brain become activated, sending pain signals into the trigeminal nerve the trigeminal nerve. This nerve extends as far down as the third cervical vertebrae in your neck, which means that migraine pain can radiate into your neck, causing those stiff, achy muscles we all hate.

Persistent migraines can lead to tightening of the neck and shoulder muscles. This muscle tension can compress nerves in the neck, sending even more pain signals to the brain and triggering more migraines. It’s a vicious cycle! The constant back-and-forth of pain signals can make your brain highly sensitive, leading to central sensitization. This means your brain gets overly reactive to pain signals, making light, sound, and smells feel extra intense.

Could Neck Pain Be the Root Cause of Your Migraines?

Sometimes, the issue might start in your neck and then trigger migraines. If you’ve had an injury to your neck, like a whiplash from a car accident or even just a bad fall, the pain from that injury could be sending pain signals up into your brain, sparking migraines an injury to your neck.

Injuries to the neck can lead to inflammation, irritation, and pain that just doesn’t seem to go away. This constant discomfort can keep triggering your migraines, leading to a nasty cycle of pain. Emerging research has shown that genetic conditions causing inflammation around the base of the neck can also stimulate the trigeminal nerve and cause migraines genetic conditions causing inflammation.

Is It My Neck or Something Else?

Migraines are three to four times more frequent in women than in men. Migraines are more frequent in women. This massive difference suggests that factors other than neck injuries might be at play. Gut dysbiosis, hormone imbalances, and histamine intolerance are all potential culprits that disproportionately affect women. For instance, estrobolome microbes in the gut can lead to excess estrogen recycling, causing migraines estrobolome microbes. If not cleared effectively, estrogen can trigger migraines estrogen detoxification.

Finding the Root Cause: A Personal Health Journey

To figure out whether your migraines are driven by neck pain or other factors, it’s important to understand your personal health history. Here are some questions to consider:

• How long have you been experiencing migraines and neck pain?
• Did your neck pain start before or after your migraines?
• Do you have any other health issues, like gut problems, hormonal imbalances, or allergies?

By answering these questions, you can start to piece together whether your neck pain is driving your migraines or vice versa. Sometimes, it might be a bit of both, requiring a comprehensive approach to treatment.

• Treatment Approaches: Tackling Neck Pain and Migraines Together
• There are several treatment options available to address both neck pain and migraines, including:
• Physical Therapy: Specialized therapy can help alleviate both neck pain and migraines by addressing muscle tension and improving posture Physical therapy.
• Ligament Repair Injections (Prolotherapy): This treatment involves injecting a solution into the ligaments to promote healing and reduce pain Ligament repair injections.
• Platelet-Rich Plasma Therapy: This involves using your own blood plasma to promote healing in damaged tissues Platelet-rich plasma therapy.
• Anti-Inflammatory Injections: These can help reduce inflammation and pain in the neck Anti-inflammatory injections.
• Nerve Blocks: This involves injecting medication to block pain signals from specific nerves Nerve blocks.
• Botulinum Toxin Injections: Commonly known as Botox, these injections can help reduce migraine frequency by relaxing muscles Botulinum toxin injections.
• Trigger Point Injections: These injections target specific points of muscle tension to relieve pain Trigger point injections.
• Anesthetic Injections: These provide temporary pain relief by numbing specific areas Anesthetic injections.
• Monoclonal Antibodies: These target CGRP, a protein involved in migraine onset, to reduce migraine frequency Monoclonal antibodies.

Understanding the connection between neck pain and migraines can empower you to take control of your health. By identifying the root cause of your pain and exploring effective treatment options, you can break free from the cycle of discomfort. Remember, you’re not alone in this journey – our clinic is here to support you every step of the way. Visit our Migraine Clinic to learn more and schedule a consultation. Take the first step towards a pain-free life today!

Disclaimer: Supplements alone may not eliminate migraines. Use specific migraine testing to identify your migraine causes with the guidance of a professional. If you notice your headaches becoming more frequent or more severe, be sure to see your doctor. Your doctor can evaluate your symptoms and recommend the most effective treatment. Also, talk to your doctor or pharmacist before taking supplements to be sure they don’t interact with any other medications you may be taking.

How we reviewed this article: Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available.

Current Version: Jul 2nd, 2024

Written By: The Soothed Migraine Specialists

Edited By: Will Simpson, BAppSc, MBA

Medically Reviewed By: Dr. Ana Coito, Ph.D. Dr. Coito holds a PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Geneva, a BSc and MSc in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Lisbon, and a CAS in Nutrition for Disease Prevention and Health from the ETH Zurich. She understands how debilitating migraines can be and cares deeply about improving the lives of chronic migraine sufferers. Dr. Coito has her own website brainchoices.com and was awarded the Epilepsia Open Prize for Clinical Research for her article, Interictal epileptogenic zone localization in patients with focal epilepsy using electric source imaging and directed functional connectivity from low-density EEG. See Dr. Coito’s research at Epilepsia Open Prize.

Dr. Mary Oppenheim, M.D. Dr. Mary Oppenheim graduated from the University College of Cork, Ireland in 2009 with a medical degree in Internal Medicine and has worked in the fields of Neurology, Internal Medicine, and Cardiology. Dr. Oppenheim is currently a medical lecturer at the Global Medical Education Collaborative. She has been a migraine sufferer herself and understands how disabling the condition can be.

Sources: Soothed has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.
Studies Referenced:

Title: “Prevalence of neck pain in migraine patients”
URL: https://thejournalofheadacheandpain.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s10194-015-0566-9

Title: “Research into migraines and nerve anatomy”
URL: https://thejournalofheadacheandpain.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s10194-019-1023-y

Title: “The trigeminal nerve and its connection to migraines”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30622169/

Title: “Pain signals traveling between the neck and brain”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24666216/

Title: “Genetic conditions leading to neck inflammation and migraines”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31266456/

Title: “The impact of whiplash and neck injuries on migraines”
URL: https://thejournalofheadacheandpain.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s10194-019-1023-y

Title: “Prevalence of migraines in women”
URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9176156/

Title: “Estrobolome microbes and estrogen recycling”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31636122/

Title: “Estrogen detoxification and migraines”
URL: https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/chronic-daily-headaches/in-depth/headaches/art-20046729

Title: “Physical therapy for neck and migraine connection”
URL: https://headachejournal.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/head.12336

Title: “Prolotherapy for ligament repair”
URL: https://www.caringmedical.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Biology-of-Prolotherapy-EJPM.pdf

Title: “Platelet-rich plasma therapy”
URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1084208X11000243

Title: “Anti-inflammatory injections”
URL: https://www.cochranelibrary.com/cdsr/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD000319.pub3/information

Title: “Nerve blocks”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29421172/

Title: “Botulinum toxin injections”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20487038/

Title: “Trigger point injections”
URL: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25168295/

Title: “Anesthetic injections”
URL: https://headachejournal.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1046/j.1526-4610.2003.03214.x

Title: “Monoclonal antibodies for migraines”
URL: https://thejournalofheadacheandpain.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s10194-021-01363-y