Why people come in
The situations we hear most often
- A headache that settles in late in the day, almost always on the same side.
- Tension that starts at the base of the skull and runs up behind the eyes.
- A jaw that clicks, locks, or tires while eating.
- Clenching or grinding at night, and waking up with a sore jaw.
- Episodes that come more often during heavy weeks.
The exam
What gets looked at on the first visit
- An interview about your health and about what brings you in.
- A posture analysis.
- An orthopaedic and physical exam.
- A first chiropractic adjustment.
The jaw, the neck and the head pull on the same strings.
What comes next
The care plan, and what you do on your side
Chiropractic doesn't deal with the migraine itself: it deals with what, in the neck and the jaw, may contribute to it. The exam looks at neck mobility, the jaw joint and posture, and the care plan starts there.
Worth knowing
- A sudden headache unlike your usual ones calls for a medical exam, not a chiropractic visit.
- Bring what you already know: what sets it off, what time of day, which side. It guides the exam.
Questions
Two questions that keep coming up
Does chiropractic make migraines go away?
No, and nobody should promise you that. What is looked at here is the neck, the jaw and posture, and what they add to what you're living with.
My jaw has clicked for years, is it too late?
The exam will tell. A joint that has clicked for years doesn't always resolve, but what surrounds it often can.