Tension Headache is sadly now a common condition for many of us. However we don’t have to live with them! Discover 6 of the best tension headache relief pressure points!
Tension headache is the most common type of headache. This doesn’t mean it is the least painful or the easiest to solve.
To ensure the pain you are experiencing has tension as the cause you should be looking for the following:
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Is My Headache Caused By Tension?
- Tension headache usually occurs because of underlying shoulder or neck aches. Have you slept in the wrong angle? Are you using badly adjusted furniture for work?
- The tightness is felt in the upper shoulders and into the neck.
- The neck is stiff and feels tight, it may be sore to move the neck.
- Some people state it feels like there is a tight band around your head.
- Others say it is a dull, yet consistent ache, on both sides with the temples being particularly sore.
- As well as the pain on the sides of the head, tension headache can also feel like a very heavy weight has been placed on top of their head.
Luckily there are things you can do to reduce your chances of getting them, and techniques you can use to ease these headaches once they arrive.
In this article we look at 6 of the best Tension Headache Relief Pressure Points.
What Is A Tension Headache And Why Do I Get Them?
Most people who experience these headaches actually have episodic headaches. The term tension headache is a medical phrase that is given to “normal” headaches cause by bodily tension and stress.
As an episodic headache they will tend to occur one or two times per month on average. However, for some people tension headaches can also be chronic.Â
According to the Cleveland Clinic, chronic headaches affect about 3 percent of the U.S. population. They also include headaches that for some sufferers last longer than 15 days a month.
Research shows us that women are twice as likely as men to get them.
What Triggers Tension Headache?
Tension headaches occur when the shoulder, neck and scalp muscles become tense or contract. These muscle contractions are often a physical response to stress, depression, head injury, or anxiety.
They can also be caused through sleeping badly and injury to a neck or shoulder muscle. However tension headaches caused through physical injury are not episodic, as they do not repeat.
They occur at any age, but most commonly appear in adulthood. Sometimes they appear in older teens and they tend to run in families.
Other known triggers of tension headaches include:
- Physical or emotional stress
- High alcohol usage
- Too much Caffeine
- Caffeine withdrawal
- Seasonal illness such as colds, the flu, or a sinus infection
- Dental problems e.g. jaw clenching or teeth grinding
- Eye strain
- Excessive smoking
- Fatigue or exhaustion
How Do I Know If I Am Getting Tension Headaches?
Most people will get a headache from time to time. If you have headaches that occur more than once a week, or more than 3-4 times a month it is likely to be caused by tension.
Do your headache symptoms include:
- dull head pain
- pressure around the forehead
- tenderness around the forehead and scalp
- dull ache in both sides of the head
- pain that feels pressing or tightening, but not pulsating
- mild to moderate constant pain
Tension headaches are very similar to migraine. In a few cases sufferers will have sensitivity to light and loud noise, similar to migraines. You are able to tell the difference as tension headaches do not cause vomiting or nausea.
Research shows us that a popular and effective home treatment of tension headaches is to use acupressure, or as they are commonly known, pressure points.
What Are Pressure Points?
Pressure points are physical points on the body that are believed to be able to stimulate relief in the body. The practitioners of reflexology, a discipline founded in Traditional Chinese medicine, believe that applying pressure to these physical points in a certain way can:
- improve overall wellbeing and health
- ease physical pain
- restore the balance of energy within the body
Reflexology studies how parts of the human body are connected to others. For headache sufferers it means you may need to massage a different part of your body, like your hand, to treat your head.
When you start easing pain we know that the following tension headache relief pressure points will be your go-to choice of natural remedies.
6 Tension Headache Relief Pressure Points.
- Union Valley
- Drilling Bamboo
- Gates of Consciousness
- The Third Eye Point
- The Shoulder Well
- Facial Beauty.
There are a number of reflexology and TCM massage techniques that can help you find comfort from tension headaches. The best 6 are:
Which Pressure Points Get Rid Of Tension Headaches?
1. Union Valley
The union valley points are located in the web of the hand. They are in the web between your thumb and index finger.
To treat tension headaches:
- Pinch this area with the thumb and index finger of your other hand. Thumb on top, and index finger underneath (palm side of web). This should be done firmly, not painfully, for a 10 second count.
- Then with your thumb, trace small circles on this area on a clockwise motion for 10 seconds.
- Repeat step 2 but trace the circles in an anti clockwise motion for 10 seconds.
- Repeat all 3 steps above on the Union Valley point of your other hand.
The Union Valley pressure point treatment is said to be one of the best to relieve tension in the head and neck, and as we know tension in these areas is most often the cause of tension headaches.
2. Drilling Bamboo.
The Drilling Bamboo points are located in the 2 small indentations where the bridge of our nose meets the ridge of our eyebrows.
To use the Drilling Bamboo pressure points to treat tension headaches:
- Use both index fingers and apply firm pressure to both points at the same time.
- Hold for 10 seconds.
- Release, count to 10.
- Repeat the process.
3. The Gates Of Consciousness
The gates of consciousness points are located at the base of the skull. They are found in the parallel hollow between the two vertical neck muscles.
To use the Gates of Consciousness pressure points:
- Position your index and middle finger of each hand onto the pressure points.
- Press firmly into the pressure points, then keeping the pressure firm press upward on both sides at the same time for 10 seconds. Your fingers don’t move – they just press in an upward position.
- Release and repeat this once more.
4. The Third Eye Point.
The Third Eye Point can be found between the eyebrows where the bridge of our nose meets our forehead.
To use the Third Eye Point For tension headaches:
- Use the index finger of one hand to apply firm pressure to this area for 60 seconds.
- You may repeat this once more.
Pressure applied to the third eye point is also good for the relief of eyestrain and sinus issues.
5. The Shoulder Well.
The shoulder well points are located at the edge of each shoulder. They are halfway between the end points of the shoulder and the base of the neck.
To use the Shoulder Well pressure point:
- Use the thumb of one hand to apply firm, circular pressure to this point for 1 minute. Again, like the gates of consciousness, the thumb doesn’t move just apply circular pressure in the same spot.
- Release the pressure and repeat on the opposite shoulder well.
Applying firm touch to the shoulder well pressure point can also help relieve stiffness of the neck and shoulder and relieves neck pain.
6. Facial Beauty.
The facial beauty pressure points can be located at the bottom of the cheekbones, alongside each nostril.
To use the Facial Beauty pressure points:
- Place one index finger on one of the facial beauty pressure points. You should place each index finger on the pressure point at the same time. One on the right side. One on the left.
- Apply firm pressure and hold for 1 minute.
- Release.
These pressure points can help also relieve headaches caused by sinus pain as well as stiffness in the jaw.
I hope you have enjoyed this article and will try the 6 tension headache relief pressure points for yourself. Please let me know how you find them.
Have we missed any pressure points you think should be here?
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