With the modern pace of life, an ordinary person has to solve several problems at once. His brain is subjected to many hours of stress, emotional pressure is growing, naturally, there is pain in the neck and neck.
This kind of pain syndrome is one of the most common phenomena for middle-aged and older people, as well as those who, for a number of reasons, lead a sedentary lifestyle. Sometimes pain in the neck and head occurs suddenly, sometimes it increases gradually. Such sensations are often not taken seriously by the patient - the person takes an anesthetic and continues his activity.
Frequent headaches in the back of the head in people of mental labor can even cause some "respect" and sympathy from others. This testifies to their special zeal and diligence. However, sooner or later, pain in the neck and head will reduce the level of comfort of a person so much that he will make a serious decision to get rid of it.
Myogelosis
The most trivial cause of myogelosis is the compaction and spasm of the muscle tissue of the cervical region. The patient feels pain in the back of the head anddizziness. Shoulder movements are difficult and constrained. There is a sharp pain in the neck and neck during exercise. Muscles spasm, head turns with difficulty. Pain in the back of the head and dizziness make it impossible to adequately navigate in space. A person needs urgent help.
Myogelosis can be caused by a number of reasons, including:
- draft;
- protracted or intense stress;
- violation of posture;
- stay in an uncomfortable position for a long time.
Stress
Pain in the neck can also cause mental stress, provoked by constant stress: chronic and acute. Men over the age of 30 and women are especially susceptible to these types of risks.
Mental or physical strain, fatigue
Fastly working at a computer or driving a car, a person often pays attention to the position in which he is only when there is pain in the neck or in the head. We need to keep an eye on this.
Injuries, chronic diseases
Sprains, injuries, subluxations of the intervertebral joints, spondylitis and osteochondrosis also cause pain in the neck and neck. These diseases affect the cervical spine and cause severe discomfort.
Hypertension
Headache in the back of the head, especially in the first hours after sleep, may indicate developing arterial hypertension. Attacks of dizziness, weakness may accompany the resulting pain inback of the head on the right or left. Sometimes patients describe this symptom as a "compressive hoop" on the head.
Cervical spondylosis
When the lateral processes of the vertebrae (osteophytes) grow and deform, cervical spondylosis develops. In this case, the tissues of the ligaments are reborn into bone tissue. Spondylosis is a disease of inactive people. In many cases, older people suffer from this ailment.
With cervical spondylosis, the mobility of the neck is reduced, the head is difficult to turn, and this causes tangible pain in the neck and back of the head. Pain that occurs in the upper shoulder girdle and the back of the head can radiate to the entire back of the head, ears, eyes. The quality of sleep deteriorates significantly: the patient wakes up due to tension and pain in the neck.
When pressing back on the intervertebral joint, the pain intensifies. Cervical spondylosis is clearly manifested when the patient tilts his head back.
Occipital neuralgia
Even a simple movement of the head, coughing, sneezing cause sharp "lumbago". Pain in the back of the head radiates to the back, lower jaw, ears and cervical spine. To relieve pain, the patient tries to keep his head in one position.
The causes of neuralgia of the occipital nerve can be both hypothermia and colds, as well as osteochondrosis, spondylarthrosis, and other ailments of the spine.
Even when the sharp pain when turning the neck lets go, there is pressure in the back of the head, and a spasm appears in the muscles.
Vertebrobasilar syndrome
As a consequence of cervical osteochondrosisconsidered vertebrobasilar syndrome. The patient has tinnitus, dizziness appears, the look is "veiled". At the same time, the coordination of movements is clearly disturbed, the skin of the face turns pale, there is a pressing pain in the back of the head, nausea, vomiting, and hiccups are observed. Due to tilting, turning the head, a person loses balance, immobilizes, faints.
Cervical migraine
Characterized by intense pain in the temples, the back of the head, radiating to the superciliary arches. There is a feeling of pain in the eyes, they are as if sprinkled with sand. Blurred vision, impaired hearing, tinnitus, dizziness.
Cervical migraine, unlike classical hemicrania, has a significant moment (marker). If you press with your finger the line connecting the spinous and mastoid processes of the first cervical vertebra, pain immediately arises and intensifies. So, pain with slight compression of the cervical aorta indicates the presence of a cervical migraine. With true hemicrania, first, after a feeling of weakness, there is pain in the back of the head on the right.
Tension Pain
With prolonged reading, writing, if the neck and head are in the wrong position, there is muscle tension, there is pain in the back of the head. This kind of ailment is called tension headache. It also occurs if you keep your head motionless for a long time while watching TV, working on a computer, or playing sports. In these cases, the pain may be caused by tension in the muscles responsible for turning the neck, the deep extensors.
Symptoms:pressure, increasing pain in the back of the head and in the frontal part of the head.
Excitement, fatigue
Headaches often appear due to unrest, concentration at work, overwork. There is a feeling that the skull is squeezed by an invisible hoop. The pain is not sharp, but constant. The muscles of the temples, forehead, neck and occiput are tense and compacted. Pain when pressed.
Doctors explain this by saying that long-term focus on one specific action is the emotional and physical stimulus for continued muscle contraction.
Often this kind of pain is accompanied by tinnitus and dizziness without nausea.
Features of pain
Usually the patient is unable to pinpoint the exact location of the pain felt. Especially if it radiates to other parts of the body. With pain in the neck and in the head, it is difficult to distinguish the root cause of their occurrence. Even ordinary touches to the back of the head cause discomfort and pain in the entire upper neck, to say nothing of turning the head or tilting.
Self diagnosis?
The human body is quite complex. Various organs in it are interconnected, and painful sensations in one of them often directly depend on the state of the other. Not always even a specialist can make a correct diagnosis for himself. At least he'll be smart enough to seek advice from a colleague.
Moreover, it is not worth the risk for an ordinary person. After all, there are often cases when, trying to remove the pain syndrome, people allowed themselvesdiseases become stronger or mutate. And if the reason lies in the spine, it is foolish to take pills and tinctures for pressure!
It is better to immediately conduct a comprehensive examination with a number of specialists: a traumatologist, neurologist, cardiologist, exercise therapy doctor and massage therapist.
In order to make an accurate diagnosis and determine the causes of pain syndromes, modern medicine uses magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), x-rays, and other methods. Only after receiving the results of the necessary examination, the doctor can diagnose the causes of pain and prescribe treatment.
Remember, if pain in the back of the head, neck responds to other parts of the body - seek an accurate diagnosis from specialists.
First Aid
When a severe headache occurs in the back of the head, first of all, it is necessary to improve the environment in which the patient is located as much as possible. To do this, you need to ventilate the room, make sure that there are no external irritants: bright light, loud and shrill music, sounds.
Then do a light massage of the shoulder girdle, neck, back of the head. At the same time, try not to put pressure on the spinal column. After that, it is recommended to lie down and try to relax completely. Stressful situations and problems that were already there during the day are gone. If you worry about the upcoming ones, they will not become easier from this. So put them out of your mind.
Even before visiting a doctor, you can take the drug "Ibuprofen", which reduces the intensity of pain. Fatty fish contain omega-3 acids that can prevent inflammation.
As a first aid for pain in the back of the head, you can do an exercise to stretch and relax the muscles of the neck. Sit straight on a chair, do not lean on its back. We clasp our heads with our hands so that the thumbs are on the cheekbones, and the rest are on the back of the head. Now, holding the head in this position with our hands, we tilt it back. Hands do not allow the head to lean back. Hold this position for 6-7 seconds, relax and lean back in your chair. Do a few repetitions of this exercise.
This is often enough to stop the headache.
If the pain does not stop for a long time, it is necessary to establish the causes of their occurrence. As a temporary measure, a pill or traditional medicine can work. With incessant pain in the back of the head, you do not need to self-medicate! See a doctor.
Treatment measures
When the diagnosis is established accurately, the attending physician determines the treatment course, taking into account the individual characteristics of the course of the disease. Treatment is primarily aimed at eliminating the causes of the disease.
Three groups of drugs are used for treatment.
- Painkillers.
- Anti-inflammatory.
- Muscle relaxants.
In most cases, rather conservative methods of treatment are used: medication, physiotherapy. With defects and injuries - manual therapy. Swimming and special physical exercises are always useful, but in some cases they are simply necessary.
Remarkable resultsgives electrophoresis: blood flows to stagnant muscles, the amount of lactic acids decreases, causing a burning sensation. If you are prone to headaches, to prevent and eliminate them, it is recommended to do regular warming massage of the upper back and neck.
Therapeutic exercise is indicated for osteochondrosis. When prescribing exercise therapy exercises, a vitamin complex is usually prescribed. Warming ointments can be used to improve blood flow.
Surgical intervention is used only as an extreme, forced measure. This happens when pains in the neck and neck become frequent, severe, last a long time, a person is limited in movement, when a general deterioration in a person’s he alth becomes a consequence of the disease. But, again, this measure is applicable only if serious complications occur or are at real risk.
If the causes of pain in the back of the head and temples are stress, you should identify them and try to reduce their impact.
Prevention of pain in the neck and neck
It is important to understand simple things: a he althy lifestyle without bad habits, regular exercise, a special diet and proper rest are the key to preventing and eliminating headaches. Do not forget also about the orthopedic pillow.
