How Better Posture Can Help Relieve Migraines

While migraines can be varied and come in many forms, could it be possible to dull their effects by working on your posture and the way you move?

Migraines are a big problem in todays world with 1 billion people suffering from some sort of regular migraine or headache. The causes are often misunderstood, and they have become increasingly difficult to manage. So much so, that there are now whole clinics dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of migraines.

Generally seen as neurological issues, characterized by intense headaches, nausea, and sensitivity to light and sound, is there a place to discuss posture and movement?

Balancing Pressures

Our bodies are capable of exerting pressure in many forms. While most things that exert pressure tend to do so in an even manner, think of a balloon filling with air, our bodies are capable of mis distributing pressure due to poor posture and movement.

We have multiple parts of our body moving and transferring pressure all the time. For example we have pelvic floor pressure and the bottom of our core, abdominal pressure in our bellies above that, thoracic pressure in our ribcage, and cranial pressure in our skulls.

Imbalanced pressure can cause a host of different issues. In the pelvic floor it may lead to poor control of the pelvic floor muscles and incontinence. Poor abdominal pressure can be the cause of hernias or digestion issues. A lack of thoracic pressure can contribute to a kyphotic posture or “rounded shoulders”, and poor cranial pressure could lead to pressure headaches or migraines.

Fluid Transfer and Hydration

Another thing that is known to contribute to migraines or headaches is dehydration. While drinking enough water every day in order keep hydration levels up is really important, it may not be as simple as putting water into your mouth. In order for that water to reach our target cells, our system must be set up in a way that allows it to properly absorb that water. When we move correctly, not only do we get better pressure regulation, but we also get better fluid transfer around our body. This helps transport water to where it is needed in order to hydrate our tissue effectively.

Traditional Approaches

While traditional approaches like physiotherapy, osteopathy, and even cranio-sacral therapy aim to alleviate the symptoms of migraines by focusing on the head itself, a better approach is the take the whole body into account and focus on the entire structure. Without helping to re orientate the pressures someone exerts in different areas of the body, it’s difficult to get to the root of the issue.

Other traditional approaches rely on pharmaceutical intervention and a carefully balanced concoction of pain medications to alleviate symptoms. While this can initially be useful when things are bad, again it is not getting to the root of the issue.

The Functional Patterns Approach

As with any presenting issue, at Functional Patterns we try not to focus on the symptoms but the overall system of the body. We have found that people who present with migraines or headaches can dramatically improve if not get rid of them by improving the things we have mentioned above. Promoting better pressure regulation by improving the way someone moves and their posture through proper training can have a huge impact on associated symptoms, and can also aid in better fluid transfer and as a result hydration.