Headaches originating from the neck
The places in the neck where headaches can originate
The formal medical term for headaches originating from the neck is ‘cervicogenic headache’. In practice, tension headaches are usually used. These can originate from muscles, joints, ligaments, tendons, nerves, and other tissues high in the neck. The manifestations are very diverse:
On this page, we discuss the different places in the neck where headaches can originate and what the sleeping position has to do with it.
1. Joints
The joints of the top three cervical vertebrae are an important source of headaches originating from the neck.
If complaints arise from these joints, it is often at multiple levels. This is because the underlying causes also affect them. For example, someone who sleeps on their stomach has their entire neck twisted. This causes tension in multiple joints.
2. Muscles
Headaches can also originate from muscles, for example due to ‘trigger points’. These are pea-sized hardened spots where pain can shoot to the head when pressed:
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3. Intervertebral discs
The intervertebral disc (disc) between the 2e and 3e A vertebra can also cause headaches originating from the neck. This can radiate above the eyes and can be either one-sided or two-sided.
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Pain from the C2-3 disc. This pain is shown as one-sided but can also occur on both sides.
The disc below (C3-4) usually does not cause headaches, only neck pain. Sometimes it radiates to the back of the head. Lower intervertebral discs do not cause headaches.
4. Tendons and attachments
If the tension in muscles is elevated for a long time, it affects their tendons and attachments. This can cause pain at the back of the head, which can gradually spread over the skull.
5. Other places where headaches can originate
There are more places from which headaches originating from the neck can arise, such as a pinched nerve. However, this has no clear relation to sleeping positions.
The influence of sleeping position on headaches
The sleeping position can play an important role in two ways in headaches originating from the neck: as a cause and as a reason why the pain does not go away.
Sleeping position as a cause
A wrong sleeping posture can cause restrictions and irritations in the neck, especially at the top. And it is precisely from there that it is experienced more as a headache than as neck pain. The headache then seems to arise 'out of nowhere'.
Many people lie as in the left image. The neck is twisted and crooked.
If you sleep on your stomach, your neck is even more twisted. That is very stressful for your neck, but you can still sleep like that for years without problems.
Eventually it often leads to complaints. It usually starts with an occasional heavy feeling in your head. Sometimes the neck is sensitive or stiff, and gradually it gets worse. This process can take years and result in continuously present heavy headache.
Sleeping posture as a reason why the headache does not go away
The headache can also start suddenly, for example due to a fall or other trauma. Then a wrong sleeping posture is not the cause, but it can hinder recovery.
The neck must have the chance to recover, but if you lie twisted and crooked every night, that won't happen. As a result, you get headaches more often and they become worse.
How should you sleep to relieve your headache from the neck?
How to sleep to recover from headache-from-your-neck is actually obvious: make sure you do not sleep with a twisted or crooked neck position.
Body Pillow -> relieves the twist in your neck.
Hi4 Pillow -> ensures that the neck is not crooked.
The Hi4 Pillow is adjustable in 8 heights. This allows you to choose the height that suits you best.
Finally, with headaches it is important that the neck does not 'sag'. For that reason, the Hi4 pillow is designed so that the neck support actually supports the neck well.
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