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Headaches & Migraines
Some headaches are closely associated with muscular tension. Migraine is a neurological disorder and can involve throbbing pain, light or sound sensitivity, nausea, and other symptoms. A person can also have neck and shoulder tension during or between migraine attacks.
What it may feel like
Pressure or tightness around the head, pain that seems to rise from the neck or shoulders, temple or scalp tenderness, one-sided head pain, headache associated with jaw clenching, or muscular tension that reliably accompanies migraine.
What an LMT may assess
We assess the muscular and soft-tissue patterns that are within massage therapy scope and compare them with the headache pattern you already know.
We may assess
Neck and shoulder muscular guarding, upper-back restriction, suboccipital and scalp tenderness, temporalis and jaw tension, trigger-point referral, breathing and posture-related tension, and what positions or activities seem to aggravate symptoms.
History matters
We want to know whether the headache is familiar or new, whether you have a migraine diagnosis, what usually comes with the headache, what has changed, and whether anything about the current episode feels different from your usual pattern.
How Clinical Massage may fit
Clinical Massage may reduce muscular tension and referral patterns that accompany some headaches and may help some clients feel better during headache-free periods or when muscular tension is part of their migraine pattern.
What the evidence says
Massage has been studied for tension-type headache and migraine, but the research remains limited and inconsistent. That fits our clinical approach: we use massage for the muscular component when appropriate without presenting it as a replacement for medical migraine care.
“I walked in with a headache that would not go away despite several remedies. An hour with Nichole, and my headache was gone — and stayed gone. She understands how muscles can lead to pain in other areas.”Verified client review
“I've been to therapists in NY, NJ, and CT for stress relief and migraine prevention — Nichole is by far the best I've encountered.”Verified client review
The jaw and neck may matter
Headache patterns can overlap with jaw clenching, neck tension, whiplash history, prolonged computer work, and upper-shoulder guarding.
Related guides
If jaw tension is prominent, see Jaw Tension & TMJ →. If the headache pattern follows neck injury or prolonged neck strain, see Whiplash & Neck Pain → or Neck & Shoulder Strain →.
When a headache needs medical evaluation
New, severe, sudden, or substantially changed headaches should not be treated as routine muscular tension.
Seek urgent medical evaluation
An abrupt thunderclap headache; headache with fever, stiff neck, confusion, seizure, double vision, numbness or weakness; headache after significant head injury; or a new headache pattern with concerning neurological symptoms.
Also talk with your medical provider
If your usual headaches are becoming more frequent, changing character, waking you from sleep, or otherwise behaving differently from your established pattern.
Not sure where to start?
Start with the concern, not the technique. Clinical Massage is booked by time; we assess first and adapt the session around what you are experiencing.