“How do you treat chronic headaches?”

Treating chronic headaches requires knowledge of what type of headache it is. Is it a migraine headache? A tension type headache? A cluster headache? A medication rebound headache? A headache due to elevated blood pressure? A stress related headache? Cervicogenic headache? There can be no uniformity of approaches taken to headaches, but rather a careful assessment of risk factors; diagnostic studies like CT scans of the brain; a review of medication use; a family and personal history; and a physical examination. It is not possible to provide a 'one size fits all' approach to headache management, unfortunately.

Kenneth D. Candido, M.D.

There are various ways to treat chronic headaches. There are many different medications that you can try first, but, if the medications are not helping, a neurologist will diagnose you with chronic migraines (some insurances require the diagnosis from a neurologist) and then you are able to get authorization through your insurance for Botox which can be done every 3 months and has great results with decreasing the amount of migraines a patient gets each month and the severity of them.

It depends on the type of headache, but finding the cause is key. I suggest stretches and core muscle strengthening. Too often, people have poor posture and strain their muscles and ligaments in unnatural alignment.