Cervicogenic Headache Treatment at Home: Tips and Techniques

What is a cervicogenic headache, and how can you treat it at home?

According to Dr. Tershelle Burrows, D.C., a cervicogenic headache is a secondary headache that originates from physical issues in the neck (the cervical spine) rather than the head itself. For cervicogenic headache treatment at home, practicing good sleeping posture, maintaining proper desk ergonomics, applying cold or heat therapy, and performing gentle neck stretches can help relieve tension. However, the most effective way to treat the underlying cause is to have a licensed Doctor of Chiropractic diagnose your symptoms and correct any spinal misalignments or joint restrictions. ¹

Headache pain can affect anyone, from children and adolescents to adults; in fact, it is likely to affect just about everyone at some point: about 96% of people experience a headache at least once in their lifetime. ²

While the experience of having your day derailed by headache pain may be virtually universal, the cause, severity, frequency, and type of headaches can vary widely—sometimes in the same individual.

Where Do Headaches Come From, Anyway?

Headache pain is the result of multiple mechanisms in your brain, blood vessels, and surrounding nerves activating to create a perfect storm, one that sends pain signals to your brain, causing a headache.

Most headache pain fits into two categories: primary headaches and secondary headaches.

Types of Primary Headaches

Some primary headaches, like migraines, may have a genetic link; for others, the cause is unknown, as primary headaches do not have an underlying medical condition. However, they can be triggered by lifestyle factors, like alcohol (particularly red wine), foods that contain nitrates, disrupted sleep, physical exertion, or low blood sugar.

Tension headaches:

These are the most common type of headache and often have a neuromuscular cause—usually the neck and shoulders—brought on by poor posture or stress (from holding our bodies stiff and tense).

Migraine headaches:

Like cervicogenic headaches, migraines usually cause severe, unrelenting pain on one side of the head. Bright lights, strong odors, noise, and physical activity can both cause and worsen migraine pain.

Cluster headaches

Arguably the most painful and disruptive; cluster headaches cause severe, one-sided head pain and happen multiple times per day, usually following a pattern. Medication is often required to help patients cope with the intensity.

Types of Secondary Headaches

Unlike primary headaches, secondary headaches are usually linked to a medical condition—although they are rarely dangerous and typically resolve with treatment of the underlying cause. Secondary headaches can be caused by dehydration, sinus congestion, or medication overuse.

When Headache Pain Turns Dangerous

If you are experiencing these signs or symptoms of headache pain, seek medical attention immediately.

Spinal headaches

Typically, a side effect from a spinal tap procedure, spinal headaches are potentially life-threatening, intense headaches that occur when spinal fluid leaks out of the membrane covering your spinal cord. Most can be treated at home, but it’s important to report any post-spinal tap headache pain to your doctor.

Thunderclap headaches

Intensely painful, these serious headaches come on suddenly (like a clap of thunder), reach their most intense severity within one minute of onset, and last at least five minutes. They can indicate a head injury, brain bleed, reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome, or a sudden, severe rise in blood pressure.

An exception to these general rules is new daily persistent headaches (NDPH), a rare but disruptive and often chronic condition. NDPH can be considered primary (no known cause) or secondary (linked to an illness or injury).

Understanding Cervicogenic Headache Pain

Ask any chiropractor about cervicogenic headaches, and they’ll probably have a lot to say. We treat them commonly in our clinics because cervicogenic headaches are considered secondary headaches. In their case, the underlying cause of pain is usually your cervical spine.

“When you are dealing with a cervicogenic headache, the pain in your head is often a warning sign that something is misaligned in your neck. My goal is to find that root cause so we can restore your mobility, improve your function, and get you back to enjoying your quality of life without constant, disruptive pain.” — Dr. Tershelle Burrows, D.C.

A cervicogenic headache (CGH) originates in the neck, usually causing pain unilaterally, or along both sides. They’re what we describe as referred pain—pain that is felt in one area of the body but originates in another. In this case, the cause of pain is the bony structures or soft tissues of the neck ³. Neck movement is the primary culprit for cervicogenic headache pain, which is why most cervicogenic headaches are accompanied by reduced range of motion in the neck. Painful and disruptive, it’s common to confuse them with migraine or tension headache pain.

Here’s how to know if you may be dealing with a cervicogenic headache:

• The pain starts in your neck with pain symptoms moving to your head or face.
• The neck is the problem, not the head. A headache is not confirmed to be cervicogenic until clinical signs implicate a source of pain—a diagnosis that can pinpoint an issue in your cervical structures.
• Pain resolves within three months after successful treatment of the underlying cervical spine condition.

Cervicogenic headaches usually arise from issues in the C1, C2, and C3 of the spine, irritating the surrounding nerves.

What Conditions Cause Cervicogenic Headaches?

So how do you end up with a cervicogenic headache? What conditions or habits are happening in the neck to lead to this kind of pain?

While it doesn’t usually show up on an MRI, whiplash is an acknowledged and painful condition that results when a car accident or other trauma snaps your head forward or backward. The result? Painful tightening in your neck and shoulders can lead to cervicogenic headaches.

But whiplash is not the only cause. Other conditions include:

• Arthritis in the neck
• Neck fractures
• Pinched nerves
• Slipped disks
• Strained or sprained neck muscles

Can Poor Posture Cause Cervicogenic Headache Pain?

While not as serious as a fracture or a disc injury in the short-term, poor posture can have long-term effects. Hours spent sitting curved over a desk, laptop, steering wheel, or phone can lead to forward head carriage, a common postural fault that occurs when the head is positioned forward of the shoulders and in front of the body’s vertical midline. ⁴ In neutral head posture, the ears line up with the shoulders and midline. (Check out our blog on 7 Surprising Causes of Back Pain for more posture tips!)

The added pounds of pressure on your spine, muscles, and surrounding nerves can lead to painful cervicogenic headaches. Forward head carriage can result from just about any behavior performed with poor posture over a long period of time, such as:

• Slouching, hunching or slumping, especially while at a desk, driving, or using your phone.
• Poor sleeping posture, like using a pillow that doesn’t support the neck or holds it at too high an angle.
• Habitually carrying a heavy backpack or purse on one shoulder.
• Too little activity or exercise, which can lead to weakness in the muscles of the upper back.

Arthritis and bone degeneration can also lead to cervicogenic headaches as inflammation puts pressure on the nerves, and degeneration of the cervical joint causes disc prolapse.

Finding Relief from Cervicogenic Headache Pain

There are several options for cervicogenic headache treatment at home, though most are not simple one-and-done treatments. The key to cervicogenic headache treatment at home is to correct the underlying issue. It requires consistency and commitment. Here’s how to get started:

Practice good sleeping posture.

Your sleep posture and habits can affect your entire body, soit’s important to practice good ergonomics, even at night. When it comes to protecting the health of your neck, your best bets are to sleep on your side or your back.

• Use the right pillow: A rounded pillow will support the natural curve of your neck pain. Try using a feather pillow or a memory foam contour pillow to foster proper spinal alignment.
• Adjust your height: If you sleep on your side, keep your spine straight by using a pillow that is higher under your neck than your head. Avoid using too high or stiff a pillow, which keeps the neck flexed overnight.
• Travel smart: When riding in a plane, train, or car, a horseshoe-shaped pillow can support your neck. If it is too large behind the neck, however, it will force your head forward.
• Avoid stomach sleeping: Sleeping on your stomach causes your back to arch while holding your neck in a rotated position.

Practice good desk ergonomics.

The hours you spend at a desk or upright at a computer can really add up.

• Ensure you’re looking straight ahead; your eyes should point directly at the top third of the computer screen.
• Check your arm positioning: your forearms should be parallel with the floor.
• Your elbows should be out to your side.
• If you’re sitting, your feet should be flat on the floor with your thighs parallel to the floor.

Master massage

While they cannot correct the spinal misalignments behind your cervicogenic headache, foam rollers, massage balls, and electric massage guns can help temporarily relieve muscle tension that may be putting pressure on surrounding nerves.

Try time-tested methods

Cold therapy, heat therapy, and over-the-counter medications can provide relief from pain symptoms. Try using them in conjunction with the tips above for maximum benefit.

Practice stress relief

Tensing, slouching, and hunching can all lead to postural misalignments. Conscious relaxation (bring those shoulders down away from your ears; relax your jaw) can help, especially when combined with good ergonomics.

Simple Stretches and Exercises to Relieve Cervicogenic Headaches

1. Neck stretches: Sitting or standing, gently tilt your head to one side, trying to touch your ear to your shoulder. Hold for 10-15 seconds and then repeat on the other side.
2. Shoulder shrugs: Raise your shoulders up toward your ears and hold for a few seconds before lowering them back down. Repeat 10 times.
3. Chin tucks: Sit up straight and pull your chin back, as if you’re making a double chin. Hold for 5 seconds and then release. Repeat 10 times.
4. Scapular retraction: Imagine trying to hold a ball between your shoulder blades. Pinch your shoulder blades together—try and squeeze them as close to each other as possible.
5. Trapezius stretching: Stand or sit upright. Bring your left ear down to your left shoulder, keeping the shoulder lowered. Take your left hand and place it over the top of the right side of the head. Gently pull the head to the left, feeling a light stretch along the right shoulder and neck. Hold for 30 seconds. Repeat 2-3 times on each side.

Ready to Find the Root of Your Pain?

All these tips can help you manage the pain of cervicogenic headaches. However, to get relief that lasts, the best option is to seek out professional support. Chiropractic care can correct spinal and postural misalignments, relieve inflammation, and address disc issues. ¹ Your chiropractor will help you find the root cause of your cervicogenic headaches and treat the underlying issue to help stop pain where it starts.

Find a Chiro One clinic near you or book an appointment today.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the difference between a cervicogenic headache and a migraine?

A cervicogenic headache originates from a physical issue in the neck (cervical spine) and refers pain to the head, often accompanied by reduced neck mobility. A migraine is a primary headache that is neurological in nature, often triggered by lifestyle factors, and usually comes with symptoms like light sensitivity, strong odor sensitivity, or nausea.

How do I know if my headache is from my neck?

If your headache is accompanied by neck stiffness, reduced range of motion, or pain that radiates from the base of your skull up into one side of your face or head, it is highly likely to be a cervicogenic headache.

Can stress cause a cervicogenic headache?

Yes, indirectly. When you are stressed, it is common to tense the muscles in your neck, jaw, and shoulders. Over time, this chronic tension can pull your cervical spine out of alignment and create joint restrictions that trigger a cervicogenic headache.

Can a chiropractor cure my cervicogenic headache?

By diagnosing and treating the underlying cervical spine misalignments or joint restrictions that cause the referred pain, chiropractic adjustments can effectively relieve—and often completely resolve—cervicogenic headaches.

How long does a cervicogenic headache last?

Without treating the underlying neck issue, a cervicogenic headache can be a chronic, recurring, and continuous disruption. However, pain often resolves within a few months after successful chiropractic treatment of the cervical spine condition.

References

1. Nilsson, Niels, et al. The Effect of Spinal Manipulation in the Treatment of Cervicogenic Headache. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, vol. 20, no. 5, 1997, pp. 326-330.
2. Cleveland Clinic. Headache: What It Is, Types, Causes, Symptoms & Treatment. Cleveland Clinic, 29 Aug. 2022.
3. Chaibi, Aleksander, et al. Chiropractic Spinal Manipulative Therapy for Cervicogenic Headache: A Single-Blinded, Placebo, Randomized Controlled Trial. BMC Research Notes, vol. 10, no. 310, 2017.
4. Usen, Ahmet, and Merve Demiroz Gunduz. Cervicogenic Headache in Forward Head Posture: Frequency and Associated Factors in a Cross-Sectional Study. Journal of Oral & Facial Pain and Headache, vol. 39, no. 3, 2025, pp. 191-199.