If your headaches start at the base of your skull and spread forward — often on one side, often worse after a long day at the desk — you may have a cervicogenic headache. It's the headache type that originates in the neck, and it's the one chiropractic care helps most reliably.
What Is A Cervicogenic Headache?
"Cervicogenic" literally means "originating in the cervical spine" — your neck. The pain is referred: the actual problem is in the joints, discs, or muscles of your neck, but you feel it as a headache. It's frequently mistaken for migraine or tension headache, which is why so many people go years without the right answer.
The Tell-Tale Signs
Pain that starts at the base of the skull and spreads to the front of the head
Usually one-sided, staying on the same side
Triggered or worsened by neck movement or sustained postures
Here's the encouraging part: because the source is mechanical and lives in the neck, cervicogenic headaches are exactly the kind of problem chiropractic is built to solve. When we restore proper motion to the restricted cervical segments and release the surrounding tension, the referred pain into the head frequently resolves — sometimes faster than patients expect.
Our Approach
Confirm the source. A focused cervical exam identifies the segments referring pain into your head.
Restore motion. Precise adjustments and soft-tissue work address the neck dysfunction directly.
Lock in relief.Postural rehab corrects the mechanics so the headaches don't return.
"He took the time to go over the X-rays with me and clearly explain — using pictures — why I'd been feeling so miserable."
Finally Treat The Real Cause
If you've been chasing the wrong diagnosis, this may be the answer you've been missing. We help cervicogenic-headache patients from Bellingham, Lynden, and Ferndale. Start with a $47 first visit.
Cervicogenic Headache FAQ
QUESTIONS, ANSWERED.
A cervicogenic headache is a headache that actually originates in the neck — the pain is referred from the joints, discs, or muscles of the cervical spine up into the head. It's often felt on one side, starting at the base of the skull and spreading forward.
Cervicogenic headaches typically start in the neck and can be provoked by neck movements or sustained postures, and they're usually one-sided without the nausea and aura of migraine. Because they're driven by the neck, they respond especially well to chiropractic care.
Because the source is mechanical — the neck — this is the headache type chiropractic helps most reliably. By restoring proper motion and relieving the irritated cervical structures, many patients get dramatic, lasting relief.
Common causes include poor posture and tech neck, prior neck injuries (like whiplash), joint restrictions, and degenerative changes in the upper cervical spine.
Many cervicogenic-headache patients notice improvement within the first few visits as the neck restrictions are addressed, with lasting results as posture and mechanics are corrected.
