Spanish
Korean
Over the past twenty years, our offices have seen hundreds of patients suffering from neuralgia conditions. As the title of this article suggests, there are three main types of neuralgia conditions, occipital neuralgia being the most common and glossopharyngeal neuralgia being the least common.
Each of these conditions has one commonality, they are exceedingly painful, and mainstream medicine has little in the way of solving their underlying cause. In this article, we will discuss each of these conditions presentation and then explain how all of them can be tied to upper cervical spine misalignment. We will then explain how upper cervical care can help you or a loved one recover from these terrible conditions.
Ooccipital neuralgia - Sarasota and Tampa Bay Area
By downloading the Digital Patient Chart mobile app you can better control your patient portal.
Occipital neuralgia is a condition where severe pain at the base of the skull is present. Many times people who suffer from occipital neuralgia only experience pain on one side of the back of the head. Oftentimes the pain is stabbing and radiates up the back of the head.
Most suffer from a dull ache that either comes and goes or is in some cases constant. Other associated symptoms commonly seen are fatigue, insomnia, cognitive problems, and depression.
It is our contention after 20 years in practice and seeing hundreds of occipital neuralgia cases that the ROOT CAUSE of most occipital neuralgia cases is prior cervical spine injury. Injury to the upper cervical spine leads to chronic muscle tightness in the neck and other parts of the spine and body.
In the case of occipital neuralgia, we believe it is caused by muscles that are entrapping the occipital nerves. When the muscles at the base of the skull become tight they can compress the lesser and greater occipital nerves which result in occipital neuralgia. At the end of this article, we will discuss how to correct the underlying cause of these neuralgia conditions.
Trigeminal neuralgia what is it? Trigeminal neuralgia treatment Sarasota snd Tampa bay
Trigeminal neuralgia is a severe pain condition that affects one, two, or all three branches of the trigeminal nerve. Most often it affects one side of the face but less commonly patients can suffer from atypical bilateral trigeminal neuralgia.
Since trigeminal neuralgia responds well to upper cervical correction we have come up with several mechanisms that help explain how an upper cervical spine misalignment can be the root cause of trigeminal neuralgia.
The trigeminal ganglion (the brain of the nerve) sits at the anatomical junction of the TMJ and skull region. Overlying the ganglion is the temporalis muscle. There is some evidence that when the temporalis muscle is in chronic spasm it can entrap ( put pressure on) the trigeminal ganglion. This irritation inflames and irritates the trigeminal ganglion and can lead to trigeminal neuralgia-type symptoms.
Furthermore, the brainstem is housed by both the bottom part of the skull and the first cervical vertebrae. Structural misalignments at the base of the skull cause irritation and tensile stress on the brainstem.
The nuclei that control the trigeminal nerve are located in the brainstem. Irritation to this most vital structure can influence function in the body in a plethora of ways resulting in a host of health conditions including trigeminal neuralgia.
Glossopharyngeal neuralgia and upper cervical treatment- Sarasota snd Tampa Bay Area
Glossopharyngeal neuralgia (GPN) is by far the least common neuralgia condition. Over the twenty years, we have been practicing the Blair upper cervical technique we have seen four cases. Regardless of its rarity, it is equally as devastating and painful as the other two neuralgia conditions we have mentioned.
Commonly people who suffer from GPN have sharp stabbing pain in the throat and often feel a severe burning sensation that can be intermittent or constant. Like the other neuralgia, I tinned these patients are generally given anti-seizure medications which are sometimes helpful but do nothing to get to its underlying cause.
Listen to what one patient has to say about her glossopharyngeal recovery through the Blair upper cervical technique!
Allison’s story which can be verified on google reviews - upper cervical health care Los Angeles.
Dr. Hall has saved my life. I have been battling Glossopharyngeal Neuralgia (GPN - aka "the suicide disease") for the last two years. I was a professional singer and actor, but GPN took away my ability to perform.
The pain in my throat had been constant, 24/7 burning that entire time. My flare-ups, which often came out of nowhere and happened incredibly frequently, made me bedridden a lot of the time because the pain was just so unbearable.
I had several surgeries, and nothing helped. If anything they made me worse. I got to the point where my doctors (neurologists included - and GPN is a nerve disorder) were all telling me it was something I was going to have to live with forever and kept putting me on various medications, many of which I have been on for several years (and am now able to wean away from), many of which also caused such terrible side effects they weren't even worth trying for too long.
Dr. Hall is the first doctor during my journey to recovery that has been genuinely optimistic that I will get better. And sure enough, after my very first adjustment, it was like night and day!!! I am tearing up even writing this because GPN took so much away from me - my career, my social life, my ability to exercise (caused flare-ups), and so much more that I found myself battling depression on top of the most unbearable chronic pain imaginable.
Since I started treatment with Dr. Hall, my pain level has decreased exponentially to the point where for the first time in two years I've actually had some completely pain-free days!!
And on the whole, I live at around a pain level of 1 or 2 for now when it used to average at about 7 (and that's on the GPN scale with a pretty high tolerance). Also, for the first time in two years... I SANG.
I sang without pain - softly, and just for myself for now, but before Dr. Hall, all my other doctors told me it was unlikely that I would ever sing again. He has also made it clear that he is confident that I will be pain-free on the whole sooner rather than later. I believe him because after just three months I am almost completely back to my normal self!!
Dr. Hall has truly given me my life back and I will be eternally grateful. Finding Upper Cervical Chiropractic was the best thing that has ever happened to me because I am finally breaking free of the chains of my pain that had been weighing me down. I could not possibly recommend Dr. Hall highly enough.
Everything he explained to me made sense. He has been patient, optimistic, thorough in his exams, and he actually listens and genuinely cares. I know I'm not out of the woods yet, but I cannot explain how elated it makes me to finally have a light at the end of the tunnel - and very close too. From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU DR. HALL!!
What exactly does an upper cervical chiropractor do?
Blair Upper Cervical doctors are specially trained to locate spinal misalignments in the upper cervical spine and correct them. Spinal misalignments are located by running a battery of neurological tests that locate the spinal segments that have been injured and misaligned by a prior neck injury.
Once located, precision imaging in the form of digital x-ray or cone-beam computed tomography (cbct) is used to precisely determine which joint has misaligned and the angulation of the misaligned joint.
Each person’s anatomy is different and therefore imaging is used to uncover the blueprint to be used to correct each patient’s individual misalignment pattern. Once this information is gleaned, a gentle, light correction is made without twisting, popping, or pulling.
The patient is then monitored overtime to ensure that the correction is holding. If the testing indicates the need for another correction, then it is performed.
However, the goal of Blair Upper Cervical Care is for the patient to stay in “adjustment”. It isn’t the correction that produces healing. It is the removal of nerve irritation and the adjustment “holding” in its normal position that allows the body to function better and proceed through a healing process.
This is how Blair Chiropractic care can often help remove the underlying cause of many who suffer from Eustachian tube dysfunction, tinnitus, Vertigo, Meniere’s disease, neck pain, migraine headaches, and other chronic health problems by supporting the body in healing itself.
Leave a comment