CASE STUDY “Sandy”

• Information gathered at the evaluation:
Sandy had severe headaches for many years. She had tried “everything” and nothing provided lasting relief. She had grown children and was the primary caretaker for a disabled relative. She had what she described as a “background” headache just about everyday and migraines and tension headaches several times a week. She was aware that she clenched her teeth at night but didn’t think she did during the day.

Sandy had a very active life in spite of her chronic headaches. She reported that she would often override how badly she felt in order to get things done. Her description of herself revealed that she had very high expectations of herself and put everyone needs ahead of her own.

• Beginning-her headache frequency was a low grade headache just about everyday and migraines 3-4 per week.

• Midway-here headache frequency- 3 in one week. After the first session Sandy noticed that her shoulders were always “up around her ears” when she checked. But, although she knew she clenched her teeth at night she steadfastly denied doing it during the day. As she approached the 5 session, she was picking up on how here body was responding to stress and was noticing fewer headaches of less intensity. She also noticed that during a week long visit from a favorite relative, she was headache free!

• End- here headache frequency- only 2 headaches in two weeks. Sandy realized at the next to last session that she was clenching her teeth during the day particularly while at the computer. Not only that, she noticed that her jaw muscles were sore most of the time which is a sure indication of clenching. She was amazed that she could be experiencing so much discomfort without “realizing it”. After becoming aware of this daytime habit, she was able to notice much quicker when she was clenching and was able to stop. It didn’t take long for this habit to reverse itself. For her, it now felt uncomfortable to clench and normal not to.

The type of headaches that respond the best are tension or migraine headaches that are more frequent that once a month. Cluster headaches, and constant headaches are not as responsive to this approach. Despite that, Sandy was able to significantly reduce the frequency, duration and intensity of her headaches. Because the our natural approach is a training, not a cure, as long as Sandy applies what she has learned she can expect to continue to have fewer and fewer headaches because she is now in charge of her headache prevention.

• Information gathered at the evaluation: Laura is a 46 year old accountant and financial officer of a large health related organization. Her headaches started two years ago. She is married and has a 7 year old child. She typically used 10 injections/pills of Imitrex a month. Her statement at the beginning of the training was: “My headaches usually occur over the weekend and interfere with time I spend with family and friends and can reduce my productivity at work by 50%.” because they are most frequently after a week of working at her high-stress job, leaving her fatigued and unable to function at the optimum levels needed to fulfill her job related duties. This also contributed to her stress level as she felt her job was in serious jeopardy.

Laura had what we call “let down headaches” or “vacation” headaches because they occured most frequently after a week of working at her high-stress job, leaving her fatigued and unable to function at the optimum levels. Her time with family and friends was impaired and because her productivity at work was affected it contributed to her stress level as she felt her job was in serious jeopardy.

• Beginning – severe headaches that lasted from Saturday-Monday every week Laura’s company was experiencing internal disorganization which translated into and unrelenting pace with multiple demands on her from several departments. Her style was to work beyond her limits and to interpret the situation as that she was somehow “lacking” because she could not keep up.

• Midway-she actually had several weeks with no headaches/no Imitrex. At first Laura had difficulty scheduling her training sessions because she was so busy putting the needs of her job first. She was unable to carve out any time for herself. And, she often found herself on the verge of tears in her attempts “to keep it all together”. But the pain overcame her job concerns as she realized that she would lose her job anyway if she continued in the direction she was going. She realized that her fear was that she was somehow inadequate and that was why she couldn’t respond appropriately to the unrealistic demands that were being made upon her.

She began to take more control of her life and decided that she would do her best without putting herself at risk and that would have to be good enough.

• End – her headache frequency was two mild headaches a month lasting a few hours instead of days. Laura had come along way in managing not only her muscular tension but also her reactions to stresses at work that made her feel inadequate.

Along with the physical changes she made, she was able to pace herself and prioritize the requests that were made on her, reduce her work week hours to a more realistic level, all without any repercussions from her superiors.

She was happier and had enjoyable weekends that left her feeling refreshed. She had reduced her Imitrex usage less than 3 injections/pills per month.

Laura can expect her headaches to continue to improve over time, as she continues to practice what she has learned. When you are someone who is prone to headaches, the techniques used in our natural approach are incorporated into your life so that you become the person in charge of your headache prevention.

A new blog about a subject we have expert knowledge about

Where to start?

Well how about our reaction to this article in the Houston Chronicle, “So many ways to treat so many types of headache”. Here is the part that pushed us over the edge.

Nerve Decompression Surgery: Involves an incision at the back of the head to remove thick tissue that squeezes occipital nerves. Recommended for people who have had daily, constant headaches for more than 6 months and do not respond well to medications.

Unbelievable, going under the knife to relieve headaches like we treated in our biofeedback practice for over 30 years and online for 12. We were horrified at the these barbaric treatments headache sufferers are offered instead of non-invasive, non-drug options.

It’s the last straw for us. We have been playing way to small and there are way too many people enduring needless pain when there is a proven, natural solution that works and has absolutely no negative side effects.

We would like to get to know the people with headaches who find their way here. You are looking for answers. We want to know about your personal journey in search of headache relief and prevention. If you suffer from chronic headaches (we define that has having more than one migraine, tension or mixed headache per month), we really want to hear from you.

We are counselors and biofeedback therapists. We’ve had a lot of success teaching people like you how to prevent headaches for over 30 years. We are experts and we truly want to help.

You see, it is more important than ever that you get the truth about how to manage your chronic headaches using a healthy, non-drug approach.

We are so tired of all the promises that doctors and drug companies make to people who suffer from chronic headaches. In fact, every time we see another prime time advertisement on TV from the drug companies about another new drug for headache pain, it makes our heads hurt because we know that the real solution is not being shared.