How Massage Can Help Decrease Tension Headaches

Did you know that when muscles get tight, they can cause referral pain and/or headaches. Daily activities, such as reading, sitting at a desk, staring at screens, or even postural habits can cause muscles in the neck, shoulders, and upper back to tighten. Over time, these tight muscles can develop trigger points; small, hypersensitive knots that can refer pain into the head, creating what feels like a tension headache.

When the cause of your headaches stems from muscular tension or trigger points, massage therapy can be an effective tool to find relief. By addressing the underlying muscular dysfunction rather than just masking the symptoms, massage can help decrease both the frequency and intensity of your headaches, and eventually become a way to prevent them.

Here are three ways massage therapy can help reduce tension headaches:

1. Releasing Trigger Points

Trigger points in muscles like the upper trapezius, suboccipitals, or sternocleidomastoid often refer pain into the head and behind the eyes. Your massage therapist can locate and release these points using gentle pressure techniques. By treating these hyper sensitive spots, the muscle is able to lengthen and function normally again—reducing referred pain and easing headache symptoms.

2. Decreasing Stress and Balancing the Nervous System

Tension headaches are often made worse by chronic stress, which keeps your nervous system in a heightened state of alertness, the “flight or fight” state of the body. Massage therapy helps calm this response by activating the parasympathetic nervous system; the happy “rest and digest” state of the body. This shift encourages relaxation, lowering stress hormone levels, and helps release overall body tension. As your nervous system settles, muscles begin to relax more naturally, blood flow improves, and your body moves out of the state of stress that contributes to tension headaches.

3. Restoring Proper Muscle Balance and Posture

Poor posture places extra strain on neck and shoulder muscles. Over time, the increase demand poor posture puts on our muscles causes them to tighten up even more, worsening headaches. Massage can help correct these imbalances by lengthening tight muscles and encouraging better alignment, making it easier to maintain healthy posture and prevent future tension buildup.

Your massage therapist may also provide you with stretching or strengthening exercises to maintain the results between sessions and reduce/ prevent recurrence of headaches.

At Zoomers our massage therapists are skilled in identifying and treating the muscular causes of tension headaches. Through targeted techniques, they’ll help release trigger points, improve circulation, and restore balance so you can experience lasting relief. If tension headaches are having an impact on your life, book a massage therapy session today and start your journey toward a clearer, pain-free head!