If you've ever had a headache that wraps around your temples like a vice, radiates from the base of your skull, or settles behind your eyes with a dull, relentless pressure, you know how completely it can take over your day. What many people don't realize is that the majority of tension headaches and many migraine-related symptoms originate not in the head itself, but in the muscles of the neck, shoulders, and scalp.
The suboccipital muscles at the base of your skull are some of the biggest culprits. When these tiny but powerful muscles tighten — from stress, screen time, forward head posture, or poor sleep positioning — they compress nerves and restrict blood flow in ways that send pain radiating up and over the skull. This is what's known as a cervicogenic headache pattern, and it's remarkably common. Trigger points in the upper trapezius, sternocleidomastoid, and temporalis muscles can produce referred pain into the temples, behind the eyes, across the brow, and into the scalp. Even scalp tightness itself can contribute to that heavy, tight-band sensation that makes concentrating impossible.
When I work with headache clients, I spend focused time on the neck, suboccipitals, jaw, and upper shoulders — the areas where headache-producing tension most often lives. Therapeutic cupping along the upper traps and posterior neck helps decompress tissue that's been locked tight, improving blood flow to the head and relieving the vascular component that often accompanies tension headaches. Red light therapy supports this by reducing inflammation in irritated tissue and naturally boosting serotonin, which plays a role in migraine regulation.
Here in Spokane, I see headache patterns driven by everything from desk work and driving commutes to barometric pressure changes and our long, dark winters. My own brow tension tends to flare when I've been staring at my phone too long — my dogs would tell you I should be looking at them instead, and they'd be right.
Every session at Soothe & Sage includes cupping, red light therapy, salt stones, steamed towels, aromatherapy, and warm packs at one flat rate with no add-on fees. If headaches have become a regular part of your life, massage therapy can help address the muscular source — not just mask the symptoms.