When headaches keep interrupting your work, family time or plans, you want to understand what is happening and what your next step could be.
At Last Chiropractic welcomes people experiencing headaches and migraines in Lithia, FishHawk and surrounding communities. Whether your symptoms are recent or something you have managed for years, an individualized assessment can help you explore your options.
We take time to understand your headache pattern, assess your neck and spinal function, and examine relevant muscle, joint and neurologic findings. Our goal is to determine whether chiropractic care may benefit you and explain your options clearly.
You do not need to know what is causing your headaches before reaching out. Helping you understand the next step is part of why we are here.
Could Your Neck Be Contributing to Your Headaches?
Head pain does not always begin in the head. A cervicogenic headache originates from a problem in the neck. Some people notice pain beginning near the base of the skull, discomfort with turning their head, or headaches aggravated by certain neck positions.
The upper neck includes the joints connecting the skull, atlas and axis, along with nearby joints, muscles and sensory nerves. Painful or irritated tissues in this region can generate signals that are felt farther up in the head.
How Neck Signals Can Become Head Pain
Sensory signals from the upper neck meet signals from the trigeminal nerve, which carries sensation from much of the face and head, in a region called the trigeminocervical complex. These shared pathways help explain why a painful neck joint can produce discomfort in the back of the head, forehead or around an eye.
This is called referred pain. A nerve does not have to be pinched for it to occur. The C2–C3 joint is one recognized source: its sensory supply includes the third occipital nerve, which carries signals from that joint.
Read research investigating cervical joints as a source of headache.
The Muscles and Nerves at the Base of Your Skull
The small suboccipital muscles help control head position and movement. Nearby, the greater occipital nerve travels through the upper-neck region toward the scalp. Its close relationship with muscles and connective tissues creates potential sites of irritation.
Irritation of an occipital nerve can produce shooting or electric-like pain and scalp sensitivity, a pattern called occipital neuralgia. This differs from pain referred from a neck joint, although the symptoms can overlap.
An assessment helps distinguish these patterns. We consider movement, tenderness, joint function and neurologic findings together; an alignment finding alone does not identify the source of a headache.
Explore research on the greater occipital nerve and upper-neck muscles.
Upper-Cervical Chiropractic Care and Headache Research
Upper-cervical chiropractic approaches focus on evaluating and caring for the upper portion of the neck. At Last Chiropractic offers Orthospinology upper-cervical care when the examination supports its use.
Researchers have investigated headache outcomes during upper-cervical care, including approaches related to those used in our office.
A Multicenter Study Including Orthospinology
A 2011 observational study followed 1,090 patients across 83 chiropractic offices. Participating approaches included Orthospinology, NUCCA, Grostic and Atlas Orthogonal, among others.
Among patients whose headache pain started at 3 or higher on a 0–10 scale, 62.7% reported headache pain below 3 at follow-up, averaging approximately 17 days. This describes improvement in pain ratings, rather than the elimination of a headache disorder.
Read the multicenter upper-cervical study.
A NUCCA Pilot Study in People With Migraine
A 2015 pilot study followed 11 people with neurologist-diagnosed migraine during eight weeks of NUCCA care. Average headache days decreased from 14.5 to 8.7 per 28-day period, alongside improvements in headache-related disability and quality-of-life measures.
Read the NUCCA migraine pilot study.
These observational studies reported encouraging changes during care, but neither included an untreated or sham-treatment comparison group. They cannot establish that adjustments caused the improvement or predict an individual result; the NUCCA findings are not specific evidence for Orthospinology.
Living With Migraine? An Assessment Can Help You Explore Your Options.
Migraine is a neurological disorder that may include head pain, nausea and sensitivity to light or sound. It can also occur alongside neck discomfort or restricted movement.
We welcome patients with migraines and assess these accompanying concerns to determine whether chiropractic care could play a useful role in their overall care. We can coordinate with your existing healthcare team or recommend another medical evaluation when appropriate.
Clinically reviewed by Anthony Taylor, DC. Updated September 2026
Your Headache Evaluation at At Last Chiropractic
We begin with your story: when your headaches started, how often they occur, associated symptoms and how they affect your routine. Bring information about previous evaluations, medications and any headache diary you keep.
Your initial visit includes a health history, consultation, postural and biomechanical assessment, and relevant examination and neurologic testing. Motion-series and/or postural X-rays are recommended when clinically necessary.
At a separate Report of Findings visit, we explain the examination results and discuss your options. Treatment can begin at that visit if appropriate and agreed upon.
When chiropractic care is recommended, our doctors use instrument-assisted techniques, including Torque Release Technique and upper-cervical approaches, based on your findings, comfort and goals. We explain the proposed care, potential benefits, risks and alternatives.
Learn what to expect at your first visits.
Your Next Step Starts With an Assessment
You do not have to figure out on your own whether chiropractic care is right for your headaches. Come with your questions, your concerns and your goals. We will assess the relevant findings and help you understand your next step, including referral when another healthcare professional’s evaluation is needed.
Visit At Last Chiropractic at 5611 Skytop Drive, Lithia, FL 33547, near FishHawk West. We welcome patients from Lithia, FishHawk, Riverview, Brandon and Valrico.
Call 813-461-6500 or request an appointment below.
For sudden or unusual symptoms: Call 911 for a sudden, severe headache or headache with new weakness, difficulty speaking, confusion or sudden vision loss. Seek urgent medical assessment for headache with fever and a stiff neck, or a new or worsening headache after a head injury.
