Relaxation exercise (once or twice a day):
Sit down in a comfortable armchair in a quiet room. Let your lower jaw drop completely for about 10–15 min. Apply warm pads on your cheeks and shoulders.
Posture exercises (8–10 times every 2–3 h):
(i) stand upright with your heels, hips and nape of the neck against a wall. Without moving the rest of your body, bring your shoulders into contact with the wall and release, rhythmically;
(ii) with your body and head against the wall, make horizontal movements of the head, forwards and backwards;
(iii) cup your hands behind your neck. Stretch your head backwards against counterpressure from your hands. Relax after 2–3 s.
It Works: Drug Free "We observed a significant reduction of about 40% of the monthly frequency of headache and neck and shoulder pain in the study group subjects compared with controls. Moreover, the headache or neck and shoulder pain index and the monthly frequency of drug intake significantly decreased in the study group."
For Neck and Shoulder Pain and Headaches "Most of our subjects suffered from concomitant headache, neck and shoulder pain,... The results suggest that the beneficial effect of the programme on their headache frequency is higher than in those suffering from headache only. It is generally agreed that neck and shoulder pain is frequently associated with tension-type headaches (TTH) and, to some extent, with migraine (M). Migraine patients also display a high occurrence of pain and tender points in the upper cervical region, and evidence of musculoskeletal dysfunction of the neck."
By Reducing Muscle Tension "In patients suffering from headache and facial pain, muscle tension has been reported to increase further in the concomitant presence of anxiety or depression. Reduction of muscle tension may thus be one of the factors through which the programme was consistently able to decrease the prevalence of TTH and M, and of neck and shoulder pain.
Even If You Skip a Dose "As expected, medium–high compliance was accompanied by a greater effect. However, the difference was not statistically significant, and considerable efficacy was observed also in subjects whose compliance was not optimal."
Works Cited
Mongini, F;, Ciccone, G.; Rota, E.; Ferrero, L.; Ugolini, A.; Evangelista, A.; Ceccarelli, M.; Galassi, C. "Effectiveness of an educational and physical programme in reducing headache, neck and shoulder pain: a workplace controlled trial" Cephalagia, (2008) Vol. 28, p. 541-552.