★★★★☆
Hi! I think I have been dealing with occipital neuralgia. I have always been a headachy person but the intensity and frequency of my headaches was become quite a burden. I would call them migraines and they would last for days. And maybe they are migraines. I still don't have an official diagnosis in spite of being more proactive than usual to get medical help and a diagnosis. Anyway, my headaches would begin in my neck and I would have pain at the base of my skull. It radiates to behind my eyes. When severe I begin to have numbness in my face. One day, out of the blue, I had a shock pain in my neck. Well, that got my attention. I know a couple of people with trigeminal neuralgia and that was my first thought. But when I looked it up, I realized that the shock wasn't in the right place for that. But there is a nerve in the neck, where the shock was, and you can have occipital neuralgia. My chiropractor thinks the root problem is arthritis in my neck. I had significant inflammation in my neck when she last adjusted me. I started taking glucosamine at her suggestion a week ago. We shall see if that helps. But I have been doing something else that has been helping a lot and i have had very little pain in the last couple of weeks even though I have been under severe stress. I have an essential oil blend called "Sciatica" from Hopewell oils. It contains peppermint and cistus. I have used it on my lower back with success for occasional sciatica. I put this oil on my neck along my spine and at the base of my skill and anywhere else on my neck that feels painful. I do this at the first sign of pain and repeat every couple of hours. It really seems to help the pain and keep a headache from coming on. Meanwhile, the chiropractor has also given me exercises for my neck. I have also done a couple of youtube stretches designed for occipital nerve pain. If I find anything else that helps, I will report back! ~Mama to Many~
