Headaches are often triggered and/or aggravated by a constellation of muscles of the neck that contain taut bands, trigger points and other dysfunctional segments. Understanding the relationships between these muscles helps determine approaches for treatment and as well as self-care.
The muscles of the neck are part of a myofascial system that includes not only an anatomical but also a functional continuum. This means that a dysfunction of one muscular portion will result in a functional alteration of all the muscles of the neck. This must be taken into account for a successful resolution of the problem.
Major Muscle Groups
There are three groups of muscles that cause much of this pain directly. In addition, these muscles tend to cause satellite trigger points and dysfunctional patterns in other muscles of the