Base-of-skull ache
A band or pressure that starts where the neck meets the head.
Headaches and Migraine care in Waunakee
Kee Health sees headache patterns in Waunakee for adults in Madison, Sun Prairie, and Dane County, especially tension headaches and migraines that track with neck and upper-back restriction. This is musculoskeletal care — chiropractic, myofascial release, and dry needling when the exam fits — not a promise to cure migraine.
New patients: please call to schedule your first visit.
What we see most
Screen days
Headaches that show up after a long laptop or phone day.
Neck-linked migraine
Migraine days that also come with a stiff neck or limited rotation.
Trap trigger points
Upper-trap knots that refer ache into the head.
How Kee Health approaches headaches
Many headaches that bring people to a chiropractor in Waunakee or Madison start in the neck. The joint at the top of the neck is stiff. The upper trap or the muscles at the base of the skull stay tight. The headache builds through a screen day, a drive, or a night of poor sleep, and it eases when the neck finally moves. That pattern is what this page is for.
Migraine is different from a tension headache, and we do not treat every migraine as a neck problem. If your migraine days also come with neck restriction, a physical medicine visit can address that mechanical piece. It does not replace medical care for migraine, and it is not a cure claim. If the headache is new, sudden, severe, or comes with neurologic symptoms, get that checked medically first.
When the exam supports it, chiropractic care restores motion in the restricted neck or upper-back joints. Myofascial release works on the tissue that keeps pulling the head forward. Dry needling is for a trigger point that stretch work does not hold, often in the upper trap. Those sit inside a physical medicine visit. Related neck limits are on the neck pain page.
What a first visit looks like
The first visit maps the headache before a tool is chosen. We ask where it starts, whether it is a band, a pressure, or a one-sided migraine, and whether the neck is limited on those days. Screen time, sleep, jaw clenching, and driving all matter. Then we check neck rotation and the muscles that refer into the head. A headache with a free, easy neck is a different visit from a headache that shows up every time you cannot turn left.
Treatment follows that exam. Some people need an adjustment at the upper neck. Some need the trap released before the joint will move. Some need needling of a point that has been referring ache for months. Not every visit uses every tool. You should leave knowing whether the mechanical piece is part of your headache.
New physical medicine visits are about 90 minutes. Follow-ups are about 30–45 minutes. Care is in Waunakee, serving Madison, DeForest, Sun Prairie, Middleton, and Dane County. New patients call to schedule. We are out of network and accept credit cards, HSA, and FSA. A sudden worst-ever headache, headache with weakness, vision change, fever, or headache after a head injury needs medical care first, not a routine musculoskeletal visit.
Questions
Do you treat migraines?
Yes, we treat the neck and upper-back pattern that often travels with migraine or tension headache.
Is this the same as a headache chiropractor visit?
It can include chiropractic care when the neck is restricted. Soft tissue or dry needling may be the better tool that day.
Is dry needling acupuncture?
No. It targets muscle trigger points but does us needles very similar to acupunture needles. It is not used on every visit.
When should I get checked first?
Call a medical provider first for a sudden severe headache, neurologic symptoms, fever, or headache after a head injury.
Ready to sort out the neck piece?
Headache-related musculoskeletal care in Waunakee. New patients: please call to schedule.