It starts at the base of the skull. Sharp. Burning. Sometimes electric. It wraps up and over the scalp, and on the worst days it feels like your whole head is under siege. You have tried the muscle relaxers, the nerve blocks, and the ice packs. Some of it helped, for a while, then came right back.
Our doctors have helped many patients find lasting relief from occipital neuralgia without relying on medication, using gentle upper cervical care that addresses where the nerve irritation actually starts instead of just chasing the pain across the scalp.
How Occipital Neuralgia Shows Up
Occipital neuralgia rarely feels like an ordinary headache. Most people describe a sharp, stabbing, or electric jolt that starts at the base of the skull and shoots up over the scalp, sometimes reaching behind one eye. Between flares, the area often stays tender to the touch, tender enough that resting your head on a pillow or wearing a hat becomes uncomfortable. Some people feel it on just one side, others on both, and a flare can be triggered by something as simple as turning the head, brushing the hair, or sitting at a desk too long. Because the occipital nerves sit so close to the pathways involved in migraine, light sensitivity and a throbbing ache behind the eyes often ride along with the sharper nerve pain.
What Is Actually Causing It
Occipital neuralgia comes from irritation of the greater and lesser occipital nerves, which run from the top of the neck up through the scalp, passing directly through the muscles and joints at the base of the skull, an area especially sensitive to tension in the C1 and C2 vertebrae. Whiplash, poor posture from long hours looking down at a phone or screen, and chronic muscle tension in the upper neck can all irritate these nerves right where they exit the spine.
When the upper cervical area stays under chronic tension, the nerves stay irritated no matter how many times the scalp itself gets treated. That is the pattern we see most: relief that lasts a few days, then the same shooting, burning pain returns because the source at the base of the skull was never addressed.
Our Approach
We start with a detailed history, when the pain started, what triggers a flare, what you have already tried, then run an INSiGHT scan, thermal, heart rate variability, and muscle (sEMG) readings, focused on the upper cervical spine to see exactly where your nervous system is under stress.
Using Koren Specific Technique (KST) and Talsky Tonal Chiropractic (TTC), our doctors make precise corrections at the base of the skull and upper neck, gentle, nervous-system focused contact with no cracking or twisting, adjusted seated or standing in whatever position keeps your neck comfortable.
What to Expect
Many patients notice flares starting to ease within the first several visits, as the tension driving the nerve irritation begins to resolve. Because our contact is gentle, there is no added pain stacked on top of what you are already dealing with. Long-standing cases can take longer to settle, but it is rarely too late to address the underlying tension at the base of the skull.
Built for a Sensitive Area
When the scalp and neck are already tender, precision matters more than force. Because our contact is so light, patients who cannot tolerate a traditional neck adjustment often find this is the first hands-on care that does not make the pain worse just to try to fix it.
What Patients Notice
Patients typically notice flare-ups growing less frequent and less intense, with longer stretches of time between episodes and less scalp tenderness day to day. Many also notice fewer bouts of light sensitivity, since occipital neuralgia and migraine often overlap.
Take the First Step
If sharp, burning pain at the base of your skull keeps returning, let us look at the source. Our doctors see patients on Saturdays in Royal Oak.
Common Questions
What causes occipital neuralgia?
How is this different from just treating the headache itself?
Is your approach safe when my scalp and neck are already this sensitive?
What if I have already tried nerve blocks, muscle relaxers, or other treatments?
How long before I notice a difference?
Is occipital neuralgia the same thing as a migraine?
Related: Headaches & Migraines · Neck Pain · Pinched Nerves · Posture & Tech Neck
