At the Headache Center at the University of Pittsburgh, doctors encourage patients to try natural means of improving headache, including these pain-reducing habits:

• Give your body and brain a schedule. Have regular times for sleeping and eating to avoid getting too hungry or tired.
• Walk tall, sit straight, and stretch out. Robert Kaniecki, MD, an associate professor of neurology and director of the Headache Center in Pittsburgh, advises all headache sufferers to live by this motto. To put it into practice, he recommends taking a 30-minute walk every day. During that walk, focus on maintaining good posture. Imagine there’s a string at the top of your head, and keep your head balanced over your shoulders with your back straight.
• Work on how you work. If you’re on a computer all day, make sure you’re sitting straight, not hunched over, and take regular breaks to get up and stretch or walk.
• Stretch yourself. Implement a regular stretching routine into your day. Even a simple series of neck stretches can help. For example, try tilting your head to the left, then right, forward, and back.
• Pay attention to your body when using your smartphone. You likely spend more time than you realize with your head bent forward while looking at your phone. Try cutting back on texting or dictate texts more often to reduce the amount of time hunched over your phone.

When you put these suggestions into practice, you’ll reduce your chances of ending the day with stiff shoulders and an achy, pounding head. And who knows? Maybe someone will compliment you on your new and improved posture as well.

Written by Kelly K. James, health and wellness author