How To Do Self Cranial Release For Headaches, Migraines, Sinus Congestion, Tinnitus, Jaw Pain & More

First Dr. Karin explains why cranial movement is important, so you can understand how it works:

Your skull made up of many flat bones that form a hollow ball to provide a protective layer to protect your brain. Your skull is like a helmet for your brain. Your brain is a very delicate bundle of nerves, and nerves can not handle pressure let alone any blunt impact.

Interestingly enough, the brain itself does not have pain receptors, so it itself can't feel pain, but the skin of the brain does (the dura matter). So if there is pressure on the brain, you feel this as a type of migraine.
Those that experience migraines can attest how awful this type of pain is.

Simply put, the brain does not like to be under any pressure, and is good about letting you know if this is happening. Migraines are hard to ignore. But changes in pressure happen all the time. Barometric pressure changes with the weather changing (why some people get headaches with a change in weather), your blood pressure fluctuates with different activities (why some people get exercise induced headaches). By why does not everyone get headaches with changes in barometric pressure inside or outside of the body?

Because the skull can expand and contract, keeping the pressure constant inside the skull, keeping pressure off the brain.
How?
The skull is made of of many bones, like a jig saw puzzle they are kept together by sutures.
If you check Dr. google, it will claim these bones are "fused together" but this is not exactly true. The bones can wiggle some, allowing the the skull to expand and contract to keep pressure off the brain. Check it out yourself, if you press on your head as I am about to show you, you will feel some movement. Your head should not feel solid like a bowling ball, it has some softness to it. This is because the plates of the skull can wiggle separately from each other.

Now, medically speaking, the "joints" between the flat bones of the skull are indeed labeled "immovable" because there is no muscle designed to move them (like an elbow) but they do move with changes in pressure, not a lot, but enough to keep the pressure off the brain.
I have felt literally tens of thousands of skulls, and I have found that people with more rigid skulls are more vulnerable to headaches, so keeping you skull loose should help if not eliminate your headaches.
I also find loosening the rigidity of skulls helps with sinus congestion as a looser skull allows the deeper sinuses in the skull to drain easier. Often the pumping action of the cranial release gets the pressure to release immediately as the deeper sinuses drain.
If you suffer with tinnitus, ringing in the ear, cranial release may help, as it takes pressure of the structures of the inner ear and the nerves supplying it.
To learn more, check out our website on these conditions. www.drummondchiropractic.com

To learn how you loosen your skull you first have to learn a little bit of anatomy. There are 22 bones in the skull, but luckily you only need to know 8 of them.

The main cranial bones to know are your frontal, parietal, occipital, temporal bone, sphenoid, zygomatic, nasal, and maxilla.
Important anatomy note on the sphenoid bone - between the wings of the sphenoid bone is the pituitary gland which is the master gland of the entire body. The pituitary gland sits right above the sphenoid sinus which sits behind the nasal cavity
Frontal bone has a frontal sinus.
There is an ethmoid bone between the eyes, and has sinuses that extend into the nasal cavity and if congested can cause head pain as well.
Can you see how wiggling the bones of the skull can help these deep sinuses drain?

Watch the video to learn how to mobilize your skull. A mobile skull can expand and contract with changes in barometric pressure, taking pressure off the brain, allowing it to function better and be less vulnerable to headaches.
We hope this has been helpful. If you have any questions about cranial release techniques, feel free to comment below.
Wishing you wellness, your Bloomington Indiana Chiropractors, the Drummond Chiropractic Team.

DISCLAIMER: Content posted contains generalized statements based on medical knowledge/product usage does not and is not intended to offer medical advice, diagnosis, or act as a prescriber of treatment. No promises, representations, or warranties are provided regarding the suitability of any of its content, products, or offerings for individualized self care.