Head, Face & Nerve-Related Pain
Head, face, and nerve-related pain can be particularly debilitating, often interfering with concentration, sleep, and daily comfort. At Health Point Clinic, we use acupuncture and massage therapies to ease tension, calm nerve irritation, and restore balance to the body.
Headaches & Migraines
Recurring headaches or migraines can have many triggers, from stress and posture to hormonal changes and neurological imbalances. Acupuncture helps regulate blood flow and reduce sensitivity, while massage eases muscle tightness in the neck, shoulders, and jaw that often contributes to head pain.
Facial Pain & Jaw Tension
Conditions such as TMJ (jaw dysfunction), trigeminal neuralgia, or jaw clenching can cause significant discomfort and sometimes radiate pain into the head, face, or ears. Treatment can reduce muscle tightness, calm nerve activity, and provide relief from this often-overlooked source of pain.
Nerve-Related Pain
Nerve irritation can create sharp, shooting, or burning pain that feels very different from muscular discomfort. By combining acupuncture’s ability to regulate nerve function with massage techniques that address secondary muscle guarding, we can reduce both direct pain and the tension it causes elsewhere in the body.
Acupuncture Research
Acupuncture is included in the NICE guidelines for Chronic pain (primary and secondary) in over 16s: assessment of all chronic pain and management of chronic primary pain (CG193) and headaches: diagnosis and management (CG150)
In recent years high-quality clinical trials investigating acupuncture have been conducted, particularly for chronic pain conditions. Therefore, there is evidence available, and the systematic reviews can draw firm conclusions. A systematic review of high-quality trials, Vickers et al 2018, involving over 20,000 adults with osteoarthritis, chronic headache or musculoskeletal pain (back, neck or shoulder) concluded:
- acupuncture was more effective than control for all pain conditions (pragmatic trials)
- acupuncture is not a placebo for treatment of chronic pain
- the effects persisted over time (15% reduction at one year)
Booking Tip: If headaches or facial pain are linked to stress or posture, combining treatment with simple lifestyle adjustments (such as regular breaks from screens, jaw relaxation exercises, or stress management techniques) can enhance long-term results.
Further Acupuncture Research:
- Lower tension headaches & migraines (1)
- Relieve trigeminal neuralgia & facial pain (2)
- Reduce pain radiating from neck to head & face (3)
- Support nerve pain management alongside physiotherapy (4)
- Cagnie B, et al. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2015;94:573–83
- Ho LF, et al. PLoS One 2017;12:e0181360; Seo SY, et al. Am J Chin Med 2017;45:1573–95
- MacPherson H, et al. Ann Intern Med 2015;163:653–62
- Seo SY, et al. Am J Chin Med 2017;45:1573–95