Lavender Family Chiropractic

08/19/2026

If you deal with vertigo, brain fog, or anxiety that never quite goes away, you're not alone — and they may be more connected than you think. All three can trace back to the same overlooked area: the upper neck, where nerves and blood flow to the brain can be affected by misalignment at the top of the spine. Standard tests often come back normal, which is part of why it's so easy to miss.

If this sounds like you, we'd love to help. 💙 Schedule a consultation at NeckWise 👇

08/19/2026

Occipital Neuralgia and Pain Behind the Eye: Why Back-of-Head Pain Refers to the Front

By Dr. Rusty Lavender — Lavender Family Chiropractic, Sarasota, FL If you have ever had a deep ache at the base of your skull that somehow ended up throbbing behind your eye, you are not imagining it, and you are not describing it wrong. It is one of the most common sources of confusion I hear in my Sarasota practice: a patient points to the back of their head to show me where the trouble starts, then draws a line with their finger up over the scalp and lands on the eyebrow or the eye itself....

If you have ever had a deep ache at the base of your skull that somehow ended up throbbing behind your eye, you are not imagining it, and you are not describing it wrong. It is one of the most common sources of confusion I hear in my Sarasota practice: a patient points to the back of their head to s...

08/19/2026

The Greater Occipital Nerve and C2: The Anatomy Behind Occipital Neuralgia

By Dr. Rusty Lavender — Lavender Family Chiropractic, Sarasota, FL If you have ever felt a sharp, electric, or burning pain that starts at the base of your skull and shoots up over the back of your head—sometimes reaching behind the eye or into the scalp—you already have a personal introduction to one of the most fascinating and misunderstood structures in the human body: the greater occipital nerve....

If you have ever felt a sharp, electric, or burning pain that starts at the base of your skull and shoots up over the back of your head—sometimes reaching behind the eye or into the scalp—you already have a personal introduction to one of the most fascinating and misunderstood structures in the ...

08/19/2026

Migraines aren't always just migraines. Swipe through to see why they might be starting in your upper neck. 👉

👇 Comment 'MIGRAINE' and we'll walk you through what we look for.

08/19/2026

Vestibular migraines don't just cause head pain — they can make the whole room feel like it's tilting or spinning, even when you're standing still. 🌀

Many people get told it's "just anxiety" or "just stress," but for a lot of sufferers the root issue traces back to the upper neck and how it communicates with the balance centers in your inner ear.

When the joints at the top of your spine aren't moving properly, they can send confusing signals to your brain about where your head is in space — and that mismatch is often what triggers the spinning, rocking, or tilting sensation.

Does this sound familiar? Comment "TILT" and we'll walk you through what we look for 👇

08/18/2026

It's not your anxiety.
Not always your inner ear either.

Vertigo can start in your upper neck — when the signal gets noisy, the room can feel like it's moving.

Notice it hits worse when you turn your head fast?

👇 Comment 'DIZZY' if this sounds familiar.

08/18/2026

If you are struggling with unresolved vertigo or dizziness, we would love to help you. Schedule a consultation with us

08/18/2026

That dizzy feeling that hits out of nowhere isn't always about your inner ear. It can be a signal from the very top of your neck telling your brain the wrong thing about where your head is. Correcting that signal can often calm the dizziness down.

08/18/2026

Occipital Neuralgia vs Cervicogenic Headache: Two Upper-Neck Headaches Compared

By Dr. Rusty Lavender — Lavender Family Chiropractic, Sarasota, FL If you have been dealing with headaches that seem to start at the base of your skull and travel upward, you already know how confusing the search for answers can be. Two of the most commonly confused culprits are occipital neuralgia and cervicogenic headache. They share a neighborhood in your body — the upper neck, specifically the top three vertebrae known as C1, C2, and C3 — yet they are genuinely different problems with different feels, different mechanisms, and different treatment considerations....

If you have been dealing with headaches that seem to start at the base of your skull and travel upward, you already know how confusing the search for answers can be. Two of the most commonly confused culprits are occipital neuralgia and cervicogenic headache. They share a neighborhood in your body ....

08/18/2026

Occipital Neuralgia vs. Migraine vs. Tension Headache: How to Tell Them Apart

By Dr. Rusty Lavender — Lavender Family Chiropractic, Sarasota, FL If you have ever felt a sudden jolt of sharp, electric pain shoot from the base of your skull up toward the back of your head, you already know how unsettling head pain can be — and how confusing it is to figure out what is actually causing it. Not all headaches are the same....

If you have ever felt a sudden jolt of sharp, electric pain shoot from the base of your skull up toward the back of your head, you already know how unsettling head pain can be — and how confusing it is to figure out what is actually causing it. Not all headaches are the same. In fact, three of the...