Headache diagnosis has long been dominated by symptoms. Symptoms create labels; labels lead to pills. The real causes often lie deeper in dysfunctions of the upper cervical spine, posture, stress and the delicate relationship between structure and the brainstem.
Most physicians are not trained to see this. Many DOs, though taught the skills, abandon them. That is why the few who remain faithful to osteopathy stand out so powerfully. They remind us that healing is not just in the prescription pad, but in the human hand. For patients with headaches, finding one of these rare healers can be the difference between years of suffering and the return of a normal life.
After more than 30 years, I still feel the same excitement each time a new patient walks through my door — because I know change is possible. I've seen pain that lasted for years disappear when the right touch restored what was lost. It never stops being extraordinary.
My goal is simple: to help more people regain control of their health, reduce their dependence on medication, and rediscover what it feels like to live without constant pain. If you're visiting our website, know that you've already taken the first step. Healing begins with understanding — and I hope these pages help you find both.
Michael Pys, Osteopathic Manual Therapist, with over 30 years of hands-on clinical experience in treating headaches and chronic pain.
"Michael Pys' innovative thinking has been a godsend for many of my patients with complex problems, including dizziness and headaches. The harder the puzzle, the more he enjoys solving the patients' problems."
Deborah Zelinsky, O.D. Founder, Mind-Eye Institute
"When I have patients with headaches and other musculoskeletal problems and I find there is only so much I can do in traditional medicine to help them, I send them to Michael Pys. His techniques prove to be a unique and powerful help to them."
Dr. Lee Freedman, Highland Park, Illinois
"Treating headaches is no longer as simple as patients think. Osteopathic Manual Therapy (OMT) with concentration on the neck can be an effective approach to managing headaches and migraines treating the symptoms at the source and can eliminate or reduce the frequency, intensity, and duration of attacks, as well as decreasing the medication burden."
Dr. Zahra Afshari MD, Neurology at the Glen. Glenview Illinois
"Imagine this scenario…a previously happy patient returns to our office; he is distraught with double vision. The patient is referred to Michael Pys instead of being prescribed eyeglasses. The patient returns a month later, he is happy, and his double vision is gone. Such is the expertise of Michael Pys. He plays a significant role when non-traditional care is needed."
Carla D. Adams, Mind-Eye Institute
Susan could not accept the fact that for years she, her mother and her sister suffered from Genetic Predisposition Migraine and Hormonal Migraine, being diagnosed by one of the biggest headache clinics in the Chicago area and being told the pharmacological approach was the only way to deal with migraine, when after a few weeks of osteopathic manual therapy, hers, her mom's and her sister's migraines were gone.
Why is relief being kept secret when so many people are suffering? Spurred into action, Susan contacted a local newspaper asking them to let others know it is possible to get relief from headaches. The tiny blurb they printed sparked her to insist the newspaper research the topic and talk with others who have received headache relief.
In 1996, after graduating from the Chicago School of Massage Therapy, I went on a house call to Glencoe, a northern suburb of Chicago, to treat a 50-year-old woman whose daughter had given her a massage certificate for a birthday present. The woman had a long history of severe migraine headaches, blurry vision and poor vision. She was amazed that her headaches and her vision improved after the neck massage and immediately scheduled five more massages in the next two weeks. Shortly thereafter, her neurologist called me excited about the good results his patient had experienced from the massages. She began referring other patients to me and their headaches also lessened.
What was it about the massage of the neck and shoulders that affected headaches? My curiosity created a desire in me to learn as much as possible about upper body anatomy and treatments for headaches.
During the next three years, I took classes at the Uplinger Institute (cranio-sacral therapy), the St. John Pain Relief Institute, the McKenzie Institute and other classes in manual rehabilitation. The more I learned, the better my treatments for pain and headache became and as word spread, my clientele grew. Yet, the more patients I saw, the more I sensed that
something was still missing in my treatments. I noticed that other providers, such as Doctors of Osteopathy, also had good results so I decided to attend the Osteopathic College of Ontario to learn their techniques and it changed my life.
While studying at the Osteopathy College, I observed Dr. Steve Sanet, an American-trained osteopathic physician with amazing skill and techniques, doing things that I could not explain. His use of Osteopathic Manual Therapy (OMT) with every patient inspired me to do the same and my results with headache patients became almost uniformly successful as did results from my back and neck related treatments.
After I graduated and began my internship, I became even more highly motivated and treated practically everyone, from friends to patients to nurses and co-workers. The bigger the patient's problem, the more I enjoyed it.
I should have been satisfied that my practice was doing so well, yet it seemed like something was still missing. From the beginning of my work in the late 1990's, I could not understand why treating patients with diagnoses of different types of headaches (such as regular migraine, menstrual migraine, migraine with aura, menstrual migraine, hormonal, cluster headaches,
tension headaches, sinus headaches or even patients with multiple types of headaches), patients often felt better immediately after hands-on manual treatment and many times the head pain was temporarily eliminated. To understand this mystery, I began studying the anatomy of the neck and jaw in much more detail. The more I learned about the neck, the more satisfied I became with my treatment results, bringing me to the realization that in the majority of cases the cause of various types of migraines and headaches appeared to be the same or similar dysfunction in one of the top three upper cervical spinal joints or muscles of the neck or upper shoulder.
During this same time, I had been researching the latest studies on headaches around the world and found a large portion of them agreed that headaches are most often caused by a disfunction in the upper neck. I have included a few of these studies on Research.
In 1999 I established the Pys Headache Center, in Northfield, Illinois providing skilled examination and treatments of the upper neck for headache patients. And now, 30 years later, I still get very excited after every new patient because I have the privilege of changing people's lives! Occasionally, patients come to our center from all over the United States. They generally stay 2-6 days for treatments during which time they learn about the anatomy of their migraine; it's cause and how to prevent or lessen them.
In 2015 I, along with my wife, Dr. Barbara Pys, established the Center for Musculoskeletal Care in Northfield, Illinois to continue serving our clients osteopathic needs.
I feel strongly that all medical providers, including me, should prioritize genuine patient care, demonstrating deep compassion, empathy, and a genuine desire to alleviate suffering, going above and beyond to listen, understand, and advocate for their patients' well-being, placing their needs first and foremost.
The patient-centered approach:
1.Focuses on the whole person, the cause of pain, not just the symptoms.
2.Fights for the best possible treatment options for patients with short- and long-term results.
3.Understands that the pharmacological approach is not the only answer.
4.Understands that sometimes it takes a village to help the patient.
181 Waukegan Road, Suite 103, Northfield, IL 60093