I have been quite for a number of months and this was extended due to Xmas festivities. During this hiatus I had a break from my normal gym routine which brought about some changes both good and bad. The bad was that as I was not doing the same amount of mobility and training my body went through a forced rebalancing period. I had some tension increase and reverted to my jaw neck and shoulder morning routines to improve mobility and comfort. I had some mild migraines but could easily mitigate them with my scalp, temple and neck massage which is very effective. This meant I could ease off on my morning jaw and neck mobility routine which I something I relied on daily for the last 6 months. My TMJ returned which was unexpected. Mine tends to be tension in the jaw and joint on the right hand side and I noticed a slight misalignment but this was not enough to cause concern. It took me about a week of neck and jaw massages and I maintained my jaw mobility routine while I was having the TMJ issues. Once the TMJ issues were resolved I naturally stopped doing my morning mobility routine. Part of that meant I could refocus on morning meditation which is something i have been lacking but that was due to me working to resolve neck and jaw tension issues from the migraines. I am now in the fortunate situation that I have not had a major migraine in over 3 months. Even with archery practice I rarely have migraines at the end of the sessions which makes a big difference. I have maintained my shoulder strength and mobility routine. This focus on strengthening these areas are two fold. It ensures my shoulders are capable of dealing with a 3 - 4 hour archery session drawing a 37lb bow and firing arrows consecutively and the mobility ensures I can use my back and scapula to draw, hold and release the bow without fatiguing. My next goal is to build out the stress modules for the course I have created and this is one of the reasons I have been so quite. I am planning on publishing my migraine book and I am in the process of finishing a second one about vagus nerve regulation. These topics do coincide and I have been doing a lot of research into vagus nerve regulation and how meditation and various other treatments fit into stress release.

Over the last 2 weeks I have made more incremental progress with shoulder and scapula mobility. This is very important, especially as I practice archery. Correct shoulder alignment is crucial in archery, as it significantly improves your accuracy. It also means being able to have a repeatable draw, anchor and arrow release using your skeletal frame to carry the draw weight from a bow. As part of my daily routine, I do neck, jaw and shoulder mobility exercises. This is done before I go to the gym for my strength training. What has changed recently? Neck mobility and comfort levels. The biggest problem has been deep-set tension in my neck and shoulders. Being consistent has allowed me to be more mobile in general, and the tension has shifted from a general sense to more isolated areas. This means when I do add more intensity to my training, I am not experiencing the same level of tension in these areas, and my recovery periods are shorter. With each passing week I can focus on specific areas which need more attention and each improvement means less discomfort.

Let's get to know each other. You can use the following simple format. Hello, my name is ________, and I am from ________. My goal is to have ___ pain-free days. What is the craziest migraine experience you have ever had?

I have focused on improving the mobility of my shoulder, trapezius, and scapula over the last couple of weeks. As part of my focus on improving range of motion, I have enhanced my middle back mobility through a combination of muscle activation exercises during my mobility training. This improvement in my back mobility has allowed my scapula/shoulder blades to move more freely. The added benefit has been that my trapezius and shoulder mobility have improved, which in turn reduces the pressure on my neck and shoulders. This additional mobility has made my neck feel more relaxed and mobile. I am seeing a chiropractor tomorrow, and it will be good to see how much neck mobility I have compared to the previous visit a couple of months ago. My neck feels significantly more comfortable, and I no longer experience the same general stiffness I had before. I do have some muscle strands or areas which are still experiencing some tension, but as this improves, I expect the comfort to improve and additional functional mobility to increase. There are areas on the back of my neck that require ongoing attention, but it's not nearly as immobile and tense as before. I am doing more muscle control and contraction exercises, which help activate my back muscles. This helps when I do mobility work, and it improves the range of motion in my back. It has a knock-on effect of reducing neck tension, and I am working on incremental improvements in mobility and control. @Deon Wantenaar I know you mentioned issues with your back and I'm wondering how this will help you with that going forward.

This certainly was the case for me. It took me 3 months of rehab work, which included massage and some stretching work to release the tension. The majority of my focus was on jaw and neck massage and it solved my issue quite quickly. I was very lucky that I didn't have any damage to my jaw or my jaw joint. This meant resolving the issue was more straightforward. Have you had issues with TMJ and migraines? Leave a comment and let us know if you have been able to resolve your TMJ issues.