Artwork
iconShare
 
Manage episode 520069066 series 3638140
Content provided by Ayla Wolf, DAOM, Ayla Wolf, and DAOM. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Ayla Wolf, DAOM, Ayla Wolf, and DAOM or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://staging.podcastplayer.com/legal.

Send us a text

If “migraine” meds aren’t touching your headaches after a concussion, you might be chasing the wrong problem. Dr. Wolf sits down with Dr. Adam Harcourt, a board-certified functional neurologist and fourth-generation chiropractor, to unpack why post-traumatic headaches so often get mislabeled as migraine—and how objective neuro exams flip the outcome. From eye movement control and gaze stabilization to neck proprioception and autonomic integrity, Dr. Harcourt explains the tests that reveal brainstem dysfunction you can actually measure rather than guess.
You’ll hear a powerful case: a 10-year-old with “intractable migraine” that failed multiple hospital treatments until one overlooked detail surfaced—a basketball to the face the day before symptoms began. With targeted visual-vestibular and cervical work, her pain cleared within days and she returned to school and dance. That theme of foundations-first threads through the hour: build basic stability before intensity, or great rehab stalls. We share simple, surprising tools too—like rhythmic ear insufflation that can abort some migraines in minutes; sublingual ginger oil (Migraine Ginger Relief - MGR) that reduces reliance on triptans; and MQ7, a comprehensive migraine nutrient formula that streamlines evidence-based prevention without a cupboard full of bottles.
We also tackle the big lifestyle levers without fluff. Caffeine: cutting down rarely helps; going to zero often does, because caffeine raises neuronal hyperexcitability. Diet: most people have sensitivities, not instant triggers, and a short, structured reset—including high-histamine foods—clarifies the few that matter. For medication overuse, we map a path out of rebound by lowering allostatic load and widening the “bucket” so weather swings, hormones, and daily stress don’t overflow into attacks. And if your symptoms look like vestibular migraine, hemiplegic migraine, or even “abdominal migraine,” you’ll learn how the same hyperexcitability model guides customized rehab for balance, facial motor, and lower brainstem pathways.
If you’ve felt dismissed, bounced between triptans, Botox, and endless supplements, this conversation gives you a practical framework, specific tests to request, and at-home strategies to try now. Subscribe, share with someone stuck in the migraine maze, and leave a review to help more people find clear, evidence-informed care.

Dr. Adam Harcourt: Clinic Website

Instagram: @migrainedoctors

Biogenic Nutrition:

Get 20% off your first order of Puori protein with code LIFEAFTERIMPACT by following this link.

Support the show

Dr. Wolf's book Concussion Breakthrough: Discover the Missing Pieces of Concussion Recovery is now available on Amazon!
What topics do you want to hear more about? What questions do you have? Email us at [email protected]
Follow us on Instagram @lifeafterimpact

Website: lifeafterimpact.com
Medical disclaimer: this video or podcast is for general informational purposes only, and does not constitute the practice of medicine or other professional healthcare services, including the giving of medical advice. No doctor patient relationship is formed. The use of this information and materials included is at the user's own risk. The content of this video or podcast is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice diagnosis or treatment. Consumers of this information should seek the advice of a medical professional for any and all health related issues.

  continue reading

Chapters

1. Cold Turkey On Caffeine (00:00:00)

2. Welcome And Host Introduction (00:00:18)

3. Meet Dr. Adam Harcourt (00:01:20)

4. Why Migraine Diagnoses Miss The Mark (00:02:15)

5. Objective Clues Beyond Symptoms (00:04:36)

6. Hidden Concussions And Long Tails (00:06:05)

7. Posture, Brainstem, And Neck Changes (00:08:39)

8. The 10-Year-Old “Migraine” Case (00:09:59)

9. Rebuilding Foundations Before Rehab (00:13:18)

10. Home Tricks To Abort Migraine (00:16:40)

11. Personalizing Care And Modalities (00:20:41)

12. Nutraceuticals: MQ7 And Ginger MGR (00:24:09)

13. Diet, Hormones, And Patterns (00:28:21)

14. Caffeine: Zero Or Nothing (00:32:55)

15. Histamine, Sensitivities, Not Triggers (00:37:26)

16. Sorting Migraine From Post-Traumatic (00:41:32)

17. Medication Overuse Headache Trap (00:45:25)

18. Partnering With Conventional Neurology (00:50:33)

19. Vestibular And Hemiplegic Migraine (00:53:19)

42 episodes