Headache doctor near me: when to see a neurologist in Walnut Creek and Vallejo

Most headaches are occasional and get better with rest or an over-the-counter pain reliever. When headaches become frequent, change their pattern or stop responding to treatment, it is time to see a doctor who focuses on them. This guide explains which doctor treats headaches, when to see one, what happens at the first visit and how to book with Integrated Neurology & Pain Management (INPM) in Walnut Creek or Vallejo.

What kind of doctor treats headaches?

Your primary care physician is the first stop for most headaches. If your headaches are frequent, hard to control or have an unclear cause, your doctor may refer you to a neurologist, a physician who specializes in the brain and nervous system. Neurologists who focus on headache disorders are often called headache specialists or headache doctors.

At INPM, headaches are treated by a team of neurologists and physician assistants. Dr. Amar Anand, a board-certified neurologist with fellowship training in neuroimaging, lists headache and migraine among his main clinical interests, and physician assistants Jessica Beck, PA-C, and Alice Feng, PA-C, also care for patients with migraine.

When should you see a doctor about headaches?

Make an appointment with a healthcare provider if you have:

• Headaches once a week or more
• Headaches that keep getting worse or won’t go away
• A change in a headache pattern you have had for years
• Headaches set off by exertion, coughing or bending over
• A need for pain relievers almost every day, or for more than two or three doses of over-the-counter medicine a week, which can itself cause daily headaches (medication overuse headache)
• Headaches on 15 or more days a month, the pattern of chronic migraine, which is a reason to see a neurologist

Call 911 or go to the emergency room for a sudden, new and severe headache; a headache with fever, a stiff neck, shortness of breath or a rash; a headache after a head injury; a new kind of headache after age 55; or a headache with weakness, numbness, vision changes, confusion, trouble speaking or a seizure.

Which headaches does INPM treat?

• Migraine, with or without aura, including chronic migraine. See migraine and headache care.
• Tension-type headache, the most common type, often linked to tight muscles in the neck and shoulders. See trigger point injections.
• Cluster headache, attacks of severe pain on one side of the head that come in cycles. See nerve blocks.
• Occipital and trigeminal neuralgia, sharp, shock-like nerve pain in the back of the head or in the face. See neuralgia.
• Headaches after a concussion or whiplash. See concussion and whiplash.

What happens at your first visit?

Headaches are diagnosed mainly from your history and a neurological exam. Your clinician will ask when the headaches started, how often they happen, how long they last, what they feel like, what seems to trigger them and which medicines you have tried. Imaging such as MRI or CT is not usually needed to diagnose migraine; it is ordered when another cause needs to be ruled out.

A headache journal helps: for each headache, note the date, time, intensity and length, what you were doing, what you ate, how you slept and what you took for it. Bring the list of medicines you have tried and any imaging reports.

What treatments are available at INPM?

Headache treatment has two goals: relieving a headache when it starts (acute treatment) and reducing how often and how badly headaches happen (preventive treatment). Your clinician chooses medicines that fit your headache pattern and your other health conditions. When it applies, GeneSight genetic testing can add information to help guide the choice and dose of medicines.

INPM also offers in-office procedures for headache:

Related service at INPMMigraine and headacheMigraine specialist care from neurologists in Walnut Creek and Vallejo, CA: symptoms, when to see a doctor, diagnosis and treatment options. By referral.

Where can you see a headache doctor in the East Bay and North Bay?

INPM has two offices, and your appointment can be at either one, depending on the clinician and the day:

• Walnut Creek (East Bay): 301 Lennon Lane, Suite 203, in Walnut Woods Professional Park, with free on-site parking. Convenient for Walnut Creek, Concord, Pleasant Hill, Lafayette, San Ramon, Oakland and Berkeley. See the Walnut Creek office.
• Vallejo (North Bay): 160 Glen Cove Marina Road, Suite 103, in the Glen Cove area of Vallejo. Convenient for Vallejo, Benicia, American Canyon, Napa and Fairfield. See the Vallejo office.

INPM accepts most major insurance plans, including Medicare, Anthem Blue Cross, BlueCross BlueShield, UnitedHealthcare, Aetna, Humana and Health Net; the John Muir Physicians Network, Hill Physicians and Brown & Toland HMOs; and Partnership Health Plan Medi-Cal for patients in Solano County. Call the number on the back of your insurance card to confirm that your plan covers visits with INPM. See insurance plans.

How do you book an appointment with a headache doctor at INPM?

1. Ask your primary care physician for a referral to neurology at Integrated Neurology & Pain Management. Your doctor’s office sends it by fax to (707) 980-6692 or through the EPIC referral system. See how to get a referral.
2. Call (707) 980-6636 and press 1 to schedule your first visit in Walnut Creek or Vallejo.
3. Fill out the New Patient Packet and bring a photo ID and all your insurance cards to the visit.

If you have an HMO plan, your medical group may also need to approve the visit. If headaches are affecting your work, sleep or family life, ask your primary care physician for a referral to INPM, then call (707) 980-6636 to schedule in Walnut Creek or Vallejo.