However, without proper treatment and intervention, acute neck pain can become a chronic problem. It is a good idea to meet with a physical therapist and to go over the ideal ways to address neck pain before making any attempts to alleviate neck pain on your own. Neck pain is considered chronic when it has refused to lessen, despite attempted intervention, following a prolonged period of time.
Self-care is still an option when addressing chronic neck pain, and taking precautions like reducing the burden on your neck by sitting more often, using improved posture and trying others of the home-remedies listed above like muscle stretching and hot-cold therapy may work to some extent, but you will need physician support to fully address this level of pain and to ensure that you do not cause yourself any further injury.
Before you attempt any treatment for neck pain it is important that you meet with your doctor of physical therapy, and that you understand exactly what the cause of your pain is. Pain from a sprain or a tear in a ligament is going to require very different treatment from pain as a result of tension or tightened muscles.
Working with your physical therapist with hands-on treatment and specific PT exercises to address the source of your chronic pain can help you live pain free, but only if those physical therapy exercises are done right. Before attempting any stretching or mobility exercises on your own, make sure that you consult with your physical therapist for guidance and support.
Always consult your physical therapist or physician before starting exercises you are unsure of doing. Discover the solution to pain-free living. Sign up now to start receiving our monthly health tips. Call us now Call Us Hammond Mandeville. For: Hammond For: Mandeville.
Change the Way You Sleep Your neck needs to be supported during the night. Neck pain causes include:. Most neck pain is associated with poor posture combined with age-related wear and tear. To help prevent neck pain, keep your head centered over your spine. Some simple changes in your daily routine may help. Consider trying to:.
Mayo Clinic does not endorse companies or products. Advertising revenue supports our not-for-profit mission. This content does not have an English version. The discs act as shock absorbers and give the spine its flexibility. A slipped disc occurs when one of these discs slips slightly out of its natural position in the spine. If your neck pain lasts more than a few days, you should see a healthcare professional.
You should also speak to them if you:. If you have pain and stiffness in the neck that came on quickly, possibly overnight, and you have difficulty lifting both arms over your head, this could be a sign of a condition called polymyalgia rheumatica PMR. This is an inflammatory condition of the muscles.
If you think you have this condition, you should see a doctor as soon as possible. A nerve can become pinched when the muscles, bones or tissues surrounding it apply too much pressure. As a result, you may feel numbness, pins and needles or a tingling sensation that can be felt down your arm, sometimes right down to your fingers. However, if your symptoms are severe, talk to your doctor; they may be able to prescribe drugs that target the pinched nerve, such as gabapentin or pregabalin.
You may hear or feel clicking or grating as you move your head. This is called crepitus, and it can be caused by air bubbles popping, or tissues and bones moving over each other, in the joint. If you feel dizzy when looking up or turning your head, this may be due to pinching of the arteries that run alongside the spine, otherwise known as vertebral arteries.
This can sometimes happen as a result of changes in the vertebrae. Pinching of these vertebral arteries can occasionally cause blackouts as the blood flow is temporarily reduced. Muscle spasms are the sudden stiffening of a muscle or groups of muscles in your body. Often there is no known cause and they can be very unpleasant. When it occurs in the neck it usually causes pain and stiffness down one side, which can make it difficult to turn your head. It usually only lasts a few hours or days, although rarely it may continue for several weeks.
You can try to ease the pain at home with gentle stretches, over-the-counter painkillers as well as heat or ice packs. People with muscle spasms report that applying heat is particularly soothing. If you have long-lasting neck pain and stiffness, particularly if your sleep is disturbed, then you may feel very tired and, not surprisingly, you may start to feel rather down or low in mood. Talking about your pain with friends, family or your doctor may help.
Neck pain is very common and most of us will have it at some point in our lives. Usually, neck pain is the result of holding your neck in the same position for too long. However, other things can also cause or contribute to neck pain, such as:. Many people develop a stiff and painful neck for no obvious reason.
It may happen after sitting in a draught or after a minor twisting injury, for example while gardening. This is called non-specific neck pain. This is the most common type of neck pain and usually disappears after a few days, providing you keep gently moving your neck and rest when you need to. You can often manage short spells of neck pain yourself using over-the-counter painkillers and gentle stretches.
Occasionally, your doctor may ask you to have an x-ray, a blood test or an MRI scan to rule out other important causes of neck pain. But if you have a more complex or a continuing neck problem, a healthcare professional will be able to recommend other treatments and therapies that should help. Physiotherapists , chiropractors and osteopaths are all trained to treat neck problems. They can suggest general or specific stretching and strengthening exercises for the neck.
Manipulation is a type of manual therapy used to adjust parts of your body to treat stiffness. Make sure you discuss your condition with your therapist and explain what symptoms you have been experiencing. This will enable them to make a more informed decision on what types of treatments you are most likely to benefit from.
The Alexander technique is a method of teaching bodily awareness and reducing unwanted muscle tension. A qualified teacher will advise you on your standing and sitting posture and your patterns of movement. If you have spinal problems, such as a slipped disc, this technique might not be suitable for you.
A TENS machine is a small battery-driven machine which may help to reduce pain. Small pads are placed over the painful area and low-voltage electrical stimulation produces a pleasant tingling sensation. You can buy TENS machines from pharmacies, but your physiotherapist may be able to let you borrow one to try first.
Some people find a special collar helpful to support the neck in cases of more serious or complex health problems. They are not routinely required. During a session of acupuncture , very fine needles are inserted, virtually painlessly, at a number of sites on the skin.
These are not necessarily at the painful area. Acupuncture seems to relieve pain in the short term by interfering with the signals to your brain and by causing the release of natural painkillers, known as endorphins.
In a very small minority of cases, especially if you have continuing pain in the back of your head or arm, a long-acting local anaesthetic or a steroid injection may help. The injection is usually given into the small facet joints of your neck. A conversation about reducing the harms of social media. Menopause and memory: Know the facts. How to get your child to put away toys. Is a common pain reliever safe during pregnancy?
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