About 15% of the United States adult population experiences neck pain during any given three months. This type of discomfort can range from minor twinges to debilitating pain that could prevent you from living your life. There are many types of neck pain treatments, but how can you know which option will work?
If you’re living with this type of discomfort, it’s important to understand its cause. By learning what factors may be at the root of your symptoms, you can choose the best way of obtaining relief from neck pain.
Main Causes of Neck Pain
Neck pain can occur for a variety of reasons. Many are minor, while others can be structural and could require more intensive treatments to achieve neck pain relief.
Growing Older
One of the main reasons why you may experience neck pain is your age. As you get older, natural wear and tear to your cervical spine can lead to pain and stiffness.
The joints in your neck, which hold the cervical spine together, can wear down or shift from their normal spot. When cartilage in the joints wears down, it causes stiffness, reduced range of motion, and pain. This condition is known as osteoarthritis.
Growing older can also cause a natural reduction in muscle mass. This is known as sarcopenia. It can lead your spine to have less support than is optimal. Muscles end up working harder, causing strain that results in neck pain.
Muscle Strains
A very common cause of neck pain is muscle strains. Overusing your neck muscles when performing repetitive motions or doing anything physically strenuous can damage tissues. Small tears form in the muscle, leading to swelling. Although the majority of these injuries resolve in a few days, more serious ones can last for weeks.
Sleeping in the wrong position or sitting in front of the computer for a long time can strain your muscles. That’s especially true if you have poor posture or weak abdominal muscles.
Pinched Nerves
Another potential cause of neck pain is pinched nerves. Pinched nerves occur when surrounding structures, like bones, muscles, or tendons, put pressure on the nerve and disrupt its function.
A pinched nerve can cause sharp, radiating pain as well as numbness. If the pinched nerve occurs in your neck, you might have muscle weakness and tingling that impacts your arms.
Mental Stress
Experiencing high levels of mental stress can cause you to tighten your neck muscles. You may not realize that you’re doing so, leading to chronic muscle tightness. This type of tension restricts blood flow, reduces flexibility, and irritates nerves.
Stress can cause you to resort to “defensive” postures, too. These typically involve slouching, which puts more strain on your neck muscles. Pain can increase your anxiety, leading to further tension and more discomfort.
Injuries
Traumatic injuries can also result in neck pain. You can suffer damage to vertebral discs in the neck, leading to cervical spine instability. Herniated discs can put pressure on nearby nerves and can cause irritation in the nearby structures. Herniations also reduce the amount of space in the cervical spine, causing pressure.
A very common injury that impacts your neck muscles is whiplash, which occurs when your head whips back and forth, causing your neck muscles to become strained.
Pain Relief for Neck Pain: Understanding Your Options
If you’re dealing with this type of pain, it can be important to consider the various treatment options. Relief from neck pain often requires a combination of strategies.
Hot and Cold Therapy
One simple option for achieving pain relief for neck pain is hot and cold therapy. When applied correctly, temperature treatments may assist with inflammation. Cold therapy can be effective for managing swelling, while hot therapy may relieve muscle stiffness.
An effective strategy for sore neck relief is to alternate between the two options. Try 20 minutes of each a few times throughout the day.
Medications
You may be able to improve certain types of neck pain by taking over-the-counter painkillers. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can offer neck ache relief by reducing inflammation.
For more severe pain, your doctor may prescribe muscle relaxants. These can help relieve tension in your neck muscles, allowing injuries to heal.
Injections
In some instances, relief from neck pain can involve getting steroid injections. These are usually given near the nerve roots in the affected area to reduce inflammation and manage pain better.
Physical Therapy
Finding a cure for stiff neck issues can also involve physical therapy sessions. Targeted exercises can help strengthen your muscles and tendons. These therapy sessions get to the root cause of many of the causes of neck pain, including bad posture. Aside from easing pain and stiffness, physical therapy can help prevent future injuries.
Surgery
Surgery is recommended only in the most severe cases. If you have a vertebral break, for example, or a herniated disc that doesn’t heal, this may be necessary.
Chiropractic Care
One of the most effective neck strain treatment options is chiropractic care. Chiropractic care relies on hands-on adjustments to help restore your cervical spine to its proper alignment. This can result in a reduction of inflammation and nerve irritation. Cervical manipulation requires applying precise and gentle pressure on the vertebrae in the area.
Chiropractic care involves massages, too, which address issues with soft tissue damage. Massages increase blood flow to the targeted area, allowing oxygen and nutrients that can help speed up the healing process to be transported to the injury site.
These adjustments also assist in improving your range of motion and strengthening your muscles. This allows for better flexibility and helps ensure that you’re not compensating with other structures.
Another important service chiropractic care can provide is electrical muscle stimulation. It sends small electrical impulses to the targeted tissues to help reduce inflammation and assist with healing.
Why Chiropractic Care May Be the Right Long-Term Option
If you’re seeking a way to find relief from neck pain that doesn’t focus on short-term pain management, consider chiropractic care. Chiropractic services offer the chance to obtain long-term relief from neck pain by addressing the underlying cause of the problem.
Chiropractic adjustments can address spinal misalignments in a non-invasive manner and may help damaged tissues in the neck area heal faster. Regular adjustments help to increase your range of motion, and the increase in blood flow makes it easier for muscle or tendon tears to heal.
Chiropractic providers also offer preventive care. By seeing a chiropractor, you can keep your spine in the correct alignment. Avoid the development of more strains and stop minor issues from becoming chronic by getting chiropractic treatment regularly.
Adjustments and lifestyle changes can also be effective options for improving posture. Chiropractors will offer advice on the daily habits that could be impacting your neck. Additionally, it’s an option that doesn’t require invasive procedures or the reliance on medications that could have side effects.
Strategies to Help Prevent Neck Pain
Although there are numerous ways of managing neck pain, learning how to prevent it can save you time and discomfort.
Reducing Tension
One of the ways to manage this is to address stress. Stress can lead to tension in the neck area, resulting in pain. By finding ways to better manage stress, you can avoid this issue. Trying yoga and learning deep breathing techniques can help reduce stress.
Additionally, getting regular massages can help. Massages can help to lower cortisol while boosting feel-good chemicals like dopamine and serotonin.
Improving Your Posture
If you spend a lot of time sitting at a desk or working at the computer, you need to improve your posture. Ensure that the screen is at the correct height and that your spine is in a neutral position as you work. Don’t slouch, but also don’t raise your shoulders. Both of these postures can create tension.
Exercising
Taking the time to be physically active helps prevent neck pain, too. If you sit for hours, take a few moments throughout the day to stand and stretch. Roll your neck gently to relieve tension. Any type of exercise will help increase circulation and can assist in strengthening muscles throughout your body. That’s vital for spinal support.
Getting Regular Chiropractic Care
Regular chiropractic care can ensure that your spine is aligned. A chiropractor will be able to notice if something is out of place. They will help you address the problem and offer advice on preventing it from occurring again. There are numerous types of chiropractic services, too, allowing you to choose what suits you best.
Trusting an Experienced Chiropractor
If you’re looking for relief from neck pain, the team at Algonquin Chiropractic Center can help. Dr. Galante offers a number of services to ease the stiffness and discomfort you may be experiencing.
You don’t have to battle with constant neck pain. Contact our team to schedule a consultation.
