Neck Pain Causes and Management

Nagging neck pain can be absolutely debilitating. Headaches, soreness in your shoulders, and rigid-like stiffness have the ability to lower your productivity–or worse. Here, you will discover the root causes of your neck pain, what symptoms you can expect, and learn that neck pain can be easily treated by trained professionals.

Neck pain is generally related to sore muscles or injury to the musculature that wraps around and runs along your C1-C7 vertebrae (also known as the cervical spine). This area of the body is actually relatively fragile. As Krisha McCoy, MS, points out, “While the neck is connected to the spine, it is not as sheltered as the rest of the backbone. This means the slim structure is prone to problems.” This may be why injury to the neck is possible even when performing light-to-no activity at all. One thing is for certain: neck pain happens to almost everyone. As Rachel Krentzman of Active.com says, “With the increasing use of computers, desk jobs and time sitting in traffic, it’s hard to avoid these aches and pains regardless of how active you are.”

To determine the root cause of your pain, pay attention to your body. Do your fingers tend to go numb? Can you look left and right with a full range of motion? Here are three common neck issues you may experience:

1. Forward Head Posture

Simply put, this is the computer injury. Of course, it’s not just computers. So much of what we do is right in front of us: eating, driving, texting, and typing. This means our forearms are usually out in front of us and our shoulders are rounded forward. When this happens, the pectoral muscles tighten, the head juts out, and the back of the neck elongates. The frequency with which we sit or stand in this position begins to permanently – and painfully – affect these muscles.

2. Herniated Disc

Dr. Richard Staehler, MD, says, “A cervical herniated disc is diagnosed when the inner core of a disc in the neck herniates…and presses on an adjacent nerve root. It usually develops in the 30-to-50-year-old age group.” This can occur due to injury, or with total spontaneity. A herniated disc in the neck is most often accompanied by shooting pain down the arm or numbness and painful tingling in the hands and fingers.

3. Strains and Sprains

A sprain is an injury that occurs when a ligament over a joint is twisted while the joint is carrying some kind of weight. Strains and sprains lead to soreness, stiffness, and inflammation. These inflamed ligaments may press against nerves and vertebrae in the neck, causing misalignment and further pain.

The professionals at Cianci Chiropractic Center provide leading-edge care that helps people live healthy, productive lives. Their intuitive approach to alignment, relief, and therapy can help your neck strengthen and heal.