Neck Pain

Causes Of Neck Pain

Because the neck supports the head’s weight, it can be at risk of injuries and conditions that cause pain and restrict motion. Neck pain causes include:

Muscle strains

Overuse, such as too many hours hunched over a computer or a smartphone, often triggers muscle strains. Even minor things, such as reading in bed, can strain neck muscles.

Worn joints

As with other joints, neck joints wear with age. In response to this wear and tear, the body often forms bone spurs that can affect joint motion and cause pain.

Nerve compression

Herniated disks or bone spurs in the neck vertebrae can press on the nerves from the spinal cord.

Injuries

Rear-end auto collisions often result in whiplash injury. It occurs when the head jerks backward and then forward, straining the neck's soft tissues.

Diseases

Certain diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, meningitis, or cancer, can cause neck pain.

Types Of Neck Pain

Here are the most common types of neck pain.

Muscle pain

Aching or sore neck and shoulder muscles may occur due to overexertion or prolonged physical or emotional stress. The neck muscles may develop hard knots that are tender to the touch, sometimes called trigger points.

Headache

Neck-related headache is most often felt in the back of the head and upper neck and is usually the result of muscle tension or spasm. Moving your neck makes it worse. Neck-related headache pain is usually dull or aching rather than sharp; the neck might feel stiff or tender.

Nerve pain

Irritation or pinching of the roots of the spinal nerves causes pain that may be sharp, fleeting, severe, or accompanied by pins and needles. The pain may shoot down the arm or even into the hand, depending on the nerve involved.

Bone pain

Pain and tenderness in the cervical vertebrae are far less common than neck pain from the soft tissues. Bone pain needs medical attention because it may signal a more serious health problem.

Muscle spasm

This is a sudden, powerful tightening of neck muscles. Your neck may hurt and feel tight or knotted, making it impossible to turn your head. When you wake up with a painful, stiff neck, that's likely a muscle spasm. Muscle spasms can result from a muscle injury but may also occur in response to a spinal disc, nerve problem, or emotional stress. However, there often needs to be a clear cause.

Facet joint pain

Often described as deep, sharp, or aching, pain in the facet joints (part of the neck vertebrae) typically worsens if you lean your head toward the affected side and may radiate to your shoulder or upper back. Arthritis in the facet joints, as in other locations, may feel worse in the morning or after a period of inactivity.

Referred pain

Referred pain is a pain in one part of the body triggered by a problem in another. For example, neck pain that worsens with exertion may indicate a heart problem, while neck pain that occurs when you eat may stem from a problem in the esophagus.

Your treatment procedure might include the following:

  • Exercises or stretches guided by your therapist
  • Massage, heat, or cold therapy, warm water therapy, or ultrasound to ease muscle pain or spasms
  • Rehab to help you learn to use an artificial limb
  • Practice with gadgets that help you move or stay balanced, like a cane or walker

How Long Does Physical Therapy Need For Neck Pain?

Eliminating or significantly reducing neck pain through physical therapy usually requires over 6-12 weeks. Chronic or degenerative conditions, like arthritis or radiating arm pain, may require additional treatment or further evaluation. 

How Physical Therapy Helps In Reducing Neck Pain?

Neck Pain Therapy is better than surgery and utilizing pain medications. According to research, physical therapy not only helps with neck pain but is also considered to be the most effective treatment. Physical therapy is so productive that it helps individuals avoid getting on prescription medications and having surgery.

Frequently Ask Questions

Providing concierge physical therapy services at your home, office or gym customizing each session to be what your body needs today. 

01

Does physical therapy help with neck pain?

Physical therapy can treat different diseases and conditions, including neck pain. Depending on whether the neck pain is due to muscular strain, injury, wearing of joints, inflammation, nerve problems, or other reasons, the physical therapist will suggest the proper therapy and exercise to help ease the pain.

02

What does physical therapy of the neck consist of?

Physical therapy of the neck consists of various exercises that target different areas around the neck. Head and shoulder rolls reduce stiffness and work as a warm-up before other exercises. There are plenty of exercises which include stretching and tilting. Chin tucks are also one of the common physical therapy exercises for the neck.

03

How do you assess neck pain?

A professional physical therapist better diagnoses and assesses your neck pain. They’llThey’ll examine different areas around your neck, try to find the exact regions which are hurting, and check the level of mobility, which means how well you can move your neck around without experiencing discomfort and what types of movements cause the pain to increase in intensity.

04

When Should I Worry about Neck Pain?

Generally speaking, you should worry about neck pain if you have shooting pain from the shoulder down the arm, lose strength in the arms and hands, and if the neck pain is accompanied by any type or degree of numbness in the arms and hands. You should seek immediate medical care for your condition in any of these instances.

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