Fix your neck pain

Working all day in front of the computer can cause significant amounts of neck pain. We help clients every day with neck pain, headaches, jaw pain, dizziness and vertigo.

 

What are the common causes of neck pain?

 

There are many possible causes of neck pain. Much of the time, pain is due to tight muscles and stiff joints in the neck and upper back. Commonly, that person is suffering what we call an upper crossed syndrome.

 

This means that the upper trapezius, levator scapula, suboccipitals and pectoral muscles get too tight and that the deep neck flexors and shoulder stabilisers (back muscles) aren’t strong enough. What happens is a tug-of-war where one group of muscles overpowers the other, causing an imbalance along with neck pain and potential headaches. It is particularly common in office workers, or anyone who spends a lot of time in front of a computer or with their head buried in their smartphone.

 

Another common cause of neck pain is accessory breathing. This is when people are chest breathing, rather than taking deep inhales and exhales into their abdomen and diaphragm (muscle that controls the lungs). When people perform accessory breathing, they are using neck and chest muscles to breathe, which causes them to get tight in the area between the neck, chest and shoulder blades and contributes to the development of an upper crossed syndrome. This is often why fixing neck pain for the long-term may require breathing retraining as part of treatment too.

 

 Image from: https://nwcalgarychiro.ca/upper-cross-syndrome/

What to do if you have neck pain:

 

The first thing to do is figure out which muscles are tight and need to be ‘released’. This can be done with stretches, using release tools or seeing a chiropractor. Usually a combination of all three works the best. The most effective stretches include:

 

Upper trapezius stretch:

image from: www.drvarsha.com

Pectoral stretch:

image from: www.abbottcenter.com

 

Often, we also need to include strengthening of the weaker muscles, commonly serratus anterior, middle and lower trapezius, latissimus dorsi and deep neck flexors. If we need to fix breathing patterns as well, then we also include breathing training in the rehabilitation. Everyone is slightly different, which is why having an individualised session can help tailor the rehabilitation specifically to your needs.

 

What are you doing about your neck pain? If you need some treatment, guidance and accountability, we’re here to help! Book online via our website.

 

Want to fix your neck pain now? Our highly experienced, safe, gentle and effective chiropractor in Sydney CBD specialise in treating neck pain, jaw pain and headaches. Are you searching chiropractor near me? We are conveniently located 5 minutes from Wynyard and Town Hall Stations in Sydney CBD and are here to help get you out of pain and back doing what you love.