Neck Pain

Neck pain is just that: a pain in the neck. Often the pithiness of the 18th-century idiom is a far cry from the severity of the neck pain we experience, yielding soreness, tightness, or even spasms. The most common symptom is loss of neck range of motion. Radial neck pain can begin in the cervical spine but progress down into the shoulder and back.

If you’re up to your neck in pain, come see us at Utah Sports and Wellness in Millcreek, Utah. We provide chiropractic care right in your neck of the woods. It’s hardly sticking your neck out: our chiropractors are trained to find the cause of your pain and to meet it with qualified care.

Causes of Neck Pain

Neck pain can be caused by tension, injury, spinal disc damage or degeneration, or chronic illness like fibromyalgia or osteoarthritis, just to name a few. Herniated discs in the cervical spine may cause headaches by compressing spinal nerves. Muscle strain or worn joints can also strain or pinch nerves and leave neck pain in their wake. 

A common culprit of this pain is poor posture. The societal norm of hunching over computers and phones is not doing our necks any favors. Poor sleep and cramped or twisted sleeping positions can also put strain on the neck and lead to soreness and pain.

Pain is always your body’s way of communicating that something isn’t right. Listen to the signals. There is no need to push through neck pain. Our Utah Sports and Wellness chiropractors are here to help. If your neck pain evolves into sharp or shooting pains or the loss of strength in your hands or arms, seek care immediately.

Finding the Right Care

While icing at home can provide temporary relief, just lowering any swelling is not likely to correct the source of your neck pain. Our chiropractors at Utah Sports and Wellness will work with you to get to the root of your neck pain and find the best treatments for you.

The treatment of neck pain is determined by the cause, so thorough diagnostic tests and scans are essential. Depending on the symptoms of your neck pain, your chiropractor may even call for x-rays or an MRI. Your previous medical history will be methodically examined to look for preexisting conditions that may be causing your neck pain.

Once the problem is found, you will have access to the many treatment methods available in our chiropractic clinic. Here are a few examples:

• Massage can help in the case of muscle trauma. Your chiropractor will work through tight muscles and tissues to provide relief.
• Laser therapy, like the use of our FX635 laser, is an even more area-specific way to add energy to an injured area and allow the body’s natural healing mechanisms to work. 
• Rehabilitation exercises can be an invaluable resource to strengthen the muscles in your neck to mitigate neck pain and prevent further injury.
• Traction can stretch out troubled areas of your neck and alleviate pain, especially if the cause of your neck pain is nerve compression or irritation.

Consider lifestyle choices to give your neck the support it needs. Be mindful of your posture when you sit at work or at home, and do your neck a favor by getting up and stretching regularly. For those who still talk on the phone, avoid tucking the phone between your neck and shoulder during calls. Doing so can tweak your neck, especially when you are on the phone with a particularly chatty friend. If you frequently carry a bag or backpack, make sure the weight is not putting strain on your neck.