Localized Neck Pain

Has your neck suddenly become stiff or painful to turn? Does it hurt to look up or from side to side or finding a comfortable sleeping position? Some neck pain has an immediate onset related to an activity like lifting reaching or overextending you neck. Others woke up with a stiff neck or noticed it becoming progressively worse after prolonged daily activity.

The fact that your pain stays mainly in your neck is actually an important clue. Muscle spasms often develop as the body's natural way of protecting an injured area by limiting movement. Although this can make your neck feel "locked," it doesn't necessarily mean you've suffered a serious injury.

If your pain is travelling into your shoulder, arm, or hand rather than staying in your neck, you're please click here to learn about radiating neck pain.

Ongoing neck pain most commonly comes from irritation of the muscles, joints ligaments and discs of the neck.

The challenge is that these tissues often produce remarkably similar symptoms. In many patients, more than one structure becomes irritated at the same time, making it important to identify the underlying injury and not just treat the protective muscle spasm. That's why an accurate diagnosis is the first step toward effective treatment.

Many episodes of uncomplicated neck pain improve on their own within a few days. If your pain and muscle spasms continue beyond that, there's usually an underlying issue that needs to be addressed. The muscles of the neck remain tight because they're trying to protect the irritated area so this is not a weak muscle that needs exercising or a tight muscle that needs stretching. Unfortunately these stereotypical recommendations only lead to further aggravation.

Yes. The good news is that most localized neck pain responds very well to chiropractic care once the source of the problem has been accurately diagnosed. Over the past 30 years, I have had the privilege of helping thousands of patients with neck pain, with most pain free and back to pre-injury activity in as little as 1-4 visits.

If your neck pain hasn't improved after a few days, keeps returning, or is interfering with your sleep, exercise, or normal daily activities, it's time to have it evaluated.

Different neck conditions often produce remarkably similar symptoms, but they don't all require the same treatment. An evaluation is designed to determine exactly what's causing your pain so the right treatment can be recommended from the beginning.