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Your neck holds up an eleven pound head every waking hour. When something in it stops moving properly, everything around it has to compensate.
The cervical spine has a hard job. Seven small vertebrae support a head that weighs roughly eleven pounds, allow it to turn in nearly every direction, and protect the spinal cord while doing it. That is a lot of demand on a small structure.
When one of those joints stops moving the way it should, the muscles around it tighten up to protect the area. That tightness pulls on everything nearby, which is why neck pain so often arrives with headaches, shoulder tension, and a general feeling that you cannot get comfortable no matter how you sit.
Some neck pain arrives suddenly, from a car accident, a fall, or sleeping in an awkward position. Most of it builds gradually. Hours at a desk, a phone held at chest height, and a head that drifts forward over time all add load the neck was not designed to carry all day.
We also see neck pain from joint restriction, disc problems, arthritic change, and old injuries that never fully resolved. Stress plays a real role too, since most people carry tension in exactly this area.
We start by finding out what is actually restricted, which is not always where it hurts. Neck pain frequently originates lower down, and treating only the sore spot is why relief does not last.
Treatment usually combines adjustments to restore motion with soft tissue work to release the muscles that have been compensating. If you would like home exercise instructions, ask and we will provide them. Depending on your case we may add muscle stimulation, ultrasound, or cold laser therapy. If you would rather not have your neck twisted, say so and we will use a low force approach throughout.
Medically reviewed by Dr. Eveline Onkels, DC and Dr. Michael Onkels, DC, Onkels Chiropractic, Bountiful, Utah. This page is for general information and is not a substitute for an examination.
Yes. Neck pain is one of the most common reasons people see a chiropractor. We evaluate the alignment and movement of the cervical spine along with the surrounding muscles, then treat what we find. Most patients notice improvement early in care.
No. We offer gentle, low force techniques that do not involve a forceful twist or a popping sound. Tell us at your first visit and your doctor will use that approach for your entire course of care.
The muscles at the base of the skull attach directly to the neck. When those muscles stay tight, they refer pain into the head. Tension headache is the most common type of headache and it comes from exactly this mechanism, which is why treating the neck often resolves the headache.
It depends on how long you have had it and what is causing it. Recent problems often respond quickly. Longstanding neck pain built up over years usually takes a series of visits. Your doctor will give you a realistic picture after examining you.
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