It’s a pain in the neck…

Neck pain is one of the most common problems we see in the Physiotherapy clinic. At any given time 10-20% of the population will have some, it is more common in women, more prevalent in the 35-49 yr old age group and affects more people in the clerical and service industries. Watch out all you female hairdressers and administrators out there, as if you didn’t have enough to deal with already!!

Necks are essentially about movement; moving your head to receive messages from around you, sights and sounds that your brain needs to process. The strength bit might seem less important but you do have to hold that big old brain up all day long so it does matter, especially if your posture makes it harder for those muscles to operate efficiently.

What do you need to do?? Move it, definitely. If it is too sore to just turn your head you can get on a spinning office chair, keep looking ahead and spin the chair (carefully to start with). You can support it with a towel as you move your head. If it needs more support from your muscles  – the classic statement is that your head feels too heavy, then you can start training the muscles by propping on your elbows, open out the back of your neck, bring the back of your head up in line with the back of your body and hold it there for 3 x10 secs.

We’ve put the exercises into a couple of videos for you to try if you want. If you’re struggling and need some help feel free to call us on 656340 or book in online here.

Active neck movement

Shoulder movements for the neck

Thigh slides

Neck muscle exercise

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