Posture and Neck Pain – Proper Neck Posture



Proper Neck Posture

Proper Neck Posture at Work

Having poor posture is just one of the myriad reasons you can develop neck pain. It may be a simple task to recognize that you have poor posture, but it is rarely simple to correct it. For most people the bulk of their day is spent at work, so it makes sense to start assessing your posture as you sit at your desk, stand behind a counter, or carry heavy building supplies on site.

At your desk, or terminal, check to see if you are always looking down with your chin to your chest in order to see the screen. Conversely, you may have to strain your neck upwards to get a clear view. Ideally your screen should be at such an angle that you can keep your back straight and eyes forward at all times. Consider raising or lowering your chair, or the screen itself if this is not the case so that the top third of the screen is at a level with your eyes and the screen itself is around 18-24inches from your head. Read more

Preventing Neck Pain During the Holidays

neck pain at christmas

Is a pain-free Christmas all you wish for this year?

Preventing Neck Pain During the Holidays

Christmas and New Year can be very stressful times, with lots of things to do, social activities to attend to, shopping, visiting family, office parties, and many changes to your normal routine that can compromise your nutrition, exercise, and healthy regimes leading to increased risk of neck pain. Throw in the fact you have a chronic condition such as spinal stenosis, cervical arthritis, degenerative joint disease, or a bulging disc, and this all becomes even harder to manage without doing yourself some damage. Below are some top tips for neck pain relief during the holiday season. Read more

Living with Chronic Neck Pain

living with chronic neck pain

Find out your options for getting help when living with chronic neck pain.

Living with Chronic Neck Pain

Sadly, for many, neck pain is not just an acute incident lasting a day or two, but a chronic struggle which can have a serious impact on all aspects of daily life. For those living with chronic neck pain the battle to achieve an accurate diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment plan can seem endless. For some, unfortunately, there are limited options to help with chronic neck pain, which can lead to depression, anxiety, other physical conditions, and adversely affect their career, relationships, and enjoyment of life.

Chronic Neck Pain and Family Life

Ensuring that family and friends fully understand the condition causing chronic neck pain is paramount in order to help the sufferer manage their levels of distress. Initiatives like Spinal Health Month are such an attempt to help those living with chronic neck pain and other spinal issues. By altering the household division of labor a spouse, or other family member, may significantly reduce the strain, and subsequent pain. This is especially true in conditions such as fibromyalgia which can be made substantially worse by fatigue and emotional stress.

Getting Help When Living with Chronic Pain

If family members are struggling to accept the reality of a newly diagnosed disease try taking them to medical appointments as this can help them to be more understanding. Similarly, as many patients tend to underestimate their pain and daily struggles with a chronic condition, having a family member sit in on a medical appointment may allow the physician to gain a clearer view of a patient’s limitations, thereby increasing the offers of assistance and support. Specific help with daily tasks may be available to some patients, such as with shopping, cleaning, and personal hygiene; patients should not be afraid to ask about their eligibility for these types of assistance.


Depression and Chronic Pain

If chronic pain is causing depression then it is important to address this problem as early as possible as depression itself can increase the experience of pain. Constructing a framework of accepted limitations and goals providing motivation for those with chronic pain can help the sufferer regain some independence and joie de vivre. Studies have found that those with chronic neck pain often limit their activities unnecessarily due to anxiety over perceived risks, with a series of psychological consultations allowing the patient to feel freer to enjoy life once more, whilst managing their chronic neck pain. A recent study has also found that mindfulness training can help improve quality of life in Rheumatoid Arthritis, a potential cause of neck pain.

Sometimes a patient will be taking pain medications, such as muscle relaxants, that are also antidepressants; however, the doses taken for analgesia are usually insufficient to help with depression itself. Patients should, therefore, not assume that these drugs are ineffective for their depression and, instead, discuss their options with their physician. It is also worth remembering that a common side-effect of pain medications is actually depression itself, so if symptoms develop after beginning a new form of treatment it is important to talk to the doctor; do not simply cease medication however, as withdrawal can make depression, and other side-effects, much worse. Working with the doctor to come off medications slowly will help to reduce withdrawal symptoms.

Chronic Neck Pain and Work

Chronic pain and the associated issues such as anxiety, disability, and depression can seriously affect a patient’s ability to continue working as before. Specific help with employment, accessed through a doctor, local employment agency, or the employer themselves, can be incredibly helpful in allowing both minor and major changes to be enacted, thereby maintaining a chronic neck pain sufferer’s independence and employability. These changes could be something as simple as an ergonomic assessment of their work set-up and a new office chair, desk, or keyboard to improve posture. Major changes may allow for a patient to undergo retraining in a less physically demanding job so as to remain a part of the workforce where a previous career, such as manual labor, becomes untenable. Patients who feel compelled to give up work as a result of their pain often develop depression and social anxiety due to the change in circumstances and lack of daily interaction, as well as the loss of their financial independence. If these issues are present then it is important to address them quickly and develop an action plan to reduce the likely impact of living with chronic neck pain.

Available Treatments and Help

If the pain is mild then a regime involving yoga, massage, acupressure or acupuncture may be enough to manage the condition, and some may find that an acupressure mat can help alleviate the pain considerably if used daily. Neck stretching exercises formulated with the help of a physical therapist may also be beneficial in reducing the severity and incidence of pain, and help patients stave off further degeneration.

Spinal surgery is not always recommended for chronic neck pain, and long-term medication use may be contraindicated due to possible side-effects making alternative remedies for neck pain an attractive option if the condition is persistent. Discussing available help and treatments with an experienced physician or pain-management specialist can highlight appropriate therapies to aid the patient and improve coping skills. Above all, it is important to remember that there are many others living with chronic neck pain and that support groups, online forums, and medical professionals are available to help.

Laser Therapy for Neck Pain

Laser Therapy for Neck Pain

Laser Therapy for Neck Pain

Low Level Laser Therapy for Neck Pain

Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) has been used for around thirty years to treat both acute and chronic pain. The mechanism behind the use of LLLT is assumed to be the transfer of energy from the near-infrared light wavelength to cells in the deep tissues of the body, such as spinal discs, and the musculoskeletal system. The strengths of the lasers used, and the duration of treatment vary between difference clinics, practitioners, manufacturers, and in research trials, making justification and assessment of the treatment inherently complex.

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Treating Whiplash with Botox

Botox for Neck Pain from Whiplash

Botox for Neck Pain

Botox for Neck Pain

Whilst botox will, for most people, conjure up an image of a celebrity failing to age gracefully, this concentrated toxin has another use. Botox injections for whiplash and neck pain are becoming increasingly popular as Read more

How the Weather Affects Joint and Neck Pain

The Effect of Weather on Joints

The weather may be making your neck pain worse - but what can you do?

Does the weather make a difference to your neck pain? With cooler weather setting in as we near Halloween, this week’s blog takes a look at the strange science of the human barometer and why winter is a time of discontent for many of those with spondylitis, along with other neck pain sufferers.

One popular weather website actually includes an ‘aches and pains’ prediction in its forecast, although how accurate any of its ‘future trends’ are is up for debate. Can one’s joints really predict the weather? Does that winter chill really ‘get into the bones’? Can the weather make neck pain worse?

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Neck Pain Acupuncture and Acupressure

acupuncture

Acupuncture for neck pain could be effective for some patients.

Acupuncture and acupressure can be very effective in providing relief from neck pain, and also have associated benefits for many health conditions, such as lowering blood pressure, depression, fibromyalgia, and stress. Applying pressure to the neck muscles can help reduce spasm, improve circulation to the tissues, and help a patient to relax. These can all lessen the severity and duration of any pain felt in the neck. Although acupuncture is also effective at relieving neck pain in a large number of cases, it can be difficult to find time to squeeze in an appointment, and, for some, the cost is prohibitive if somebody is suffering from chronic neck pain.
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Fish Oil for Back Pain and Neck Pain



fish oil

Benefits of Fish Oil

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have been used for many years after the discovery that aspirin-like drugs could inhibit the synthesis of prostaglandins (and their related substances: thromboxanes). Prostaglandins (PgLs) are made in tissues throughout the body from unsaturated fatty acids, primarily arachidonic acid, when the tissue is subjected to trauma, stress, or disease in both chronic and acute conditions. Diets high in meat and animal produce tend to contain a lot more pro-inflammatory arachidonic acid than plant-based diets.

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