Cervical pain is the medical term for neck pain that occurs as a result of problems with your spine. While neck pain is a common ailment, it can come from a variety of causes. Stretching can help with most cervical pain, but you'll need to take a few precautions.
Causes of Cervical Pain
Before you try stretching to relieve cervical pain, it helps to know a bit about the causes of cervical pain. Muscle stiffness, bulging discs and arthritis are common causes of cervical pain. You probably know what muscle stiffness and arthritis are, but might not be as familiar with bulging discs. According to chiropractor Dr Luke Martin, bulging discs occur when one of your spinal discs slips out of its normal positioning. Traumatic occurrences such as car crashes can cause bulging discs, but so can normal aging.
Sretching To Relieve Muscle Stiffness
Stretching is almost always effective against cervical pain caused by muscle stiffness, and has few risks. To do a forward flexation stretch, look downward, tucking your chin until you feel a stretch at the back of your neck. A lateral stretch is a sideways version of a flexation stretch; tilt your head to the side without twisting your neck forwards or backwards until you feel a stretch in the side of your neck
Stretching and Injury or Disease-Related Cervical Pain
If your pain comes from an injury or disease, such as a trauma-related bulging disc, you'll need to be more careful. Stretching can be an effective treatment for disc-related cervical pain when done under the watchful eye of a physical therapist. Avoid rotational stretches -- stretches that include twisting of the neck -- as these often place harmful pressure on your discs, exacerbating your problem.
Warning
Though stretching can sometimes help relieve cervical pain, you shouldn't rely solely on it. Neck pain can indicate a serious health condition. Seek skilled medical help immediately if you experience cervical pain accompanied by loss of sensation in your limbs, fingers, or toes, if you suddenly have trouble breathing, or if you experience cervical pain accompanied by severe chest pain. Loss of sensation can mean damage to your spinal cord, while trouble breathing and chest pain can indicate a heart attack.
References
- Spine-Health.com : Cervical Spine Anatomy and Neck Pain
- Dr. Luke Martin, Chiropractor; Fort Collins, Colorado
- Spine-Health.com; Stretching for Back Pain Relief; Peter F. Ullrich, Jr., MD
- Drugs.com: Cervical Disc Herniation
