Neck Won't Stop Hurting At Night? You Could Have Head And Shoulder Posture Problems
by Julia Gregory
If your neck hurts every single night, you may wonder if your're sleeping the wrong way or using the wrong pillow. Although these problems can be possible causes for your neck pain, your posture could be the real reason for your discomfort. Slouching, hunching your shoulders, or hanging your head forward when you sit, stand, or walk can place strain on the muscles and bones in your neck and upper body tissues. The strain can make it difficult to find a comfortable position when you lie down or try to sleep at night.
Here are some tips you can use during the day to keep your neck from hurting at night.
Keep Your Head Up and Shoulders Back
If you tend to lean your head forward throughout the day, you could be inadvertently hurting your neck. Specialists call this position the head and shoulder posture. This position allows the weight of your head to pull on the muscles in your neck and spine. You also strain the soft tissues in your upper back and chest area. If you practice this position for an extended amount of time, your shoulders and upper back begin to appear rounded instead of straight.
You can correct your posture by keeping your back straight, chin up, and shoulders relaxed when you sit or move. Your ears should line up with your shoulders. If you can't keep your head and shoulders properly aligned when you sit down, place a pillow behind your back.
To correct your bad posture when you stand or walk, keep your eyes raised and focused on the objects or points of interests directly in front of you. Your head tends to follow the direction of your eyes, so you want to keep everything in your line of vision to avoid hanging your head downward and straining your neck.
If you still can't find relief from your nightly neck pain, get help from a neck pain specialist.
Get Help
A neck pain specialist will generally examine your head, neck, and back to see if these tissues are out of alignment. If you do suffer from misalignment, a pain doctor can take steps to correct it. The treatment for upper body misalignment includes spinal adjustments and physical therapy.
A specialist may also prescribe upper body massage therapy to help you overcome your pain. When muscles hold tension, they tend to knot up. Depending on your condition, you could have multiple knots in your neck, shoulders, and upper back. The therapy can help alleviate the tension in your muscles as well as prevent new knots from forming.
If your pain is extensive, you may take medications to alleviate it. The medications remove inflammation in your upper body tissues so that you may sleep better at night.
To learn more about your nightly neck pain, consult a specialist, like one from The Pain Management Group, today.
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About Me
The decision to move one of my parents into assisted living was one of the most difficult I have ever made. I had extreme feelings of guilt that led to me being at the facility with my parent practically around the clock. It took a few months before I realized that I could not let my own life fall apart from the guilt I was feeling. I also learned that my parent was fine without me constantly hovering around. Since that time, I have had several friends express similar feelings of guilt. I started this blog to help others in the same situation understand not only their feelings about assisted living, but those of their parents.