4 Things We Do Everyday That Cause Neck Pain
…(And What You Can Do Ease It Quick!)
When you sleep at
night, do you find yourself sleeping on your stomach? Or with more than one
pillow in a twisted position?
When you’re relaxing
at home, do you find yourself looking up at the TV screen with your chin poking
up and forward?
When you’re out and
about do you carry your bag on one shoulder? Or hold your heavy brief case in
one hand?
Do you ever suffer
from stress or anxiety?
Chances are, you’ve
answered ‘yes’ to at least one of these questions.
I may be wrong, your
bag might not be heavy, and you might sleep with just the one pillow, but the
reason why I guessed you’d answered ‘yes’ to one of these questions is because
over the years, almost every patient that walks into my clinic who has been
suffering with neck pain, has been doing one of these things.
So it’s no surprise
that during my time as a Physio that one of the most regular injuries I see is
‘neck
pain’.
And without even
realising it, things that we do every day can cause it.
So let’s take a look
4 of the most common everyday mistakes I’ve found my patients doing that cause
their ‘neck pain’…
1. Watching TV
Watching TV is a
habit – not saying it’s good or bad! But the real issue with watching TV,
is
HOW you watch it!
Are you doing it the
way I see most of my friends and family watch it… With the TV hung above the
fire place high on the wall, kicked back with your feet up (and neck!), while
watching your favourite TV soap opera?
Even though you might
think it’s comfortable and relaxing, truth is, there could be a problem waiting
for you! If you’re watching TV like this it can be strenuous for your neck and
head.
A lot of people make
the same mistake, they don’t realise that the position they have it in, can
actually affect their body and health.
Anyway, how to fix
it? There’s a reason why TV stands are almost always the same height, and any
decent one will mean that if you’re sitting on the sofa watching TV, the TV
will be at eye level.
Watch TV so your head
isn’t looking upwards, or reaching out, and this should help you avoid
headaches, eye trouble and muscle tension.
2. Your Bag
Carrying your bag on
one shoulder, or holding a heavy brief case in one hand is something most of us
are guilty of doing, but did you know that’s also one of the main causes of
aches and pains in your neck and shoulders?
You see, since all of
the weight of your bag is on one shoulder, or on one side of the body, it can
throw your muscles and posture off balance, which is why you sometimes see
people with one shoulder higher than the other!
Another thing, the
way we carry our bags can cause our muscles to become stiff too.
So the way to solve
this problem is reduce the weight of your bag, and to switch up the side you
carry it on periodically.
Switching your bag
over to the opposite side will help to balance out the way your body carries
the weight, relieving any tension built up in your muscles, and solving any
posture problems too! Switch it up every 10 minutes, or every time you walk
past two streets.
3. How We Sleep
Another daily habit
that brings on neck pain is the way we sleep.
You see if you sleep
with your head propped up on more than one pillow, your neck, and back aren’t going
to be nicely in-line – meaning more pressure on your muscles and spine.
And if you find
yourself sleeping on your stomach, your head is most likely going to be turned
on its side – meaning your body is in a twisted position all night for hours!
Although your neck is
built to rotate from side to side, it’s not designed to stay in that position
for hours on end. So if you choose to sleep on your side, use a pillow that
doesn’t prop your head too high up, but in-line with your shoulder instead. And
if you choose to sleep on your back, sleep with one thin pillow so your neck
and spine are nicely straight.
4. Breathing
Check out the way you
breathe.
If you use the
muscles on your upper chest and shoulders to breathe, you may be causing them
to overwork, and in turn cause increased tension in them plus the muscles at
the back of the neck. This tension can progress on to cause pain!
So what can we do
about that?
Well, we can start to
use our main breathing muscle – the diaphragm, in a better way by letting our
tummy rise as we breathe in. This will help ease the work our shoulder and neck
muscles do on each breath.
Now can you see why
you might wake up with a bit of a sore neck?…
For more ways and
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