If you have neck pain, it can be hard to concentrate on your work. This might make you less productive and even make it difficult for you to do your job well. Neck pain also affects the quality of your life in many other ways. For example, some people with neck pain cannot drive or participate in their favorite sports because they don't want to impose more stress on their necks. Other people avoid social activities because they don't want to explain why they're always hunched over with their head down—or worse yet, why they can no longer stand up straight due to severe neck pain! If this sounds close to what you're going through right now, then don't worry: there are many things that can help relieve and prevent future episodes of your upper cervical pain.
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The neck is a major part of your upper cervical spine. It connects the head to the torso and allows for movement in all directions. It is made up of seven bones that form two joints between each pair of vertebrae. These joints are the ones that allow your head to move freely when you turn your head left or right, as well as being able to extend (bend forward) and flex (bend backward). The muscles that support these movements are called “stabilizers” because they help keep your head upright while you’re standing or sitting up straight with good posture. Other factors like tightness in the muscles surrounding your spine may contribute to neck pain especially if you don't take breaks while working or chilling with your gadgets.
The neck is used for many things like balance and posture. However, it can be easily hurt due to its location – between the head and body – which is a very delicate area – making neck pain widely experienced by many. It can be an issue for people who don’t do many activities in their days, so if you spend loads of time on your computer and in front of other screens like tablets or your mobiles, you are at high risk of having it.
Neck pain can be caused by poor ergonomics, gadget overuse, and bad posture. Here are some of the simplest and most effective ways to improve your posture and address neck pains – now and in the future!
Adjust the height of the chair you usually use so that your feet rest flat on the floor. If you can't do this, get up and move around regularly to prevent nerve damage or varicose veins from pooling blood in your legs. You can also try to adjust your chair so that your thighs are parallel to the floor when seated. This is called a 90/90 position, which means that from the side view, your knees should be at 90 degrees and hips at 90 degrees as well.
Be sure to also sit up straight with good posture. Don't slouch forwards or backward—not even for a second! If you're having trouble sitting up straight all day, use a pillow or rolled towel behind your lower back for support while working at the computer desk. The same goes if you're standing—ensure that your back is straight and your neck or upper cervical spine is not bent for too long.
Avoid using your gadgets: phone, tablet, and laptop while lying down and for too long without any breaks. Many of us lie in bed while working or relaxing with our devices during the day and take “quick” peeks at our phones before falling asleep at night. This can be quite problematic because it forces you to hold your device for an extended time with one hand rather than the more ergonomic two hands. Also, when you're not paying attention to what you're doing, you may wind up rotating the device so that its screen is facing toward your face—a bad habit that increases eye strain and strain on your neck muscles. With that, it is essential to reduce your gadget use, especially when your norm is nonstop usage in awkward positions.
Whether you are working or just enjoying your free time with your devices, make sure to take regular breaks to give your muscles and spine time to relax and recover. If you're suffering from chronic neck pain, you should get up once every hour or so. Getting up and moving is especially important if you're one of those who sit down all day long without any breaks. In fact, taking frequent breaks would be helpful for anyone with neck pain, whether the cause is related to poor posture or improper use of technology. You can take these breaks in a number of ways: walk around the office building, go outside, or simply walk over to your coworker's desk for some small talk, which is always nice.
Upper Cervical Chiropractic can help relieve neck pain, muscle, and joint pain in the upper body. A chiropractor is a person trained to address disorders of the musculoskeletal system – which includes bones, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and nerves. This approach includes neck adjustments (manipulation). An Upper Cervical chiropractor can help identify which spot in your vertebrae needs attention and fixes it so that you don’t spend too much time figuring out the root of your pain and trying out various approaches to no avail!
Upper Cervical Chiropractic is a unique way to manage neck pain and is often a very effective first line of defense. A chiropractor can examine your neck and determine if there’s an underlying cause for your pain. If you want to learn more about this holistic approach to neck pain, visit Upper Cervical Awareness.
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TV show host Montel Williams describes how specific chiropractic care has helped his body.
The content and materials provided in this web site are for informational and educational purposes only and are not intended to supplement or comprise a medical diagnosis or other professional opinion, or to be used in lieu of a consultation with a physician or competent health care professional for medical diagnosis and/or treatment. All content and materials including research papers, case studies and testimonials summarizing patients' responses to care are intended for educational purposes only and do not imply a guarantee of benefit. Individual results may vary, depending upon several factors including age of the patient, severity of the condition, severity of the spinal injury, and duration of time the condition has been present.
