Six Things to Avoid if You Have Neck Pain
If you have neck pain, physical therapy may help you reduce your pain and improve your neck’s range of motion (ROM) and mobility. Your physical therapist will be able to tell you what you need to do to get back to your normal activities. They can also advise you on what to avoid if you have neck pain.
When treating neck pain, you must be active in your treatment and refrain from doing certain things that may be causing you pain and unnecessary worry and anxiety about your pain. Avoiding certain activities can be beneficial in managing your cervical pain.
When neck pain strikes, consult your doctor first, and then see your physical therapist to learn how to treat it. Learn about some of the things you should avoid doing while dealing with neck pain in the sections below.
1. Don’t wait for the pain to go away
If you experience neck pain, you may believe that if you simply wait, the pain will vanish as quickly as it appeared. While this is sometimes true, there are some things you can do to help relieve pain when it occurs in the neck.
A visit to your physical therapist to learn the proper exercises to begin can assist you in quickly returning to your previous pain-free lifestyle. Your physical therapist will also teach you how to prevent the pain from returning so that you can maintain control.
2. Don’t slouch
One of the most common causes of neck pain is poor posture while sitting or standing. If you experience neck pain, have your physical therapist examine your posture.
They can provide suggestions to help you consistently change your posture and teach you how to sit properly to keep your neck in the best position possible. Postural exercises may also be recommended to help you improve your sitting or standing posture.
3. Don’t be sedentary
Stop sitting on the couch. Exercise is one of your most important tools for keeping your neck moving normally and the pain at bay.
General exercise can help you keep neck pain at bay, and specific neck exercises and postural strengthening exercises can help you resolve your neck pain quickly and keep it from returning.
4. Don’t use too many pillows
Stop using multiple pillows while sleeping. Your neck is made up of several bones that form a forward curve known as lordosis. When you sleep with multiple pillows, you are flexing your head forward while sleeping, which can cause you to lose your cervical lordosis and put additional strain on the discs, joints, and muscles in your neck.
5. Don’t rely on passive treatments
Your physical therapist is a movement expert who can provide you with practical solutions to your neck pain. Some physical therapists treat neck pain with passive treatments such as ultrasound or cervical traction. However, relying on these passive treatments too heavily is not the most effective way to treat your neck pain.
Although most neck pain is caused by a mechanical problem in your body, serious conditions can also cause neck pain. If you have persistent neck pain or pain that is accompanied by fatigue, fever, or weight loss, you should see your doctor right away to determine the source of your pain.
Neck pain can cause you to miss work, miss sleep, or avoid normal recreational activities. Working with a physical therapist can help you learn what you should do and what you should avoid in order to manage your neck pain.
6. Don’t text excessively
Most people are glued to their smartphones and tablets, and many of them text frequently throughout the day. When you text and look down at your phone for hours on end, you are putting your neck in an extreme forwarding flexion position. Text neck, a relatively new condition of neck pain caused by excessive smartphone and tablet use, can result.
Consult your physical therapist to learn how to counteract the forces on your neck while texting. Better yet, put down the phone and call your friends instead of texting them.
