Neck Pain Support Blog

Arthritis in the Neck...

So you were told you have arthritis in the neck. Most likely your doctor had ordered x-rays and diagnosed it from them. Or, the radiologist, saw it and reported to your doctor.

On the x-ray it will clearly show up as jagged edges of the bones and possibly decreased disc spaces.

There are many actual types of arthritis, all differentiated by certain symptoms and types of changes on the xrays. For example there is osteoarthitis or DJD(degenerative joint disease). This is like wear and tear arthritis. Like an old car - things start to break down. It typically occurs with age and a past injured area or areas. Let's say you had an old football injury to the right knee. That area may be shifted out of alignment and breaks down faster.

Here's the thing though - They may say "When you get old this will happen", but why do some get it and others not so much. The key is the spine and pressure on nerves. If the nerves are free from pressure it is not typically very bad, if hardly at all. The body works at its best when nerves are free of pressure. Will we get some breakdown as we get older? Sure! Our bodies are designed to last well into the 140's. That old car maybe not so much but you can still see the analogy.

There can be other factors at play too. For example rheumatoid arthritis has an autoimmune component. Gouty arthritis is when uric acid crystal build up in the joints, etc.

Therefore spinal alignment plays a role but so does diet, genetics, and lifestyle. So how can we slow that arthritis down.

• Make sure your spine is in alignment - This will keep nerves free from pressure, and the body working at its best.
• Eat Right - there may be some specific things you can eat or not eat that will help either get rid symptoms or promote health.
• Avoid or perform certain activities. Some exercise may help whereas some hobbies may contribute negatively.

So try these things to improve your neck arthritis and control your neck pain.

Additional Reading Resources:

• A Pillow for Neck Arthritis
• 6 causes of neck pain that you don't always think of
• What to do for herniated disc in the neck
• The Neck Pain Relief Package- Products for pain relief
• One Way To Appear Taller and Slimmer

Image Source: Sport and Spine Rehab

6 Causes of Neck Pain You Don't always Think About...

Ok, every one knows of the typical causes of neck pain - poor posture, a bad pillow your sleeping with, a whiplash injury, but here's some we don't always think of:

1. Too much stressful driving - Yep, even though it seems like there's always new roads or more lanes, even people who bike or walk to work in nice weather, it never fails, the roads seem to just get busier and busier. So a stressful drive is tough on the neck. Think about it; over time drives creates some forward head posture (the spine pulls forward and that creates nerve pressure), now add a stressful drive to the mix. You're on high alert, you grip the wheel like you never want to let go, and you have a lot of tension in the muscles of the upper body.
   
   
2. You are a cell phone junkie. Constantly texting, going on the internet, reading email... Cell phones, they're not as big as your screen at home and you tend to bend that head down and forward to look at them. Doing a particular posture over and over again starts to reshape the spine; and in this case, not for the positive.
   
   
3. You are always lugging around the laptop. You can't win right. Well now we have tablets which do make things a bit easier. But the bottom line is that sometimes you have to make multiple trips to carry things or you have to use a back pack, or something else that doesn't make a fashion statement. When it comes down to it though, that is a much better choice than being in pain for 3 days.
   
   
4. You read in bed in awkward positions. This one also includes watching TV. In bed or not. I'm not even talking about slipping away to sleep in this funky position. Simply trying to watch or read in one particular way, you may go to get up and say "mann, what did I just do?"
   
   
5. Poor eating habits. You know you've heard "you are what you eat". Sometimes the birthday parties, meeting for work, maybe late nights doing work, and more, starts to catch up with us. To keep the whole body working at its best we have to give it good fuel. This is not always the case for some of us.
   
   
6. Doing things like you were 20 years younger. We've all heard of the "weekend warriors" - have a ho hum life during the week but when Friday/Saturday hits, it's to the golf course, gym, building a shed, painting the deck, to the batting cages, then to the bar with friends. The body just can't go at the same pace it used too. Especially since during the week life is so sedentary.
   
   

Didn't think of all of those did you? Now that you have an idea of some of the additional causes of neck pain, it's time to evaluate your daily habits and see if something can be changed to prevent future pains.

Addtional Reading Resources:

• Understand more about how to get rid of the hunchback posture
• Choose the Best Neck Pillow for Better Sleep and Relief of Pain
• Treat muscle soreness and spasm in your lower back and neck area easily at home
• Why does a neck roll work so well?
• Sleeping Positions that can can be a culprit of neck pain

"I think I had a whiplash to my neck"

Whiplash is more common than you think. Really any time we have an injury where the head rocks forward and back quickly can be called a whiplash. We often typically use this term when referring to that car collision type of injury.

You are at a stand still on the highway; you're completely stopped. The person behind you doesn't notice and they plow right into you. Luckily they weren't going very fast because it has been stop and go. No-the-less, even with the seat belt on and the headrest up your neck still gets jolted forward and back.

Bang, welcome to the world of neck pain! And this pain may not start right away. You may get up the next day and the pain hits you. Everyone is a little different.

But guess what, you don't have to get rear ended on the highway but you can fall. take a hit playing ball, hit your head on the fridge... All of these thing may cause a whiplash.

So what exactly happens when your head gets whipped forward and back? Neck strain or neck sprain or both? Is there a difference? And the end result of course - Neck PAIN, maybe numbness and tingling in the hands, maybe a headache, or something else?

Image Source: San Diego auto accident and Whiplash Injuries

Additional Reading Resources

• What is the Hump On My Neck?
• Sleep Deprivation: Not Good For your Neck
• Will a Firm Pillow Hurt Your Neck?
• Reduce Whiplash Injuries by Doing Just One Thing In Your Life
• How does whiplash occur?

Related articles

How Can Neck Traction Help Me With My Neck Pain?

Another pillow that doesn't help your neck...

Whiplash Pain Due to Car Accident Injuries

Looking for a soft pillow to sleep that still supports your neck after a neck fusion

Recently we received a call from a customer who was looked for a soft pillow. She stated that she had had  neck fusion surgery (at C5-C6 level) a few years back, and that all the pillows that she has tried were too hard and not supportive enough. She even mentioned that she had tried a "mypillow" pillow after watching a tv commercial. That did not work; the pillow was very expensive and did not provide enough support. Other pillows she had tried included the tri core family of pillows and also the temperpedic memory foam pillows. The temperpedic variety helped for a bit, but no longer. It was just too firm for her neck now.

So she needed a pillow that she could sleep comfortably with: one that she could sleep on her side and on her back. Also one that was soft enough, yet still supportive. I recommended two fiber pillows for her:

1. The Linear Gravity neck Pillow- this pillow has a center depression that is square in shape. It has two neck rolls on it:  one soft one gentle. She was 5'6" so i suggested the medium size would work well for her. Also, she can sleep with this pillow on her side and on her back
2. The Arc4life Natural Alignment pillow- this is a more newer pillow that recently came out on the market- it was designed to be soft and supportive. There is less fiber content in this pillow, but there are still two neck rolls again. Again you can sleep on your side and on your back with this pillow. Because there is less fiber, there is more give to the pillow. The pillow naturally aligns your spine while you sleep on your side or on your back.

 

Related articles

What Should My Pillow Be Made Of?

Another pillow that doesn't help your neck...

Will a Firm Pillow Hurt Your Neck?

A Comfortable Neck Pillow that will Help in Aligning Your Neck While Sleeping

Personal Preference for a Hard or A Soft Pillow

I have a Short Neck...Which Pillow do You Recommend?