| If
you are suffering from: Neck Pain or Whiplash |
|
You are constantly trying to balance the
weight of the head on your shoulders,
this requires good co-ordination and control
of the muscles in your neck. If you are
having neck pain it is likely that at
some time you have fallen or had an accident
or sporting injury that has strained the
neck. |
| You
probably have neck stiffness but also
upper back and shoulder ache, if it is
bad it can make your arm feel heavy and
there may even be tingling or numbness
in the hand. Most people have trouble
with the mid-neck as it is the most vulnerable
area of the spine in an accident or blow
to the head and is constantly under strain,
especially when driving or sat at a desk. |
| You
should be able to ease this by following
our advice in the pdf
and email course, but ultimately you need
to get the upper back moving better to
reduce the stress at the mid neck. A program
of manipulation, mobilisation, acupuncture,
soft-tissue work, functional rehabilitation
and postural training is essential if
this type of problem is to be avoided
in the future. |
| It
is generally advisable to avoid manipulation
of the neck in the early stages of treatment
as this area has already been overstrained
following an injury. We usually concentrate
on restoring movement to the upper back,
which eases the stress at the mid-neck. |
| If
you have recently been in an accident
it is important to get treatment as soon
as possible, if you don’t you will
be more likely to suffer earlier degeneration
and arthritis of the neck, sometimes within
just a few years of the accident. |
| Arthritis
of the neck commonly leads to trapped
nerves to the arm resulting in higher
levels of pain and even permanent weakness
or numbness if advanced, so it is wise
to address the problem thoroughly as soon
as you can. |
| You
can be assured of a thorough appraisal
here as I have suffered my own significant
whiplash and once you’ve had one,
you’ll need careful and targeted
rehabilitation to reduce the chances of
recurrent problems. |
