Increasing number of young patients suffering from neck pains, typically from the IT sector have been diagnosed as having cervical spondylosis or Spondylitis. The presenting complaints of most being a neck pain extending to both sides of the neck and associated with a constellation of symptoms including shoulder pain, numbness in fingers, golfers’ elbow, Tennis elbow & Carpel tunnel syndrome. This is popularly called as Double crush syndrome also.
The important fact that adds to the burden of the symptomatology is reading too much about it and still sleeping over the matter until it becomes difficult to perform most activities of daily living. This article primarily focuses on neck pains and their easy home remedy.
First thing first is that the longer the symptoms remain, the more time they will take to resolve, do not expect instantaneous magical relief! These tips will help prevent and treat patients with milder varieties of symptoms for a long term. Severely suffering patients are advised to visit their Orthopaedic doctor for consultation. To understand more explicitly how these simple things, work, we need to put some light on how this pain is caused in most cases.
Most people in sitting job have a bad posture for a prolonged time. This is probably the most important factor leading to the problem. The second factor which adds to it is lack of exercises and tone of postural muscles. Both of these are supplemented with a nutritionally deficient diet.
We advise a holistic approach to this problem & 5 quick home remedies to fight neck & upper back pains:
1. REST: Imperative to fight stress due to muscular fatigue and sprain. Use of a pillow as per your comfort can be done. It is advised to take adequate sleep and devote adequate time for relaxing your mind and body. Sleep early wake early!
2. CORRECT POSTURE: If you typically have a long sitting job in front of your desktop, it is essential to sit up straight in a locked chair with complete back supported and keep both your forearms supported up to the elbow on the table. This will typically relieve stress off your neck muscles which are continuously bearing the weight of both your upper limbs. It is strongly advised to keep your laptop/Desktop screen at the level of your eyes over a book or support and to REFRAIN FROM USING IT WHILE IN LYING DOWN OR SLOUCHED POSTURE IN BED!!
3. ADEQUATE EXERCISES: Exercising your neck and shoulder muscles is essential to keep the min the right tone to support your body. It shall not take more than 15 mins to do these exercises. To know more on exercises please refer to our blog on “5 simple exercises to shrug away Neck &Shoulder Pain!“
4. DIET: Healthy diet has an essential role in preventing and treating the metabolic component of pain. Vitamin B12 deficiency (more common in pure vegetarians) & Vitamin D deficiency are essentially most important causes which can lead to numbness and paraesthesia in arm, forearm and the hand. These are commonly diagnosed as cervical radiculopathy but the treatment aimed at the same does not invariably help.
5. PHYSICAL THERAPY: Physical therapy includes Hot fomentation & gentle manual stretching of the affected muscles in acute cases. Chronic cases do not benefit as much as fresh cases with acute spasm.