Suffering From Neck Pain in Mt Pleasant SC?

You know the old saying, “It's a pain in the neck”? Well, when you live with neck pain long enough, you know it's important to find a chiropractor in Mt Pleasant SC. Neck pain can make even the simplest of movements involving the neck, head, arms, shoulders, and back excruciatingly difficult. Neck problems can lead to headaches, upper body discomfort, and sore muscles. Immobility resulting from neck pain can cause the muscles to become weak and degenerate over time.

Understanding the root of your neck pain is a necessary step toward acquiring the treatment that will be effective in both short and long-term recovery. The following article looks at the causes of neck pain and explains how Mt Pleasant SC chiropractic care can be a useful alternative to conventional treatments.

Neck Pain Treatment in Mt Pleasant SC

Although the neck is a relatively small area of the body, it is comprised of some complicated structures which do the important job of holding your head up. The small size of the vertebrae of the neck allows for a lot of mobility, but can also make the neck more vulnerable to injury and pain. Some of the causes of neck pain include:

• Pinched Nerves:
  Cervical spondylosis is also called cervical osteoarthritis. It is a condition involving changes to the bones, discs, and joints of the neck. These changes are caused by the normal wear-and-tear of aging. With age, the discs of the cervical spine gradually break down, lose fluid, and become stiffer. Improving fluidity and motion of the joint, strength around the affected areas, and relaxing muscle will improve pain associated with osteoarthritis of the neck.
• Disc Herniation/Disc Bulge:
  Cervical discs are located between spinal vertebrae. This disc is responsible mainly for shock absorption, to stabilize your neck, and for range of motion of the neck. A disc herniation happens when the integrity of the outer edge of the disc breaks down and starts to impinge on surrounding tissues, bones or nerves. Disc herniations can cause severe neck pain and if touching a nerve may cause numbness and tingling down the arm. If the nerve has been pinched for a long time then weakness or muscle wasting may occur. Cervical traction or techniques such as the McKenzie method will reduce the pressure on the discs and reduce neck symptoms.
• Whiplash Injury: Whiplash injury usually occurs following a sudden car accident such as being rear-ended, a sudden impact such as sports accidents, or falls to name a few. This usually results in intense muscle spasms in the area and can take up to 6-12 months for full healing depending on the severity. Relaxation techniques and muscle re-education is effective in improving painful signs and symptoms of muscle spasm.
• Muscle Spasms: Muscle spasms happen when a muscle undergoes a negative stimulus. These stimuli could be from prolonged pain, abnormal posture such as prolonged sitting, aggravation of nerves, and poor joint alignment. Muscle spasms tend to have quick relief from modalities such as hot, cold, or massage but may return if the underlying negative stimulus is not addressed. Physical therapy, chiropractic, and acupuncture are great to not only reduce muscle spasms but address the underlying negative stimuli.
• Spinal Stenosis: Spinal stenosis is characterized as a narrowing of the spinal canal or intervertebral joints due to arthritis, bone spurring or degeneration. This will usually put pressure on peripheral nerves and cause symptoms such as neck pain, shoulder pain, numbness, tingling, decreased range of motion, or weakness in the arm or hand. Although you cannot fix spinal stenosis with passive therapy, improving postural alignment and reducing the amount of impingement on the peripheral nerves will help to reduce the signs/symptoms of spinal stenosis.

Most of these issues are either caused by or impact, the alignment of the spine. When muscles in the neck go into spasm, the spine gets pulled out of alignment. When the spine is misaligned, the nerves become irritated and cause further tension and other systemic problems. Because every nerve in the body has its root in the spinal column, issues that have their source at the neck can have a major impact throughout every other system.

Many people let spinal problems go uncorrected in Mt Pleasant SC. They hope that if they wait long enough the pain will simply go away. In some cases it will go away, but the misalignment that caused the problem is usually still there. Over time, that area can become aggravated, and the pain can return. If the problem is not corrected it can become much more serious. Some patients let things go to the point where surgery may be the only option.

Conventional vs. Holistic Treatments

Most commonly, people try to deal with their neck pain using prescription or over-the-counter medications. This may help to relieve the symptoms in the short-term, but not only are patients dealing with side effects, the underlying issue goes unaddressed. Massage Therapy has become more popular over the years and this can help to relieve some muscle tightness. If the issue is in the bones or joints, the problem will remain.

Chiropractic treatment is a holistic practice that addresses the structural cause that leads to the majority neck pain. Following a thorough chiropractic assessment aimed at ruling out other issues and finding the exact source of the problem, a personalized recovery plan is developed. Gentle adjustments to the spine can bring instant relief and restore long term health to the neck and the entire body.

What To Do Next…

If you’re currently experiencing any of these symptoms and would like to learn more about how we can help, My Chiro iQ Chiropractic happily welcomes you for a complimentary consultation with Dr. Ross to determine what will be the recommended course of action for you. After an examination, he can provide an individualized approach to the root of the problem.

Call for your appointment today! (843) 766-4444