Chronic neck pain has become a common problem with the daily use of smartphones and constant computer work. Whiplash, a specific type of neck pain is also the most reported type of pain after a car accident. Often when traditional medicine cannot resolve neck pain, doctors refer their patients for chiropractic care, particularly when it is chronic.
Axcess Accident Center chiropractors are able to effectively treat chronic neck pain because they work to address the main source or cause of the pain before administering care.
Causes of Chronic Neck Pain
There are numerous causes of chronic neck pain and they fall into several categories:
Muscle Strains
Anyone who spends long hours looking at a smartphone or the computer could suffer from strained muscles. When left untreated muscle strains can lead to chronic pain neck pain.
Muscle strains can also occur when you overextend your neck or you are injured in a car accident.
Worn Joints
Just like all other joints of the body, neck joints wear down with age. The cartilage between the bones starts to deteriorate as we all age. With that deterioration, it is possible that spurs will develop and cause pain in the joints and hinder joint motion.
Bone Spurs
If there are bone spurs in the vertebrae of the neck, they can pinch the nerves which branch out from the spinal cord. If this happens, it can cause neck pain. These can be caused by an injury, any forced compression of the neck, in a car accident or slip and falls depending on how you are injured.
Injuries
Directly after an injury to the neck, there may be acute neck pain which if it lasts longer than a few weeks can become chronic neck pain. If the neck is jerked backwards and forwards suddenly (as in the case of whiplash), the soft tissues of the neck are strained which causes long-term pain if not treated properly.
The Role of a Chiropractor
After identifying the cause of your injury and pain, your chiropractor will provide an integrative treatment plan which will include a comprehensive examination, chiropractic adjustments, massage therapy, electric stim, and other healing modalities focused on helping you feel better to make the best possible recovery.
How Do Chiropractic Adjustments Work?
Chiropractic adjustments apply a sudden and controlled force to a specific joint. This is intended to push the joint to a healthy range which is beyond its typical movement. This movement helps loosen the joint that has poor mobility or pain.
Some patients experience joint stiffness because of scarring or tissue damage which is caused by repetitive stress on the tissue or trauma. One of the most common causes of trauma which leads to chronic neck pain is whiplash. A repetitive stress injury liking straining your neck, or looking at your computer too long is caused by poor posture.
A chiropractic adjustment for the neck is called cervical manipulation and the process helps loosen the joints present in cervical vertebrae. With precise adjustments from your chiropractor, the vertebrae are put back into proper alignment and pain from muscle spasms and pinched nerves is reduced or eliminated.
What Happens During a Visit to a Chiropractor?
When you visit a chiropractor at Axcess Accident Center, a chiropractor will conduct a full evaluation, and review your medical history to find the source of your pain. Your chiropractor will ask you a few questions to understand your current condition and symptoms.
These questions could include:
- When did the neck pain start?
- What steps were taken to reduce the neck pain?
- Is the pain radiating to other areas of the body?
- Are you able to reduce the pain using heat or cold packs?
During the Chiropractic Process
During the adjustment, the chiropractor usually places the individual in specific positions so that the affected areas can be treated. The chiropractic table is specially designed and often padded so that the patient feels comfortable. The chiropractor uses his own hands to apply a sudden but controlled force. The patient may hear a cracking or a popping sound as the chiropractor moves your joints during treatment.
If you have any questions about this process we are happy to walk you through and answer any questions you have. It is our job to ensure that we provide an effective and safe treatment for your unique injuries or neck pain.
How Chiropractic Adjustments Help in Case of Chronic Neck Pain
Helps to Reduce Inflammation – Chiropractic adjustments are the foundation of our integrative care approach, and together with our other modalities are quite effective in reducing inflammation in your neck. As inflammation is one of the main causes of tension, joint issues, and pain, our goal is to reduce this to help you get on the right path of healing. Chronic inflammation is also related to other health diseases. Chiropractic adjustments have been found to be quite beneficial and help in reducing inflammation. Such adjustments offer a number of positive benefits in not just chronic neck pain, but it is helpful in reducing muscle tension and provides joint pain relief throughout your whole body.
Reduces Headache – It is often seen that chronic neck pain leads to other complications such as headaches. Many people suffer from migraine and tension headaches when these are caused due to spinal and back pain issues. Neck pain often causes muscle tension which causes tension headaches and migraines. Thus, when you go to the chiropractor to get the neck pain treated, by following our treatment plan you can get relief from headaches as well.
Chiropractic care does help in getting relief from chronic neck pain, and we have helped thousands of patients here in Utah over the last 10 years.
If you have been injured in a car accident or you are dealing with neck pain, we can help and it will cost nothing out of pocket. Contact us via our online form or by calling 801-701-8222 to schedule your free evaluation today.
If you have been in a car accident in the last 45 days, we also offer FREE Massages which you can request to schedule here >
