When To See A Neck Pain Chiropractor - Goodlife Zen

When To See A Neck Pain Chiropractor

neck pain - woman holding neck

Have you been having lots of issues with your neck lately? Do you always suffer from stiff neck and neck pain that constrains you to do your work freely?

If that’s the case, you may already been thinking about seeing a chiropractor that will help you resolve your neck pain problem.

What is a Chiropractor?

A Chiropractor is a healthcare professional that uses hands-on spinal manipulation and other alternative treatments to help you recover from any muscoskeletal injury.

Instead of undergoing surgery and medication, chiropractors look for alternative ways to alleviate your pain and most importantly, to help you heal and finally recover.

Before You See A Neck Pain Chiropractor

Just because you can no longer take the pain you are feeling on your neck does not necessarily mean you should see a Chiropractor immediately.

There are still so many things you can do to help you deal with your neck pain without leaving your home. Here are some things you can do:

Use a cold pack. It is a common knowledge that cold has the capacity to reduce swelling to any body parts that are inflamed. Get a pack of ice, frozen vegetables or a bag of anything cold, wrap it in a towel and press it against your affected body part. You can do this for twenty to forty minutes or until the cold pack warms up.

woman with cold pack

Use a firm pillow. Make sure to use a firm pillow because most of the time when you use pillow that is too flat, it forces your neck to bend in an unnatural position, thus stretching it for a long period of time while you sleep.

Sleep on your back or side. Always try to sleep on your back or your side, and never lay flat on your stomach. a

Do neck exercises. Doing this will help you loosen your tight muscles. Try to do this every morning when you wake up. Gently tense your neck muscles by looking up and down and then from your left to right.

Temporarily avoid doing activities that make you stretch your neck. Sometimes there are things you do that you cannot avoid doing because it has already become a part of your routine. One of these so-called activities is driving.
When you are suffering from a neck pain or a stiff neck, try not to drive as often as you used to or try not to do it for a while. Driving can cause your knotted neck muscles to overstretch and will give you even severe pain.

Use an electric handheld massager. Sometimes what you really needs to alleviate the pain you are feeling is a good neck massage. If you cannot find someone to give you a massage, getting your own handheld massager is the best thing you can do.

A handheld massager is a portable device that instantly relieves pain, stiffness, stress and even fatigue by gently massaging your body parts. It is very convenient since you no longer have to go out, call a massage therapist or go to a massage spa just to get the massage you need. It is indeed the simplest way for you to relax and for you to resolve your muscle problems.

woman rubbing neck

When to Finally See A Chiropractor

If the pain you are feeling on your neck can no longer be relieved by any alternative home remedies, then it is time for you to go see a chiropractor.

Here are some signs that you need to consider so you will know when to make an appointment:

Your neck pain hasn’t improved for a few days. Has it already been five to seven days since you started feeling the pain in your neck? Do you feel like it has gotten worse instead of improving? If yes, you definitely need to see a Chiropractor.

You can no longer turn your head without feeling severe pain. At first, when you have a neck pain or a stiff neck, you are still able to move your head from side to side without severe pain. However, if the pain is no longer tolerable and you cannot even look from your left to your right, then that means your pain is not improving at all.

You have started using over-the-counter pain medications to help you get through the day. It is fine to use over-the-counter medicines to help you relieve your pain. However, if you have already started using them just to survive every day, that means you have already become dependent on it. That will not help you permanently get rid of your neck pain. It will keep coming back unless you finally go see a Chiropractor.

You start feeling numb in other parts of your body. Has the numbness you are feeling in your neck moved to other parts of your body such as your hands or your wrists? If yes, then the alternative home remedies for neck pain are definitely not working for you.

Your neck pain has been caused by a more serious experience. If you have been in a car accident or any physical accidents in the past few days, the pain you are feeling later on may be serious. Hence, it is a must for you to see a doctor of Chiropractic.

You always feel pain every time you wake up in the morning. Do you feel the pain in your neck every time you wake up, but then you feel better as the day goes by? Just because it gets better during the day does not mean your pain is going away soon. If it keeps recurring every single morning, you have to see your Chiropractor immediately.

woman holding neck

Conclusion

Chiropractors will definitely help you a lot in instantly relieving your muscle pain. However, they can be a little expensive. That is why it is still good to try alternative home remedies first before you make your doctor’s appointment.

If these alternative home remedies do not really work for you anymore, then that will be the time you should see a Chiropractor. Just always remember that if you never try some home remedies first, you will never know if they’re effective for you or not.

Do you know other alternative home remedies for neck pain and injury? What are other signs you can think of that indicate the perfect time to see a Chiropractor? Let me know in the comment section below. If you also liked this article, please feel free to click the “like” button and share this with your friends. Thanks a lot for reading!

About the author

Stefan Rochester

Stefan Rochester blogs about fitness and health at Good Fitness Power

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