Neck Pain Treatment in Alexandria
Neck pain is usually a little more complex to diagnose, some of it may be postural. If your ears are held in front of your shoulders for a long period of time, you’re using muscle groups that aren’t really designed to hold your head up. Every inch your head moves forward is another weight on your head. If your head is 7% of your body weight, if it moves forward by an inch, that adds another 10 pounds.
Stresses on the Neck
There are many different sources and symptoms of neck stress. These are the primary issues we might see:
- Many times, people come in with poor posture.
- Some people respond to stress or high stress environments by bringing their shoulders up to their ears. Those individuals will end up with neck pain because their muscles are activated, and their neck is restricted.
- The way people sleep at night, without a good supportive pillow, may create a wry neck (torticollis), and they wake up with neck stiffness.
- Whiplash injuries from car accidents.
So neck pain is a little more involved, as there are several diagnoses we’ve seen patients for.
Our office staff will greet you when you enter. You’ll fill out a few forms not found on our online portal. As a courtesy, we do an insurance verification for you, to let you know what your insurance benefits are prior to the evaluation.
Once everything has been processed at the front desk, you will be brought back into the exam room. Your doctor will perform an extensive evaluation to help us determine your diagnosis. If additional testing is necessary (e.g. an X-ray or MRI), the care plan will be put on hold until those results are received.
The majority of patients will receive care on their first visit to provide some much-needed relief.
Often, when people are experiencing neck pain and have multiple muscle knots in their upper back and shoulders, Dr. Shara will do an adjustment and some muscle work to get that to release. Since we also have a massage therapist at our practice, some patients choose to do massage, along with their chiropractic care, to help relieve some tension from stress or muscle knots.
Cupping may also be useful, along with physical therapy modalities like electrical stimulation, which helps reduce muscle spasms and tension, as well as pain.
The combination of therapies often yields positive results. We expect to see some improvement in six to eight visits, conservatively.
If a patient comes in suffering from horrible migraine headaches caused by neck pain, it may take a little longer if it’s been going on for years. Sciatica or herniated discs are also a little more complex. They may take longer. Typically, people will experience some sort of change, hopefully improvement, within six to eight visits.
Once I Start Going, Do I Have to Come Forever?
No, you don’t get addicted to chiropractic care, but it does feel good. Some people do come in for maintenance care; others just come in when they’re in pain, and some come back when another issue comes up.
Book an Appointment
You don’t have to suffer from neck pain. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.
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