Most people won’t be shocked to discover that the root cause of stress-related neck pain is … stress. The pressures of finishing an important work project on time. Worries about your financial situation. Concern over an ill or injured family member. These things commonly lead to stress.
Stress is an emotional or physical tension that’s typically caused by an outside factor, known as a stressor. Far more people than you might think deal with stress every day; in fact, about 75% of Americans report feeling at least one stress symptom in the past month. A physical therapist can help you learn how stress causes neck pain, and they can also show you ways to treat your neck pain.
How does stress cause neck pain?
Stress causes neck pain through the physical response that it creates in your body. One of the most common of these is tensing of muscles. Just think about how people react physically to stress.
Many of us hunch our shoulders or tense up our jaws, and such movements require holding the neck muscles in one position. Pain can result if you continue holding your neck muscles in the same position for an extended period of time.
What can a physical therapist do to treat stress-related neck pain?
Tension-induced neck pain is a common issue that physical therapists treat. However, that doesn’t mean that they treat every case the same way. Your physical therapist will evaluate your neck to determine the source of your pain. They may also ask you questions about your lifestyle or past neck injuries.
Gathering this information allows your physical therapist to build a therapy plan that’s individualized to your needs. Neck pain treatment plans often include therapy methods like:
- Therapeutic exercises to stretch tense muscles
- Instrument-assisted soft tissue mobilization (IASTM) that can break down scar tissue from old neck injuries
- Soft tissue mobilization where your physical therapist uses their hands to decrease tension in the neck soft tissue
- Cupping therapy that can help improve blood flow to the neck
- Virtual therapy sessions where you work with a specialist over a secure online video feed
Whatcom Physical Therapy offers treatment for stress-related neck pain
Looking for therapeutic care for any type of neck pain? Our specialists at Whatcom Physical Therapy are primed to help you find effective treatment for your pain. We’ll do a comprehensive screening of your neck that can pinpoint the root cause of your pain. Then, our team can create an individualized therapy plan for you that’s designed to reduce and prevent the return of your neck pain.
Contact our team today for more information about our neck pain treatment services or to schedule your initial appointment.
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