May 15, 2009

How To Relieve Shoulder and Neck Ache?

Posted in Category : Common Ailments

On more occasions than one, you find yourself experiencing a shooting pain on your shoulder or neck area after waking up in the morning. This pain shoots up and intensifies when you turn your body in one particular direction. This is more often than not a pain affecting the muscle tissues in the shoulder or neck and tends to disappear by itself. However, while it lasts, it can be extremely painful and can restrict one’s body movements to a bare minimum. However, the pain is not always experienced on waking up from sleep. You could also experience a similar shooting pain after a bout of heavy exercise. Tennis, swimming, throw ball are some of the other usual causes, due to the excessive usage of muscles and tendons required by them.

There are a number of simple home remedies that one can try out to relieve the pain and stress involved. The most ideal and widely recommended remedy is the usage of a compress, either hot or cold. For best results, alternate them both. Identify the affected area on the shoulder or neck and apply an ice pack on it for about thirty minutes. Now apply hot compression bags on the affected area for another fifteen minutes. Continue alternating these for at least two hours. This helps relax the muscles and tendons around the affected area and greatly relieves the stiffness and pain. Sleeping can be quite a pain when one is experiencing shoulder or neck pain. Certain postures will end up in further inflammation of the affected muscle tissues and aggravate the pain even more. Using a soft pillow to cushion your shoulder or neck while sleeping can have visibly relieving effects. Light neck and shoulder exercises help in easing out the pain and improving body movements during the ache. However, ensure you do not tax the tendons too much and avoid movements that cause pain. Moving your neck to and fro and then slowly rotating it is one of the most recommended exercises for relieving neck pain.

If the pain has resulted from some extreme physical activity, then it is advisable to opt for a medical checkup to rule out serious injuries. If the pain is essentially due to a stressful lifestyle, one needs to rest more often. Take more frequent breaks throughout the day and try distributing your tasks a little more evenly. In addition always sleep on a firm mattress and work at eye level. People often exhibit a condition known as ‘desk neck’ due to looking up or down for prolonged work hours.