Services · Neck pain & stiffness
Neck pain and stiffness
The short answer
Most neck pain is mechanical. Treatment combines hands-on work with changing whatever is loading it for eight hours a day, usually a desk, a pillow or a phone. If an approach is not helping, we will say so and change it or refer you on, rather than keep booking you in.
What causes neck pain?
The neck holds a five-kilogram head in position all day, and it complains when that position stops changing. Very little of what we see is an injury in the ordinary sense; most of it is accumulated load.
- Sustained desk posture, the monitor slightly too low, the laptop with no separate keyboard, six hours without standing up.
- Sleeping position, a pillow too high or too flat, or a night on the couch. Waking with a locked neck is one of the most common calls we take on a Monday.
- Phone and tablet use, sustained neck flexion, often for longer than people realise.
- Stress and jaw clenching, the upper trapezius and the jaw are frequently involved together.
What treatment involves
Soft tissue work through the neck and upper back, articulation of the joints that have stopped moving well, and manipulation where it suits, though it is never compulsory, and we can work without it.
Treatment is only part of it. Often the job is two changes to the workstation and one exercise done at the desk. We will do the ergonomic assessment properly if the problem keeps returning.
How many visits will I need?
We give the number of visits at the start. Not at the end, and not one visit at a time. Where we can't estimate it honestly, and sometimes we can't, we say that instead of picking a figure.
When this is not a job for an osteopath
Please book with a GP, or go to an emergency department, rather than with us, if any of the following apply:
- Neck pain following significant trauma, a car accident, a fall, a heavy tackle.
- Weakness in both arms, or clumsiness in the hands.
- Dizziness, visual disturbance, difficulty speaking or swallowing alongside neck pain.
- A sudden, severe headache unlike any you have had before. This is an emergency.
- Fever, unexplained weight loss, or a history of cancer with new neck pain.
If any of these apply, see a GP or go to an emergency department first. The symptom check asks about the most serious warning signs, but it does not cover everything.
Exercises we commonly prescribe for this
Pulled from the library. Which of these you get, at what dose and in what order depends on your assessment, this is what the shortlist usually looks like, not a plan for you.
Common questions
Is neck manipulation safe?
Serious adverse events are not zero, and we screen for the presentations where the risk is meaningfully higher. If you would rather not have your neck manipulated, say so, mobilisation and soft tissue work are reasonable alternatives, and we will simply use those instead.
Should I buy a new pillow?
Possibly, but not before we have looked at what you actually sleep on and how. A pillow is one of the cheapest interventions available when it is the right one and a waste of money when it isn't.
Is my posture the problem?
Less than the internet suggests. The best posture is mostly the next one, position changing through the day matters more than any single "correct" alignment. What we look at is how long you hold one shape, not which shape it is.
Can it cause my headaches?
It can. Headaches driven from the upper neck are something we assess and treat. Headaches from other causes are not, which is why we screen carefully before assuming.