Spinal misalignments, also known as vertebral subluxations or adult spinal deformity, can have various effects on the body, depending on their severity and location. Their effects on health can be quite significant, impacting physical, psychological, and social well-being. These effects can range from minor discomfort to substantial impacts on overall health.
Neck pain can have various causes, both acute and chronic. You probably remember acute injuries like a car accident, a slip or fall, a sports injury or injury working out, etc. Chronic problems are usually due to things like computer or phone posture, repetitive actions, things you do each day at work, sleeping habits, and other physical and even emotional stressors of life. Corrective chiropractic care locates the specific parts of the spine’s vertebrae, muscles, ligaments, discs, and nerves that have become a problem and rehabilitates them all simultaneously.
$49 New Patient Neck Pain Special
Comprehensive Consultation
Complete Physical Examination
All Necessary Digital X-rays
Report of Findings
One of the most noticeable effects of spinal misalignment can be localized pain in the back, neck, or extremities or headaches. This discomfort can range from mild to extremely severe and may limit mobility and flexibility. Misaligned vertebrae can irritate the adjacent spinal nerves as they exit the spinal cord, leading to symptoms like numbness, tingling, or weakness in the limbs. This nerve dysfunction can also affect organ function and overall health.
The body may respond to spinal misalignments by tightening surrounding muscles in an attempt to protect the area, leading to muscle tension, spasms, and further discomfort. Individuals with spinal misalignments may experience a decreased range of motion, making it difficult to perform everyday activities or engage in physical exercise. Treating the spastic muscles will only offer temporary relief. Long-term relief occurs when the underlying issue, the misalignment, is corrected restoring to the spine.
Over time, spinal misalignments can lead to changes in posture, such as increased forward head posture, uneven shoulders, or an altered gait. These can strain muscles and joints and lead to progressive degeneration of the affected joints and discs and arthritis.
The spine houses and protects the nervous system. Thus, misalignments affect the nervous system’s ability to communicate effectively with the rest of the body, impacting overall health and function and even several brain functions. An improperly aligned spine can lead to:
- Neck Pain
- Muscular Imbalance
- Muscle Tension
- Poor Posture
- Increased Risk of Falls and Injuries
- Impaired Balance and Coordination
- Pulmonary and Cardiac Issues
- Digestive and Gastrointestinal Issues
Beyond the physical effects, adult spinal deformity can have significant psychological and social impacts, including depression, anxiety, and social withdrawal due to pain, physical appearance, or reduced mobility. Overall, the combination of chronic pain, reduced mobility, and psychological impacts can significantly decrease the quality of life for individuals with adult spinal deformities.
What is Corrective Chiropractic Care?
Corrective chiropractic care, also known as corrective or rehabilitative chiropractic treatment, is an approach within chiropractic care focused on addressing underlying structural issues in the spine and neuromusculoskeletal system to improve function, alleviate pain, and promote long-term health and wellness. Corrective chiropractic care aims to correct abnormal spinal alignment, restore proper joint function, and address muscle imbalances and weaknesses through a combination of techniques and therapies tailored to each individual’s specific needs.
How Our Neck Pain Care Plan Works
Obsessive About
The Cause
Stop focusing on your symptoms! To get real results, feel great, and live a vibrant life, you have to correct the cause of your problem, not just treat the symptoms.
Comprehensive
Approach
Our doctors will design a comprehensive care plan based on YOU – your goals and exam findings. This gets real results in your body and transforms your health.
Lasting Results & Continual Improvement
Great health is not a few weeks of feeling good. You deserve a lifetime of vitality. We’ll help you get the results you want and partner with you for a life without limits.
How We Treat Neck Pain in Missouri City, TX
Comprehensive Assessment
The first step in corrective chiropractic care is thoroughly evaluating the patient’s spine, posture, movement patterns, and overall musculoskeletal health. This assessment may include a health history, physical examination, orthopedic and neurological testing, and diagnostic imaging studies to identify underlying structural causes of your neck pain.
Specific Spinal Adjustments
Corrective chiropractors use specific chiropractic adjustments to realign the vertebrae in the spine and restore proper joint mobility and function. These adjustments aim to correct vertebral subluxations (misalignments) and alleviate pressure on nerves, muscles, joints, discs, and other soft tissues, allowing the body to function optimally and heal itself naturally.
Therapeutic Exercises
Corrective chiropractic care often includes prescribed exercises and stretches designed to improve strength, flexibility, and stability in the spine and supporting muscles. These exercises may target specific areas of weakness or imbalance identified during the assessment. They may be performed both in-office and at home as part of a structured rehabilitation program.
Postural Correction
Poor posture is a common contributing factor to spinal misalignments and musculoskeletal dysfunction. Corrective chiropractors provide guidance on improving posture, ergonomic modifications for work and daily activities, and techniques to maintain proper spinal alignment and body mechanics to prevent future problems.
Nutritional and Lifestyle Counseling
Corrective chiropractors may offer advice on nutrition, hydration, stress management, sleep habits, and other lifestyle factors that can impact spinal health and overall well-being. By addressing these factors holistically, corrective chiropractic care aims to support the body’s natural healing processes and optimize health from the inside out.
Cervical Traction
Cervical traction is a therapeutic method to relieve neck pain, disc problems, and other spinal dysfunction. It decompresses the vertebrae in the cervical spine (neck region), leading to several health benefits, particularly for those suffering from chronic neck pain, herniated discs, muscle spasms, nerve root compression, and other related conditions. Here are some of the vital health benefits of cervical traction:
- Pain Relief: Cervical traction significantly reduces neck pain caused by various conditions. It alleviates pain by stretching muscles and joint structures around the neck, reducing pressure on nerve roots, and decreasing spinal disc compression.
- Improved Mobility: Cervical traction improves flexibility and range of motion in the neck by stretching the muscles and ligaments in the cervical spine, making daily activities more comfortable and less painful.
- Reduced Compression: Traction therapy decreases compression by creating more space between the vertebrae, rehydrating, and rehabilitating the spinal discs. This is particularly beneficial for individuals with herniated or bulging discs, as it can help retract the disc material, reducing pressure on the nerves.
- Decreased Muscle Spasms: Cervical traction relaxes the neck muscles, reducing muscle spasms and relieving the associated discomfort.
- Enhanced Recovery: For those recovering from cervical spine surgery, cervical traction can facilitate the healing process by maintaining alignment and reducing stress on the spine during recovery.
- Improved Posture: Over time, cervical traction can help improve neck posture, which is particularly beneficial for individuals who suffer from neck pain due to poor posture or prolonged sitting.
- Nerve Pain Relief: By reducing pressure on nerve roots, cervical traction can alleviate the symptoms of nerve compression, such as tingling, numbness, or weakness extending into the arms and hands.
Corrective chiropractic care is typically delivered over a series of visits, with each session building upon the progress made in previous sessions. The frequency and duration of care may vary depending on the severity of the patient’s condition, their response to treatment, and their health goals.
Common Causes of Neck Pain in Missouri City, TX
When looking for a solution to neck pain, it is essential not only to treat the symptoms but also to truly identify and work on correcting the root cause of your neck pain. Corrective chiropractic care considers all of these different situations and addresses all of these factors for the best possible outcomes.
Muscle Strain or Sprain
Activities that involve repetitive movements or prolonged periods of poor posture, such as working at a computer, using a cell phone in an awkward position, or sleeping in an awkward position, can lead to muscle strain or sprain in the neck. These activities put excessive stress on the neck’s muscles, ligaments, joints, and nerves, leading to pain and discomfort. Strains and sprains are one of the most common causes of neck pain.
Neck Injuries
Traumatic events such as whiplash from car accidents, sports injuries, or falls can cause damage to the muscles, ligaments, nerves, or vertebrae in the neck, resulting in neck pain.
Degenerative Disc Disease
When spinal misalignments or postural distortions remain uncorrected, over time, the discs between the vertebrae in the neck can wear down, lose hydration, and become less flexible, leading to pain and stiffness in the neck.
Herniated or Bulging Discs
When the soft inner core of a spinal disc pushes through the tough outer layer, it can irritate nearby nerves and cause neck pain, as well as pain and weakness that radiates down the arms.
Cervical Degeneration
When spinal misalignments or postural distortions remain uncorrected, the daily wear and tear result in degeneration of the cervical spine, including the discs and vertebrae. This is known as neck arthritis, osteoarthritis, or even spinal stenosis. This degeneration can lead to neck pain, stiffness, and decreased range of motion and can put pressure on the spinal cord and nerves, causing pain, numbness, tingling, weakness in the neck and arms, and other health problems.
Muscle Tension and Stress
Emotional stress and tension can cause the muscles in the neck and shoulders to tighten, leading to neck pain and discomfort. Chronic muscle tension can also be caused by structural spinal misalignments, which create ongoing imbalance and tension.
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5425 Hwy 6 Suite A-300
Missouri City, TX 77459
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a chiropractor in Missouri City, TX, good for neck pain?
Chiropractors are musculoskeletal experts with a natural, noninvasive approach to pain relief. Pain due to a structural problem can only be resolved with a structural solution; pain medication, muscle relaxers, and injections will only offer temporary relief. Chiropractors aim to discover and address the underlying cause of the pain for relief AND optimized healing and function.
Is it okay to “pop” my own neck?
Your neck may “pop” on its own as you move your spine through its general range of motion. This is perfectly normal. Chiropractors use techniques to be very specific with their adjustments, only adjusting misaligned vertebrae to prevent further damage or degeneration to the spine that could result from a self-adjustment.
Is a massage or chiropractic better for neck pain?
Massage and chiropractic work hand in hand. Massage is excellent at reducing muscle tension and stress, but the chiropractic adjustment will correct the underlying spinal deformity that is causing the tension and stress in the first place.
How can I relieve my neck pain?
Chiropractic care is the best medicine for neck pain. Using a holistic, multipronged approach, chiropractors can address and correct the underlying cause of pain, improving a patient’s overall well-being. We use specific corrective chiropractic adjustments, therapeutic stretches and exercises, decompression, cervical traction, postural correction, and nutritional and lifestyle counseling.
How can you tell if your neck is out of alignment?
Pain is our body’s way of alerting us to a significant health issue. Pain, numbness, weakness, decreased range of motion or mobility, or functional problems with your senses may indicate that your cervical spine is misaligned and interfering with proper nerve function.
What are the best exercises for neck pain?
Exercises and stretches can help alleviate neck pain by improving flexibility, strength, and posture. Here are some effective exercises and stretches for neck pain relief:
Neck Stretches
- Side Neck Stretch: Sit or stand tall, gently tilt your head to one side, bringing your ear towards your shoulder. Hold the stretch for 15-30 seconds, then switch sides.
- Chin Tucks: Sit or stand tall with your shoulders relaxed. Slowly tuck your chin towards your chest, creating a double chin. Hold for a few seconds, then release. Repeat several times.
- Neck Rotation: Slowly turn your head to one side as far as comfortable, hold for a few seconds, then return to the center and repeat on the other side.
- Neck Extension: Gently tilt your head back, looking towards the ceiling. Hold for a few seconds, then return to the starting position.
Shoulder and Upper Back Stretches
- Shoulder Rolls: Roll your shoulders backward in a circular motion, then reverse and roll them forward.
- Upper Trapezius Stretch: Sit or stand tall, gently tilt your head to one side, bringing your ear towards your shoulder. Reach down with your hand on the same side and apply gentle pressure to increase the stretch. Hold for 15-30 seconds, then switch sides.
- Upper Back Stretch: Clasp your hands together in front of you and round your upper back, pushing your hands away from your body while dropping your chin towards your chest.
Strength Exercises
- Chin Tucks: As mentioned earlier, chin tucks help strengthen the muscles at the front of your neck, which can help improve posture and alleviate neck pain.
- Shoulder Blade Squeezes: Sit or stand tall with your arms by your sides. Squeeze your shoulder blades together as if trying to hold a pencil between them. Hold for a few seconds, then release. Repeat several times.
- Neck Isometrics: Gently press your hand against the side of your head, trying to tilt your head to the side while resisting with your hand. Hold for a few seconds, then switch sides.
Posture Exercises
- Wall Angels: Stand with your back against a wall and your feet about six inches from the baseboard. Bring your arms to shoulder height, with elbows bent at 90 degrees and palms facing forward. Slowly slide your arms up the wall as high as comfortable, then back down. Focus on keeping your back and head against the wall throughout the movement.
- Posture Check-ins: Throughout the day, take breaks to check your posture. Sit or stand tall with your shoulders back and down and your chin slightly tucked.
$49 New Patient Neck Pain Special
Comprehensive Consultation
Complete Physical Examination
All Necessary Digital X-rays
Report of Findings
