How do you fix chronic neck pain?

what you need to know

If you suffer from chronic neck pain, give our office a call today at (425) 686-4498 to schedule your initial consultation to learn more about how we can help your specific case.

How do you fix chronic neck pain?

Did you know that neck pain is one of the three most frequently reported complaints relating to body pains? Intense or serious neck pain can be quite debilitating. Neck pain that is often intense can lead to missed time from work, poor concentration, low energy, and sleep disturbance. Often neck pain is accompanied with stiff neck, muscle tightness or muscle spasms, and headaches.

What causes serious neck pain?

Some causes of neck pain include, acute injury, car accident/whiplash, fall, infection, pain from chronic headaches, spinal mis-alignment, stress, nerve pain, or trauma to the area. Neck pain such as whiplash can occur after a car accident or a fall and require more involved treatment. Stress can often lead to neck pain and lead to muscle pain and other symptoms such as headache or sleep issues.

Neck pain often is associated with stiff or tight upper neck or back muscles. People also present with headaches, numbness or tingling down arms, and pain in other areas especially the shoulders and mid-back.

Ways to relieve pain

The #1 way to provide relief for neck muscle pain is to find the underlying cause. Proper assessment and diagnosis should always be done to ensure adequate treatment. In cases of chronic neck pain most often the underlying cause is around inflammation leading to the cycling of a pain-spasm cycle. If you do not address all aspects of why the muscle are tight and the nerve pain, the pain cycle will continue.

At our clinic, we use a combined approach, often using more than one modality to help treat chronic cases. Acupuncture, is the foundation of what we do but not the only treatment used to help you break through that chronic pain cycle.

Acupuncture Has A More Lasting Affect

Acupuncture is an important tool in the relief and treatment of neck pain. Not only can people find relief in their initial session but also acupuncture works to address the underlying cause to prevent pain from returning. Most people describe acupuncture as having a more lasting affect than massage and they feel like they had a deep tissue massage after getting acupuncture.

Acupuncture can help to relieve muscle pain and spasms and has been shown to be an effective treatment for acute and chronic pain. In fact a recent study in the journal, Pain, found that patients with chronic neck pain treated with acupuncture in addition to routine care showed significant improvements in symptoms and quality of life compared to patients who received routine care alone. Thus showing that acupuncture is a safe and effective way to help address chronic pain and improve quality of life.

If you suffer from chronic neck pain, give our office a call today at (425) 686-4498 to schedule your initial consultation to learn more about how we can help your specific case.

Dr. Ellie Heintze, ND, LAc, is a naturopathic doctor and acupuncturist in Bothell, WA at her practice Starting Point Acupuncture. She specializes in chronic and complex cases and commonly treats neuropathy, fibromyalgia, migraines, autoimmune, and infertility cases. Dr. Ellie Heintze is also the author of the book, A Starting Point Guide to Going Gluten-Free and Keep Calm and Zen Out available on Amazon.