The following article is an excerpt from the July/August 2019 issue of Massage & Bodywork magazine. To read the full article, visit www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com.
When you’re dealing with neck pain sufferers, try asking this question: Do you ever wake up with a crick in the neck? The feeling that you can’t quite turn your head because you slept wrong? I think you’ll find this problem is fairly widespread, especially with clients who have other neck and posture-related complaints. They might not mention it because they consider it their “normal”—no, they can’t look over their shoulder most days, but isn’t that true for everyone?
For those lucky readers who have never experienced this cervical quirk, a “crick” is a condition related to spasm of the neck muscles, usually discovered upon waking, that tends to last hours or full days. The crick sufferer will find it difficult to look over one shoulder or the other, often feeling as if there is a hard barrier preventing them from doing so. It hurts, it’s inconvenient, and it can make the next night’s sleep even worse. Being able to help with this issue can be a real boon, even for clients who have learned to live with it.
If a client’s neck rotation ends suddenly and can’t be stretched, is it a bone that’s out of place? Is it a nerve issue? In my clinical experience, there seems to be one major player here, and it’s actually a muscle.
Read the full article in the July/August 2019 issue of Massage & Bodywork at www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com.