Have you ever woken up in the morning and struggled to move your neck? You couldn’t turn your head without feeling a stabbing and sharp pain shoot down your neck and into your shoulder? Well, if this has happened to you, you are not alone.
More and more of us are living, working and sleeping in air-conditioned environments, causing never ending problems with pains in the neck and shoulder.
Most likely you may be suffering from a condition called torticollis, aka “twisted neck.” So, what is torticollis, how did you get it and how can we at Elite Performance Therapy help?
Read on to find out!
Torticollis
This is basically a muscle spasm in one of the muscles in your neck. If you’ve slept all night with your window left open or even the air conditioning or a fan blowing on your head and neck, then it can cause this condition. You can also get it as a result of an accident, such as slipping and falling, or a car accident. You can also get it after you’ve had a cold or the flu. You may not be able to trace your torticollis back to an event that may have caused the onset of symptoms; instead, you may just write it off as sleeping wrong on your neck all night.
How Torticollis is Treated
Torticollis can gradually get better on its own, but that can take several weeks or even a full month to recover. Here at Elite Performance Therapy, we can help it get better in as little as a few days! Forego immediate treatment could mean it not only takes longer for you to recover but you may also experience a fast decline in function which can limit your activities, driving and sleeping.
That’s why it’s really worth your time to come and see us at Elite Performance Therapy, if you ever wake up with a twisted neck!
Treatment for the acute onset of torticollis may include:
- Chiropractic adjustments to the neck and spine
- Soft Tissue Therapy
- Specific rehabilitation stretches and exercises
- Dry Needling
Top Tip!
In the summer months, more and more of us use air-con when sleeping at night.
However, did you know that we humans have a slightly lower body temperature when we are sleeping?
So, exposing ourselves to the chill of the air- conditioner while asleep will make us more prone to getting a “coldness” into our body.
The best way to avoid this coldness is to set a timer for the air- conditioning when going to bed so meaning less neck aggravation!
To find out more on how we can help you, contact us here.