Chiropractic and Exercise Better Than Drugs for Neck Pain | Winter 2014 Newsletter

Winter Time Greetings!

I hope this finds you in good health. Last January the NY Times Health section included an article called “For Neck Pain, Chiropractic and Exercise Are Better Than Drugs”.

The article discussed a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine that found that chiropractic treatment or light exercises were more effective than pain medications for neck pain.

This comes as no surprise to many of my patients who can attest that the combo of spinal adjustments, soft tissue therapies, physiotherapies, therapeutic exercises and spinal decompression traction are effective tools for relief of neck pain.

The study cited stated that the benefits from chiropractic treatment or exercises were long lasting and significant compared to utilizing pain medication alone. With the added benefit that the group taking pain meds was still on the medication a year later and the exercise and chiropractic patients were drug free.
For your benefit, I’ve included one of the exercises that I teach many of my patients who have neck pain. The formal name for this stretch is “Cervical Extension in Sitting” but I prefer “BACK, UP & WIGGLES”, as that describes the combined motions that are included in the stretch.

“BACK, UP & WIGGLES”

Cervical Extension in Sitting Stretches

1. Start with Chin Tucks, Tuck your chin back (not down), moving your head straight back, until you feel a mild to moderate stretch in the back of your neck. Your eyes and nose remain facing straight ahead.
2. Maintain the pressure on the back of your spine as you slowly lift your chin up, while also wiggling your head slightly from side to side, as if saying “no”
3. Continue moving your head backwards while extending your neck and wiggling side to side until you reach the limits of the movement. You will and should feel a moderate stretch/strain in either the upper or lower neck.
4. Repeat 10x