Chronic Neck Pain

Successful treatment plans for chronic neck pain should include home care counseling for postures and ergonomics.

There are usually modifications that can be made in the patient’s positions & pastures during different activities—e.g., computer use, kitchen chores, sitting, standing, and sleeping—that will help.

An important key to change is the patient’s developing an awareness of their body’s positioning, and this may take some practice. I often recommend setting a timer, using it as a reminder to “check in”—where is my head? am I slumping? leaning in to see my computer monitor?

Using the right pillow for sleeping, changing the height of one’s computer monitor so that it is at eye level, getting computer glasses with corrective lenses if one is having a hard time seeing the screen, raising the height of one’s work space on the kitchen counter—-all are simple things that can make a big difference.

Accentuated Curve in the Low Back

  An abnormally accentuated lumbar curve, whether congenital or acquired, can result in disequilibrium and vulnerability in the lower back.

Sometimes this is partially alleviated with postural counseling, Activator adjustments, and specific exercises. If the patient habitually “locks back” their knees when standing, changing this habit often helps a lot.

Ergonomic counseling about sitting, sleeping, etc. can also help.

But often these are only partial solutions. A patient with this condition may need more consistent chiropractic treatments, the frequency of which can be judged according to what works for each individual.