An unfavourable posture, using the wrong pillow, a cold draught – all these can lead to tension in the neck. Psychological reasons such as stress, anxiety or sleep disorders often exacerbate the symptoms. Those affected know: Neck pain is often very uncomfortable because it can radiate into the head, where it leads to tension headaches, or into the shoulders and arms, which then sometimes lose mobility. In short: When you have neck pain, you want to get rid of it quickly. Here we will show you what you can do to relieve tension-related neck pain – quickly, as well as long-term, or preventively.

Neck pain is a multi-factorial problem. A sedentary lifestyle, psychological reasons like work-related stress or anxiety or sleep disorders could lead to neck pain onset. This kind of pain could also lead to a tension type headache or to shoulder pain, with an objective loss of function. Therefore is recommeded to treat neck pain as quickly as possible. In This section we’ll show you what to do to relieve tension related neck pain, quickly, as well as long-term, ore preventively.

If acute neck pain occurs due to muscle tension and even leads to tension type headaches or shoulder problems, could be due to neck muscles overuse. That is the right time to take a break, relax and take care of this Problem. Do you swear by household remedies for neck pain or do you prefer to take medication? Here we will tell you which treatment methods can help quickly with these neck complaints and provide rapid pain relief.

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Of course, a manual therapy treatment made by a physiotherapist has a more intensive effect. There is a number of different massage techniques that range from gently relaxing to deep tissue penetration. Especially in the case of severe and chronic pain, you should find out which treatment your body prefers. In case of structural damage, like a fracture, or in presence of a specific health condition, like ostheoporosis, is recommended the help of a doctor or other health professional.

Analgesics for neck pain

Painkillers such as ibuprofen or diclofenac from the group of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs/anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), which treat pain and inflammation symptomatically, or the analgesic paracetamol, provide quick relief from neck pain. These medications usually bring rapid pain relief, but like any drug they can also cause a number of undesirable side effects and should therefore only be used for a short time and only if tolerated.

This is how you can relax your neck

You may have noticed that stress makes neck tension worse. And you are right about that: Neck pain can be aggravated by psychological factors such as excessive demands or fear and can lead to stress reactions themselves. As a result of the pain perception, the body tenses and the muscles tense further, which intuitively prompts the body to adopt an unnatural, protective posture in order to avoid further feelings of pain. This creates a vicious circle that makes the symptoms worse and last longer.

In order to reduce or prevent tension-related neck pain, it is therefore worthwhile to relax the neck consciously again and again. Relaxation techniques help, some of which can be applied quickly and easily. Others need practice or instruction. Here we give you an overview of three popular methods:

• Progressive muscle relaxation according to Jacobson: With this method of deep muscle relaxation, individual muscle groups are deliberately tensed and relaxed again for a short time in a specific order. Those who practise this should clearly perceive the before/after state. On one hand, this can help to reduce stress-related tension and contribute to deeper relaxation of the muscles. On the other hand, body awareness can be trained so that, ideally, the person practising this can consciously relax the muscles, for example in the neck, and learn to prevent further tension. This technique is particularly effective for chronic neck pain and less so for acute complaints.
• Meditation: The term meditation covers a large number of techniques, some of which are very different. Whether you sit, walk, prefer guided meditation, focus on breathing or strive for mindfulness – it is usually about focusing the mind regularly in order to gather yourself together and calm down internally, for more awareness and mindfulness. Since meditation can do a lot to reduce the perception of stress, daily practice also helps in the prevention of muscle tension and has a positive effect on the perception of pain.
• Autogenic training: This relaxation procedure is based on autosuggestion. Here, those practising this learn (usually under supervision) to relax their own body using suggestive formulas in combination with rest. This is intended to strengthen the mental posture of those practising this, for example to master pain-related stress self-confidently.