People walking into the clinic with an acute onset of neck pain and stiffness is a relatively common occurrence here at Sport and Spinal Physiotherapy. I would like to take the opportunity to explain a common pillow and sleep related condition we see: acute wry neck. While this article specifically covers how to fix a wry neck, other articles such as thoracic mobility, headaches, workstation setup, and sleep are also gems of information.
This article will answer:
- What is wry neck?
- The cause of wry neck?
- What are the main signs and symptoms of wry neck?
- What contributes to a wry neck?
- How to fix a wry neck?
- How to prevent a wry neck…
So what is wry neck?
Wry neck is a relatively common complaint where you develop neck pain and stiffness, which is often accompanied by spasm of the related neck muscles. This causes pain and makes it hard to move your neck through a normal range of motion.
Wry neck can also be referred to as an acute wry neck since the onset is abrupt – or acute!
I often hear the story of someone having a busy week at work, being extremely tired, and then waking up the next day unable to move their head/neck in a certain direction. Clients will often come into the clinic holding their head at a weird angle – as at the time this is the most comfortable position!
July 4-10 is Sleep Awareness Week, so I thought it was appropriate to talk about sleep, how it affects your mind and body, and how to sleep better. Sleep is something most of us complain that we don’t get enough of. We all know that 8 hours is the magic number and that not enough sleep is bad for you… But just how bad?
Poor posture and a stiff back is one of the most common complaints we treat at Sport and Spinal Physiotherapy. With the modern lifestyle and workplace involving a lot of sitting and not a lot of moving, it is becoming apparent that we as a population are not doing the best job at looking after ourselves and our postures.
