Having a neck injury is more than annoying. If you need to drive somewhere and are unable to turn your neck fully, it can be downright dangerous. If you have a neck injury, you may be wondering when you should seek chiropractic care for relief. You can try gentle exercises and stretching at home. You can also try icing your neck by applying ice for 20 minutes at a time and then taking 40 minutes off.
While it is okay to try to treat yourself at home for a minor neck injury, here are some signs that you need to seek additional help:
- If you were recently in a car wreck, don’t try to treat yourself at home.
- If the pain in your neck has extended to a tingling feeling in your hands or wrists, it is time to get it checked out.
- If you have had the pain for multiple days without improvement or if the pain is severe, don’t suffer anymore.
- If you have been regularly using over-the-counter medications to get through the day, chiropractic care may help you break the cycle.
There are many causes of neck pain, which is why your chiropractor will start with a thorough health history and physical examination. Some of the most common causes of neck injury are a pinched nerve, sleeping on a pillow that is not firm enough or too flat, sleeping on your stomach, car accidents, other accidents, bad posture or maintaining an awkward position for a length of time. There are many things you can do to prevent neck injuries from occurring. Talk to your chiropractor about changing habits and simple exercises you can do to strengthen and protect your neck.