It is a pleasure to share about Senior Physiotherapist Shubhangi Gaikwad from the United Arab Emirates as an Influencer for health and fitness at Womenlines panel. A Dedicated PT offering 7 years of acute-chronic care experience; a history of “exemplary” ratings on performance reviews; solid credentials that include, BLS/Dry needling/Manual Therapy certifications /certified FMT and a master’s degree in physical therapy in Neurology. This month Shubhnagi is sharing a very informative article bout neck pain-
In recent years neck pain complain has been increased tremendously. Every other person knows the term cervical spondylosis. Was it the case previously? Absolutely No.
What is the reason behind the rapid increase in patients with neck pain? There are two major root cause in the present era-
- Technology
- Stress
Yes, we all know and agree on the fact how much we are exploited by the technology i.e mobile and laptops culture. Its overuse has changed our basic lifestyle. For example, when I was a kid first thing I use to do after waking up in the morning was to open my window curtain and look outside to see the sunshine and love to hear a bird chirping. But in today’s scenario, things are not similar. Now the first thing I do is check my mobile. And the first thing we hear is notification bells. I am pretty sure it’s the case with most of you as well.
We are always in a head-down posture looking at our mobile phones. Or using a laptop on lap, slouching on the couch. These bad postural habits constantly put pressure on our neck and people end up in pain.
Secondly Stress, yes, another major factor associated with neck pain & headaches. Many studies show that stress aggravates neck and back pain too. And stress has become part of life in some or other form.
If we talk about women, whether they are working or homemaker they are always in stress of time management to prepare food on time, picking up and dropping kids in and out of various classes, their studies, getting work done at home, buying groceries, taking care of family, managing office, socialise etc. Many of you will think I pen down the normal routine of a woman, but these small tasks build up into the chronic task. I meet thousands of Patient of various nationalities, and one very common thing found among all is every female doing all this routine chore is not doing with a pleasant mood. They are under a certain amount of stress. Eventually, the stress- pain cycle start and they develop chronic pain. When our body is under a certain level of chronic stress it leads to constriction of blood vessels and increases the blood pressure. The neck and shoulder muscle is always in a contracted state under a stressed condition, resulting in tight neck and shoulder blade muscles. Which hinder the smoothness of neck movement. And finally, we end up in neck pain.
Why pain persist after treatment?
Many people seek medical treatment for neck pain but again one common finding is the recurrence of neck pain. The reason is simple we take symptomatic treatment i.e, medicines aim to alleviate your pain and muscle spasm. We feel better for a few days and then the pain comes back…why? This pain is not due to any physiological effect in the body, it’s mostly related to altered biomechanics and myofascial dysfunction. Taking tablets will not cure the root cause.
What is the solution
The solution is to keep your muscle, fascia, joints flexible and healthy. Plus keep our self-calm and stress-free. Some of the tips will help you to keep your neck pain away
- Correct postural habit:
- Use mobile correctly, don’t look down, lift the mobile
- While using the mobile, laptop, computer keep your shoulder relaxed
- Adjust your seat and height of monitor correctly
- Put on screen time regulator on your phone
- Get ergonomic consultation
2. Do regular stretching exercises
3. Go for Stress management
4. Do meditation to keep your calm
5. Time management to avoid unnecessary stress of routine work
I hope after reading this article, women out there can take care of themselves in a better way.
If you have any query do write to me. Connect to me at any social media.
Shubhangi Gaikwad, Shubhangigaikwad06@gmail.com,
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