What Does A Pinched Nerve Feel Like In Your Neck?
Neck pain is no fun for anyone and can be very debilitating if it is left for too long. Most of the time with neck pain it is not as debilitating as low back pain (not taking anything away from neck pain sufferers here) because we can move without having to use our necks as much. With low back pain the bulk of our weight is around our midriff and it can be difficult to mobilise your core with low back pain.
Pinched or trapped nerves cause pain in the neck but can also cause pain further down the arm and into the hand as well. I’m here to tell you what is normal and what isn’t and what you can do to fix your pinched nerve.
How neck pain occurs
If you have neck pain you are in good company, it is one of the most common physical conditions in the UK. It can be caused by:
-Poor posture
-Prolonged desk position
-Car accident or other high velocity accident
-Sports injury
We see clients that work behind a desk for 40+ hours per week and we can see they have a condition called ‘Anterior head carriage’ simply meaning forward movement of the head. The neck should have a curve in it called a lordosis, this curve gives the spring to support your head. When you sit at a desk for long periods this can reduce the lordosis if your posture is not looked after when sitting.
If you lose the curve, then the head moves forward, and this can cause the discs to take up more of the load which they are not designed to take and can cause them to compress which will leave them vulnerable to a disc prolapse.
With this increase in load on the vertebra it can cause changes in the bone which is described as wear and tea arthritis or osteoarthritis. This develops over several years but is irreversible. You need to be careful when this gets severe it can cause pinched nerves.
What does a pinched nerve in the neck feel like?
A nerve can be trapped or pinched by:
-Disc prolapse
-Inflammation from a muscle
-Osteoarthritis of the vertebra-causes narrowing of the foramen (hole) the nerve runs through
When the nerve gets interfered with it can refer pain down the arm, often just to the shoulder which can mimic a shoulder injury.
In more severe cases the nerve pain will go all the way down the arm to the hand and fingers. This can be severe, and the client will struggle to sleep, drive or sit properly for work.
It can be a deep ache, severe shooting pain and often pins and needles in the fingers. If you can try to be aware of where the pain is through the arm and be able to describe this. Does it travel on the front of the arm and which fingers are affected? This gives us information about which nerve is affected and we can get the diagnosis a lot quicker.
Pain can also refer into the shoulder blade and down the back and up into the head and cause headaches as well.
We need to do a full physical and neurological examination to determine which of these are causing the problem as the prognosis are different and time frame for healing is also different.
We also take x-rays to look at the structure of the neck to determine the best form of treatment.
How long does neck pain last?
This is dependent on which of the above is causing the problem, generally if the problem is acute, as in it has developed suddenly over the past 2-4 weeks, it will be resolved in a similar time. If it is more chronic and has developed over many years, usually the client will get immediate relief from treatment, but full resolution takes anywhere from 6-12 months.
The best idea to start is to get a root cause diagnosis from someone who looks after neck pain every day.
How to relieve a pinched nerve fast?
The number one thing to relieve a pinched nerve quickly is to apply ice to immediately, this will bring the inflammation down in the neck and take pressure off the nerve where the spasm is occurring. It will help, but does not cause a long-term solution.
Once you have the diagnosis then we can determine how to get rid of the problem fast. Solutions to work on at home will include:
-Light stretching-very gently mobilising your neck from side to side, do not rotate it as this can cause damage to the disc-WATCH HERE
-Chin tucks to take the pressure off the joint-WATCH HERE
-Using a cervical wedge to take pressure off the neck-WATCH HERE If you do not have a wedge you could use a rolled up towel
-Change your desk set up to ensure your screen is at eye level, your elbows are tucked into your side by bringing the keyboard closer to reduce tension on the neck
-Sounds simple but drinking water helps to keep the muscles hydrated and more elastic
Longer term you need to seek help from someone who looks after neck pain all day long, they will do:
-Chiropractic adjustments
-Acupuncture or dry needling
-Soft tissue massage to relieve pressure on the neck
-Decompression therapy to take pressure off the nerve
If you do know someone who wants more advice, please send them our details. You can send them this blog and they can request a free copy of our book which has posture related exercises in it as well. Click here for FREE book.
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