Imagine, you’re pulling out of your parking space in a busy lot. To make sure you aren’t going to get hit, you check the blind spot over your shoulder.
Then, OUCH!
You’re hit with that familiar knife-like stabbing in your neck and shoulder when you turn your head.
Neck pain while rotating your head can be caused by one individual issue or a variety of different factors. It typically means there’s a core problem under the surface that could get worse over time.
What Makes Turning My Head So Painful?
As mentioned above, there are a variety of problems that can lead to neck discomfort. Here is a list of the most common reasons for neck pain while turning your head:
- Loss of cervical curve
- Forward head posture (possibly due to screen time)
- Old injuries such as whiplash (even if minor)
- Desk posture or repetitive daily movements
- Spinal misalignment in neck and upper back
- Stress and tension in muscles (Trapezius, Scalenes, SCM, Levator Scapulae)
Is Technology Causing My Neck to Hurt When Turning?
Now, more than ever before, we’re using computers and phones. During work, at school, or while relaxing on the couch, our heads are buried in screens.
As your head looks down, it also moves forward. For a few minutes this isn’t a big deal. However, if this lasts for longer, or is repeated regularly, you can expect change happening to your body.
As the head moves forward, it actually gets heavier. Every inch of head carriage often leads to 12 pounds of increased head weight. This stress lands on the spine of your neck and also the muscles. Because they aren’t designed for that much weight, muscles may get irritated, spasm, or begin to experience pain and discomfort.
Are Whiplash or Repetitive Movements Why My Neck Hurts When I Turn?
A previous accident or impact can often lead to scar tissue in the muscles, tendons, and ligaments. A trauma like that can also create shifting in the structure of your spine. These sorts of injuries may take months to years to fully heal.
Unfortunately, when they do finally heal, they may never be what they once were. In a serious accident or injury, it often takes addressing both the soft tissue and hard tissue (bone) to bring about maximum healing.
Another possible reason for why your neck may hurt when you turn your head is due to repititous movements or patterns. Things like sitting at your desk while staring at a monitor that isn’t positioned properly, consistently lifting things over your head incorrectly, or playing a sport can all contribute to imbalance that may ultimately cause neck pain when you turn your head. These imbalances may occur in muscles like your trapezius, scalenes, levator scapulae, or rhomboids to name a few.
Can My Spine Cause Neck Pain When I Turn My Head?
The structure of your spine is likely playing some role in your neck pain, if you have one or more of the following conditions:
- Spinal arthritis and degeneration (DDD)
- Loss of normal cervical curve
- Shifting of cervical vertebrae (subluxation)
Osteoarthritis if found in the neck is not a disease. It’s typically due to abnormal spinal biomechanics, or in other words, how the spine is positioned and moving. This can happen if you’ve lost your cervical curve or if certain vertebrae have shifted and are no longer moving the way they were designed. As arthritis develops, it often irritates tissues and limits motion that may contribute to neck pain.
Loss of cervical curve can also contribute to neck pain because you no longer have your shock absorber. A normal curve helps distribute head weight and gravity evenly. Without it, these forces bear down on your spine and neck often leading to pain and discomfort.
Shifting in the vertebrae of the neck often cause loss of motion or altered movement. This is similar to a car that has 3 tires filled up and 1 that is not. The tires will cause uneven wear over time of the vehicle, leading to lots of problems.
If your spine is imbalanced it may also lead to lots of issues, such as pain, degeneration, and other nervous system problems.
What Can I Do For My Neck Pain When Turning My Head?
First, we’d recommend considering if you potentially have any of the above factors. If you suspect some of those problems to be at play in your body, the next step would be to have it checked out by an expert.
At Prime Chiropractic, if someone is getting neck pain when turning their head, we’d first recommend a Neuro-Structural Examination to understand more about the structure and condition of their spine and nervous system.
In this examination, we take structural imaging, use computerized testing to analyze muscle tension along the spine, assess posture and a battery of other testing. This gives us a thorough workup and understanding about the health of the spine and nervous system. Depending on what/if we find something determines what we need to do next.
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Typically, neck pain while turning one way indicates a structural imbalance under the surface. As vertebrae become restricted or move slightly, muscles and tissues around the spine also change. Depending on the position of the spine will often determine which muscles spasm, or don’t.
Absolutely. Poor posture is a symptom of something deeper, usually structural and neurological imbalance. If left alone, problems like these often get worse.
While this may be common, it is NOT normal as someone ages. Much like your teeth, the spine needs hygeine and attention regularly if you’re to keep it healthy long term.