Shoulder/neck stiffness

[Jonathan Mead]

I've been experiencing shoulder and neck stiffness every morning for the past.. well the past.. forever it seems like. I just got a memory foam mattress pad, it's 2 inches thick. This is only the second night I've slept on it, so I hope it helps.

I think I might need to get a new pillow as well.

I just wanted to ask all of your advice on what you've done to help get rid of neck and shoulder pain. I think a lot of it might have to do with sitting in front of the computer for extended periods of time. I do walk about 4-5 miles a day though.

Any suggestions?

[Michelle]

I read somewhere that stiffness of neck and shoulders could be psychosomatic for obsessively and stubbornly holding on to and looking back to the past. Do you think this could apply to you?

[evacorges]

taking mini-breaks helps - every half hour or so, stretch your arms up and out, the reverse move to how you sit in front of the computer. Hold the stretch 10-20 seconds, while breathing deeply to the bottom of your belly.
If you can combine this with a short walk to the printer or coffee machine or whatever, all the better. Bodies are not designed for sitting still, so if you must do so you have to take precautions.

If I might do a little promotion of my chosen domain -- chairmassages are fabulous against these types of complaints -- get one once a week

[Ali from The Office Diet]

Hey Jonathan,

Like you, I sit in front of the computer much of the day (though also cycle & go to the gym), and my shoulders and neck often feel stiff and tight.

I recommend bribing/bullying a loved one into giving you a shoulder-rub ;-) I also find a hot shower helps -- perhaps more to do with relaxing mentally than any physical factor.

Ali

[Honeywith4bees]

Yoga!!!

[PianoManGidley]

Originally Posted by Honeywith4bees

Yoga!!!

I agree with this! And also just some general stretching. Standing up, relax your shoulders and roll your head between chin-down positions and tilting to the left or right. Don't roll back, as that can be too strenuous. If you want to make sure that your shoulders are down, spread your fingers and try to reach for the floor as you do this stretch.

Another neck stretch I really like is pulling your right arm behind your back, holding your right wrist in your left hand so that your left elbow is out, then tilt your head over to your left, holding your head between forward, up, and down positions while tilted to the left. This should stretch out the right half of your neck muscles. You can reverse everything (make all the left stuff right, and vice-versa) to work the left half of the neck.

For shoulders, there's a wider variety of options I like, including shoulder circles, arm circles, pot stirrers, and shoulder/tricep holds. You can just do a general Google search for shoulder and neck stretches and see what comes up. Practice a few and see which ones you like.

[Athena Arianna]

Get thee to a good masseusse! I work at a desk all day too, and with a high stress job, all the tension centers and settles in my upper back/shoulders/neck. I used to pop all kinds of painkillers constantly until I discovered the massage/chiro combo.

I've become "famous" at the massage place - they've never seen anyone's muscles get as rock hard from tension as mine, after I've been absent for awhile <LOL> I agree with whoever said it can be stress/emotion related too, but even with that, the deep tissue massage helps anyway - when you're free from pain you're better able to deal with those other issues! So,

My suggested prescription for you: (and me!)
Week #1 Massage (deep tissue, centered in area of pain)
Week #2 Chiro appointment
Week #3 Massage
Week #4 Chiro

Yes it can be expensive, but it's like a $400 surefire, and healthy, way to be painfree, so isn't that worth it?!

After the first month, try to get at least one massage and one chiro every month. And after the first month, start yoga or some kind of exercises for that area plus some cardio.

Cheers,
Athena