You don’t necessarily have to sustain an injury to experience shoulder and neck pain. There are many reasons why and how that can happen.
In fact, this is more evident now… With more people working from home, many of them are struggling with shoulder and neck pain. Arching your head forward for a sustained period, assumingly to stare at the computer or smartphone screen, leads to strains in your muscles and tendons. And while the office might have had good seating arrangement that facilitates proper posture, the lack of it at home makes things even worse.
Why Are Your Shoulder And Neck Paining?
As mentioned, there are many reasons why your shoulder and neck may be hurting. In some cases, the pain could be a symptom of something critical, like heart attack, cancer, gallstones, and cervical artery dissection. In other cases, the reason might not be as exigent, yet quite serious, like rotator cuff tear, soft tissue injuries, herniated disc, bursitis, and frozen shoulder.
There are also some age-related reasons for neck and shoulder pain, like cervical radiculopathy and cervical osteoarthritis.And then in many instances, you would know yourself what happened and what is causing the pain. Like, you would know when you have broken your collarbone, broken shoulder blade, or have your shoulder separated.
How To Treat The Pain?
It’s not simple to self-diagnose the reason behind the shoulder and neck. So, if the pain is severe, instead of figuring out yourself and trying home remedies, you must certainly go and see an orthopedic doctor. If the pain is accompanied by other symptoms, like headache, nausea, vomiting, pain in the abdomen, difficulty in breathing, numbness in back and jaw, blurred vision, and more – you should preferably go to the ER; the underlying reasons behind this pain can possibly be something critical.
However, if the shoulder and neck pain is only mild and isn’t accompanied by other symptoms – and you possibly know the reason why it’s hurting (maybe you stretched your shoulder the wrong way or you were sleeping in an awkward position) – you can then try a few treatments at home by yourself.
Trying Home Remedies (And When To See An Orthopedic Doctor)
Home remedies include resting, taking a break from physically strenuous activities, applying warm compress, applying ice wrap, getting a gentle massage, applying a good pain-relieving gel or spray, and taking OTC pain medication. If the cause of the pain isn’t severe, you will feel better in just a week. However, if the pain has sustained (or has gone worse), it definitely calls in for a visit to an orthopedic doctor. Google “best shoulder surgeon in India” or a related query relevant to your location and book an appointment for a consultation.
The doctor would ask a few questions, do physical examination and, depending on your condition, may even order you a test, like x-ray, MRI, electromyography, CT scan and/or blood test. Work along with them closely to accurately diagnose the reason behind your shoulder and neck pain, and thereon properly and permanently treat the problem.