Waking up with a stiff and painful neck?

Waking up with a stiff and painful neck thinking, “Ouch, I must have slept on it

wrong!” or “I must need a new pillow” turns into a legitimate injury… What

happened? Yes, it could just be a minor muscular strain from faulty sleeping

positions. But if the pain lingers and starts to affect your daily activities, there may be

other contributors.

Let’s talk about how poor postural stability and misalignment contribute to what we

call Upper Cross Syndrome.

So you can see from the picture above that tight and weak muscles start to develop

on one side of your body, and directly affect the muscles in a crossed “X” pattern on

the opposite side of the body. If we allow this to happen, we are likely to start

experiencing neck pain and headaches. These now tight and weak muscles have to

hold your ~11 lb. head against gravity. The strain is too much on the body, and the

muscles start to send signals to the brain saying, “I can’t do this!” You feel this in the

form of pain. A ‘domino effect’ can then happen within a few days including

increased pain, inflammation, stiffness due to lack of motion, and sometimes numbness

or tingling.

How to lessen your risk of developing Upper Cross Syndrome:

1. Use your foam roller to stretch your neck and shoulders

2. Strengthen your spine to hold you in proper alignment

Check out our instagram page to see some helpful visuals of how to use your foam

roller to improve your alignment, treat your pain, and strengthen your core.

Are you wondering if physical therapy for neck pain and headaches would be beneficial f

or what is going on in your body? Schedule a free discovery call with the Balanced PT team!