neck crick / tight trapezius

[Gary_Yngve]

thurs night i got a crick in my neck from sleeping weird. it's on the mend (i'm fully operational today, don't quite have 100% ROM yet) but yesterday was really bad. my entire right trapezius was really tight, and i was walking around really gimpy, with my head cocked left, and my left shoulder up and right shoulder down. if i were lying down and wanted to sit up, i'd need to support my head from behind with a hand to be able to get up. In it's worst state, I found using a computer to be painful because the neck muscles that were going wacko were also trying to stabilize my head.

 

the two questions are:

 

prevention:

I had this happen to me (same side) once before about 15 months ago. Any triggers for it? Sleeping position? Stress? Luck?

 

Would certain stretches help prevent it?

 

treatment:

NSAIDs didn't seem to help. Nor did alcohol. Nonprofessional massage helped, at least temporarily. Same with hot bath and pounding on my trapezius with a meat tenderizer. Traction via an improvised C-collar would seem to help -- maybe I'll make one for "next time." Sleep seems to be the best remedy.

 

Any drugs that could do the trick without compromising my ability to think / use a computer?

 

Any other tricks that could reduce the pain / facilitate the recovery?

[ericb]

Have you tried Ice?

 

Also, different people are more/less effected by muscle relaxants, and some cloud your brain less than others. If you take one before bed, it should be out of your system by morning.

 

They don't make me drowsy really, just a tad spacey, but that's me.

 

Another easy thing that might help is make sure you are drinking lots of water, and take a calcium/magnesium supplement if you aren't already.

 

Chiropractic might be worth a shot as well

Edited February 2, 2008 by ericb

[hafilax]

I've had some pretty crazy knots in my traps and did a little internet searching.

 

Not much is known for sure but knots seem to occur when the muscle is contracted for an extended period of time. The muscle goes into a permanent state of contraction or spasm. To get rid of them one must break apart the knot through stretching and message. Pressing on the knot really hard works to break it down and combined with warm stretching should do the trick. Drink lots of water to remove the toxins associated with breaking apart the knots.

 

I have a bunch of problems associated with poor posture especially while at the computer (posting on CC). I tend to sit with my shoulders up and my head foreward. This resulted in the knots in my kneck. I've been working at proper posture and avoiding staying in one position especially if muscles are contracted.

[miladugga]

Trigger point massage therapy works pretty well

[layton]

I got back from a 4 day conference on cervical rehabilitation and the effects of said "cricks" if you want any info email me at michael_layton@hotmail.com

[Knottygirl]

these helped me to remember to relax my neck....

[plexus]

You must be fun at parties with magnets!

 

Started working out last week after suffering the world's nastiest flu virus for over three weeks. I figure the sore traps come with the territory and that I'm rebuilding my lost muscle mass. When things get really bad, I find some yoga every morning for a few days does miracles.

[telemarker]

these helped me to remember to relax my neck....

 

Sorry for the dumb question, but...are those screws or rods in your neck?

[Knottygirl]

two bars that go across...

[pindude]

Gary,

Assuming all is better now. Sounds like you had torticollis, or what is more commonly known as a wry neck. I've had it several times in my 5 decades of existence, caused by sleeping wrong and a few traumatic incidents from playing as a soccer goalie, falling off a horse, and falling hard/badly on skis. NSAIDs and ice might help, but only in time (short time--just a few days--thankfully) does it go away. Meanwhile, you get to walk around with your head cocked to one side, possibly enduring new nicknames like "Tilt." Having a virus at the same time can complicate things, making it last longer.

 

Knottygirl, what cult do you belong to?

[Gary_Yngve]

Yeah, I'm all better now. Seemed to have a half-life of 24 hours. By the third day I was able to turn my head quickly to check my blind spot on my bike. But the first day was darn incapacitating! Hopefully I can take better care of myself to make it much longer until the next occurrence.

[Toast]

I got back from a 4 day conference on cervical rehabilitation and the effects of said "cricks" if you want any info email me at michael_layton@hotmail.com

 

Why not publish and tell all :[]

[Ade]

these helped me to remember to relax my neck....

Of course you could have just settled for having "remind me to relay my neck" tatooed on your forehead.

[plexus]

Of course you could have just settled for having "remind me to relay my neck" tatooed on your forehead.

 

But it would have had to be backwards, otherwise it would look like Sanskrit in the morning.

[marylou]

I'd get in the pool, but that's my answer to everything these days.

 

Pool good.

[Knottygirl]

Of course you could have just settled for having "remind me to relay my neck" tatooed on your forehead.

 

But it would have had to be backwards, otherwise it would look like Sanskrit in the morning.

 

haha. it wouldn't feel as great though. and i wanted it to be a bit more hidden then the forehead. great suggestion though.

[ken4ord]

these helped me to remember to relax my neck....

 

Sorry for the dumb question, but...are those screws or rods in your neck?

 

Both rods with screws in the end.

 

btw knottygirl very nice.