Try These Exercises to Relieve Your Chronic Neck Pain

Chronic neck pain can make daily life much harder. Even simple tasks like sleeping, cooking, driving, and just sitting at a desk can bring on pain and tension. 

Depending on the cause of your pain, you may need professional medical care, but targeted stretching and movement exercises can go a long way toward easing tension, reducing stiffness, and improving neck flexibility.

Here are a few exercises that Dr. Jonathan Koning and the team at ReGen Pain Management in Plano and Frisco, Texas, often recommend to relieve chronic neck pain.

Chin tucks

This simple exercise helps counteract the hours you spend looking forward and/or down at screens. Sit or stand up tall and straight; pull your chin straight back (as if you’re making a double chin). Hold it for 3-5 seconds, then relax. Do this 10 times.

Shoulder blade squeezes

Sit upright and gently squeeze your shoulder blades together for 5 seconds. Release and then repeat 10 times. This move helps correct poor posture that puts additional strain on your neck.

Side neck stretches

To reduce tightness in your upper trapezius muscles, slowly tilt your head to one shoulder until you feel a pull on the opposite side of your neck. Hold this for 30 seconds, then do the same thing on the other side. Repeat 3 times. 

Neck rotations

To maintain your neck’s standard range of motion and reduce stiffness, turn your head slowly as far as you can to the right, hold it there briefly, then turn to the left. Repeat 10 times on each side.

Shoulder rolls

Sit or stand upright, shrug your shoulders toward your ears, roll them backward and down, then forward. Do this 5 times in one direction, then 5 in the other direction to release tension that builds up in your upper shoulders and neck.

A couple of tips before you get started: A heating pad or hot shower will help loosen your muscles before you stretch. Move slowly and gently during these exercises — no sudden, sharp movements.

If any exercises increase your pain or cause numbness or tingling, you should stop and wait a few days before resuming. Other issues, such as nerve compression or arthritis, may be causing your pain, and muscle exercises won’t relieve pain from those sources.

If you’d like a consultation about your neck pain, our expert team at ReGen Pain Management is ready to help. To schedule an appointment, call our location most convenient to you or book online today.