Sleep is essential to our mental, emotional and physical well-being. It can improve your concentration, energy levels, immune system and more. But sometimes we sleep in positions that impact our physical health in a negative way. Waking up with an ache in your neck reduces your range of motion and makes it almost impossible to go about your day.
Neck pain from sleeping can be frustrating because it can interfere with your ability to handle your everyday tasks, such as lifting your head to search for something on a high shelf or turning your neck to ask your co-worker a question. But the good news is that physical therapy can help alleviate your neck pain so that you can wake up feeling ready to take on the day.
Read on to learn about why you’re experiencing neck pain from sleeping, the benefits of seeking physical therapy to treat it and the potential techniques that a physical therapist may use to address it.
Why do you feel neck pain from sleeping?
If you’re feeling pain in your neck, you’re not the only one. In fact, up to 50% of adults experience neck pain every year. While many causes of neck pain stem from an injury or medical condition, neck pain from sleeping is usually due to straining your muscles from poor support and posture, both while you’re awake and while you’re sleeping.
Here are some reasons why you could be feeling neck pain after sleeping:
- Lying on an unsupportive pillow and/or mattress.
- Sleeping positions that strain your neck, such as on your stomach or in fetal position.
- Poor posture during the day, such as sitting too long or looking down at your phone.
How physical therapy can treat neck pain from sleeping
If you’re consistently waking up with neck pain, it’s important to consider treatment options that can help. Physical therapy can help soothe your pain as well as reduce the risk of it happening again in the future.
Physical therapy techniques and treatments can help reduce your neck pain from sleeping by:
- Releasing tension in your neck muscles.
- Increasing your range of motion.
- Improving your posture.
- Teaching you exercises that you can practice at home.
4 ways physical therapy can treat neck pain from sleeping
When you try physical therapy to treat neck pain from sleeping, the goals are to provide pain management while also improving your neck’s strength and flexibility to decrease future pain or injury. The therapist will design a personalized treatment plan for your needs based on the severity of your symptoms, your medical history and your physical abilities.
Here are four physical therapy techniques and treatments to help neck pain from sleeping:
- Manual therapy — When it comes to musculoskeletal pain, physical therapists will often use their hands to break up painful tissue. For neck pain from sleeping, they may try soft tissue mobilization, which involves them using their hands to find and break up the tissue that’s restricting your neck movements.
- Dry needling — A physical therapist can help release the tension in your neck muscles by inserting small, thin needles in the affected area in a treatment called dry needling. The needle stimulates the muscles to alleviate the pain and promote healing by increasing blood flow.
- Targeted exercises — Your therapist can walk you through safe and effective exercises that will increase the strength in your neck muscles to reduce the pressure placed on your joints as well as decrease the risk of injury. They will also teach you stretching exercises to increase your mobility and decrease painful stiffness that you may feel when you wake up.
- Ergonomics — Since poor posture plays a large role in neck pain from sleeping, learning about ergonomics can go a long way. A physical therapist can help you make adjustments for proper posture and body mechanics. They can also recommend modifications to your workplace or living space that can encourage good posture, such as supportive chairs and desk equipment.
Alliance PTP is ready to help you find top-notch PT for neck pain from sleeping
Waking up with neck pain can make you feel like your entire day is ruined before it even starts. The good news is that physical therapy can help reduce your current pain while also helping to prevent pain in the future.
At Alliance Physical Therapy Partners, we’re proudly bringing together physical therapy practices across the country to help people get the high-quality PT they need.
Want to see a physical therapist in person? We can put you in touch with an Alliance PTP partner that’s close to you and that can help you address neck pain from sleeping.
Not keen on in-person PT sessions or not close to an Alliance PTP partner? No worries. We also offer effective and affordable virtual physical therapy through our Agile Virtual Physical Therapy platform.
Come find help for your injury or chronic condition today!
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