Have you ever rubbed the palm of your hand against the back of your neck, trying to work out whatever kinks you think are causing the pain you have been feeling for some time? Well, that could mean that you are suffering from cervicalgia, a very common problem that majority of people have experienced at least once. Now, you must be wondering, what is cervicalgia and is it some sort of fatal disease that you need to be worried about? Cervicalgia is, simply put, neck pain and it is something that countless individuals have gone through either once in their lifetime or every now and again.
Even though the pain is often centered on the neck area, especially at the back of the neck, the cause of the pain could actually be related to issues surrounding the spinal area. Tightness in the muscles around the neck and the shoulders can be a cause for the pain and so can any pinching of the nerves that are found along the cervical vertebrae. Other causes of this kind of pain in the neck area can emanate from other structures and systems in the body so if the pain recurs or is constant, it would be best to seek the medical opinion of your physician. That way, unrelated causes can be ruled out and the actual cause of the neck pain can be dealt with appropriately.
For minor pain, there are certain things that you can do to alleviate it without having to rush to the doctor. You can take pain medication in order to control the pain that you may be feeling. If the pain occurs after sleeping, you may want to change your sleeping position or get yourself a pillow with more neck support since the soft ones, such as those filled with goose down and the like, tend to not give as much as support as needed. If the neck pain occurs while sitting down, you could change your current chair into one that is more ergonomically suited to provide support. You can also try heat therapy or ice therapy, which would require you to either apply heat or ice to the neck area.
For more intense neck pain, some patients have tried to seek relief via intensive muscle manipulation such as through massage or have gone to a chiropractor in order to work out the kinks and get a spinal adjustment. There are those who have opted for higher doses of pain medication given intravenously. Others have gone for a combination of joint mobilization and joint manipulation mixed in with regular exercise. Many patients have even mixed together two or more kinds of treatment to deal with the pain.


If the neck pain occurs while sitting down, you could change your current chair into one that is more ergonomically suited to provide support. You can also try heat therapy or ice therapy, which would require you to either apply heat or ice to the neck area.