Question
My X-Ray
I have been experiencing neck pain for almost a month now. The pain started as dull but progressed to be sharp and excruciating. After visiting my MD two times and being prescribed valium and vicoden along with muscle relaxers that did nothing, I decided that masking the pain could not be the correct course of action.
I visited a chiropractor twice this week *(Thursday 1/14 and today 1/15). The first visit he took x-rays and provided stem treatment and ultrasound and said we would talk about the results today. After suffering through another day at work (8hrs at a desk working on a computer w/severe neck pain) I was able to get in and get his grim prognosis.
He showed me the x-rays which he said surprised him considerably! I am 24 years old and have never had any type of neck pain in my life. But the x-rays showed my neck to be curved outward towards the front of my body instead the back (See image). He says that this is a severe problem and it will take 20-30 office visits to get me back to normal. We are going to start with 4 visits a week for 2 weeks, then to 3 a week then to 2 a week and eventually 1 a month卭ne every 6 months etc.
Is that a good plan of action? Would you take a different approach? Should I be as scared as I am right now? I don抰 know what to think about this problem. I played football, baseball, golf and ran track in high school and continue to enjoy sports as I just graduated from college and began my first 搑eal?full time job as a recruiter. I am seriously concerned that my pain will not go away and that this is a problem that will keep me from working comfortably or leading a normal, active life.
Any advice you could give would be amazing. Thank you so much for your time.
Answerhi, i understand your concern. i saw your xray , it is a little difficult to see if there is any disc degeneration. it does not appear to be the case. i do see that you have a reversed cervical curve. the danger of not correcting it can cause the disc to deterioration prematurely over time.
first off, you are correct going to a chiropractor for this problem. medication will only make your prognosis worse (10-20 yrs later).
i agree with your chiropractor and his treatment plan.
i want you to understand that cervical curves can take even longer then what he mentioned to correct. You will NOT be in pain for the rest of your life, and you have nothing to worry about. You will make a full recovery from this (no doubt in my mind). He may have scared you, but you have nothing to be afraid of and the prognosis is excellent.
some dr's use scare tactics and i am not one to do that.
bottom line you will be just fine and follow his directions.
a few key pointers:
1: raise your computer screen , so the BOTTOM of your monitor is at eye level when you are sitting at your desk. this will help with your cervical curve. if monitor is on your desk, you have to bend your head down all day long and you will never correct that curve if you don't work on your posture.
2: Get yourself a good cervical pillow and sleep on your back , this will help restore the proper lordosis curve.
3: get your chiropractor to see if your insurance will cover a posture pump. Its excellent for loss of cervical curve. or just go online and buy one. they run about $100 and use it a lot.
4: Exercises to strengthen your posterior cervicals and stretch your pec (chest muscles)
brandon you will get through this and you will be just fine, no doubt in my mind.
David Kulla, DC
chiropractor
synergywellnessny.com
