Exercise for Neck Pain Relief

When we hurt, we usually want someone else to just take the pain away. Do something for us to remove the pain. Does that work? Not often. Experience teaches us – sometimes over and over – the lesson that we must be involved in helping ourselves. This is truth when it comes to neck pain. OrthoIllinois Chiropractic is your partner on your journey toward  neck pain relief. OrthoIllinois Chiropractic is prepared to set the proper McHenry chiropractic treatment plan for neck pain relief that combines the doctor effort of spinal manipulation (and knowledge and diagnosis) and patient effort of exercise (and appointment keeping and exercise).

So this combined effort of spinal manipulation and exercise is a well-studied and continually studied topic in neck pain research. The combination’s outcomes are measured for the amount of pain relief as well as the amount of functional improvement/quality of life.

In one study, spinal manipulation was statistically significantly better compared to medication for neck pain relief early on in care (8 to 52 weeks) while home exercise was notably better at week 26 over medication. (1) It seems that patients also appreciate supervised strengthening exercise mixed with home exercise and spinal manipulation. (2) OrthoIllinois Chiropractic definitely sees the advantage of supervising our McHenry chiropractic patients when they first start doing their neck exercises to be sure they are doing them properly and setting up a proper routine that will help them toward their goal of neck pain relief.

Studies report that a combination of manual therapy and exercise for neck pain relief is common. The neck exercise program that is most effective is always under debate and highly individualized. That’s where McHenry neck pain patients can turn to and rely on their McHenry chiropractor to help. OrthoIllinois Chiropractic has many options for neck pain exercise approaches and makes sure the one for you is right for you. Knowing that a comparison of two neck exercise approaches – stretching exercise training and sling exercise training for stabilization – shows that both effectively improve cervical spine range of motion while sling stabilization improved cervical spine angles more may influence your prescribed exercise plan. (3) Knowing that in a large scale review of the literature about the combination of manual therapy and exercise for neck pain reports that together is more effective for pain reduction and improved quality of life for chronic neck pain patients may well also influence your individualized neck pain relief exercise plan. Know that, even for whiplash patients, greater short-term pain reduction is found with manual therapy and exercise versus traditional care certainly will influence the McHenry chiropractic treatment plan set for you. (4)

So how do you know which type of exercise or combination of spinal manipulation and exercise suits you best for maximal neck pain relief and maintenance of that relief? A chat with your chiropractor! Contact OrthoIllinois Chiropractic. Together, your McHenry chiropractor and you will design the proper exercise program for supporting and maintaining the pain relief you attain with your chiropractic treatment plan for neck pain relief.