Text Neck Treatment in Naperville
Text Neck Treatment Near Me
Is Text Neck Causing Your Neck & Upper Back Pain?
Text Neck Naperville, il – Text neck is not an official medical diagnosis, but rather a term commonly used for a repetitive stress injury where excessive texting or mobile device use is believed to be the primary cause. The condition also has other names such as Turtle Neck or Anterior Head Posture. This condition is becoming an epidemic even among young children due to the excessive use of handheld devices including phones and tablets. Children and adults are spending many hours each day looking down at the device which causes postural changes. It is important that this is addressed early so that permanent changes in the spine do not occur.
Symptoms Of Text Neck!
Text neck symptoms commonly include one or more of the following:
Pain in the neck, upper back, and/or shoulder. This pain may be located in one specific spot and feel intense or stabbing, or it may be a general achiness and soreness that covers a broader region, such as spanning from the bottom of the neck and into the shoulder(s).
Forward head posture and rounded shoulders. Muscles in the neck, chest, and upper back can become deconditioned and imbalanced due to prolonged forward head posture. This deconditioning can make it difficult to maintain good posture with the ears directly over the shoulders.
Reduced mobility. The neck, upper back, and shoulders may all experience some tightness and reduced mobility.
Headache. Muscles at the base of the neck could go into spasm and become painful, or pain could also be referred from the neck up into the head. Excessive amounts of time looking at screens, regardless of posture, may also increase the risk for eyestrain and headache.
Increased pain when neck flexion. Text neck symptoms tend to worsen when the neck is flexed forward into the position that originally caused the problem, such as while looking down and texting.
Cervical radiculopathy. Symptoms of electric shock-like pain, pins-and-needles tingling, numbness, and/or weakness may radiate from the neck down into the shoulder, arm, and/or hand. Cervical radiculopathy can occur when a cervical nerve root becomes irritated or compressed, such as from spinal changes related to degenerative disc disease or osteoarthritis. Severe cases of text neck may accelerate or worsen this process.
Balance issues. Prolonged amounts of time in forward head posture have been linked to reduced balance control, due to the head’s center of gravity migrating further in front of the body. This process can result in muscle imbalances and postural control changes in the neck and torso.
Jaw pain. A misalignment in the cervical spine and/or muscle imbalances may lead to jaw pain, or temporomandibular joint (TMJ) pain. Other symptoms may also be associated with text neck.
How is Text Neck Diagnosed?
When visiting the doctor with a primary complaint of neck pain, typically the first 2 steps involve:
- Patient history. The patient’s medical history, family health history, exercise and diet habits, medications, as well as current symptoms (and when they started) are reviewed.
- Physical examination. The neck is observed for any unusual posture or lesions, and palpated for possible areas of muscle tightness or tenderness. The head may also be gently guided through various ranges of motion to see if specific neck movements are restricted or alter the pain response (improve, worsen, or no change).
If the neck pain and/or stiffness is primarily caused by a repetitive stress injury, such as text neck or tech neck, enough information is typically obtained through a careful patient history and physical exam to make a diagnosis and start treatment.
If more serious causes of neck pain are suspected during the patient history and physical exam—such as nerve root compression, fracture, or a serious underlying medical condition—imaging and other tests may be required.
Treatments For Text Neck!
- Chiropractic
- Therapeutic exercises
- Cervical Spinal Decompression
- K Laser Therapy
- Therapeutic Massage
How To Prevent or Improve Text Neck!
Prevention is the key when it comes to Text Neck. The following recommendations from a systematic review of Text Neck should be kept in mind while using smartphones or other hand held devices:
- Avoid excessive usage and take frequent breaks
- Avoid prolonged static postures
- Position the device such that it reduces stresses both on the head/neck and the upper extremities
- Avoid high repetitions of movements such as prolonged typing or swiping
- Avoid holding large or heavy devices in one hand for long duration
Call Our Naperville Neck Pain Treatment Center Today to Get Relief From Text Neck! (630) 355-8022
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