How Treating Neck Pain With the McKenzie Method Can Help You Find Lasting Relief
Have you noticed your neck seems stiff and sore at the end of a long day at work or school? Were you in a car accident and still have neck pain? You may benefit from an assessment by one of our McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy McKenzie-trained physical therapists.
The McKenzie Method is a highly effective treatment technique for neck pain. Part of the effectiveness is the emphasis on teaching people how to treat themselves. Your therapist will help you identify the most effective postures, specific exercise movements, and/or stretches to eliminate pain and restore mobility.
The McKenzie assessment enables your physical therapist to identify how you should be treated using the concept of directional preference. Directional preference means what helps you feel better and move better. These movements become the starting point for your treatment.
Call McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy today to make an appointment. With guidance from our McKenzie-trained physical therapists, you can find solutions to your neck pain and get back to living the life you enjoy!
Common causes of neck pain
The most common causes of neck pain are sprains and strains resulting from prolonged postures, repetitive movements, or some form of trauma (i.e., car accidents or sports injuries). The more severe impairments of the neck are often related to degenerative changes, disc pathology, or nerve injuries. In some cases, it is a combination of multiple factors and injuries.
Poor postural habits, including prolonged slouching or forward head postures, place extra stress on the neck. Our spines function at their best when our vertebrae are stacked over one another and with frequent position changes. It is important to remember that our necks were designed to move. Any prolonged posture can lead to pain and reduced mobility; ultimately, these limitations will interfere with our normal daily activities.
Trauma, including a fall, an impact like in contact sports, or whiplash from a car accident, will often lead to neck pain and loss of mobility. These injuries can cause damage to the tissue around the joint and the joints themselves, resulting in pain and dysfunction.
One of the leading causes of neck pain is related to aging. As we get older, the neck joints begin to break down and degenerate (i.e., degenerative disc disease). These degenerative changes make us more vulnerable to different forms of neck pain.
For example, degenerative disc disease makes us more susceptible to disc herniations, which may lead to nerve injuries and pain radiating from the neck down the arm into the hand. Others will experience degenerative changes that lead to the narrowing of the nerve root (i.e., stenosis) and significant restrictions in the neck’s ability to move.
Another major reason for neck pain is due to lifestyle choices. Often people look for an event that caused their back pain and overlook the most common reasons: living a sedentary lifestyle or ignoring activities that aggravate the neck. Typically, the belief, “I need to get this done,” even though it’s causing pain, is as likely to contribute to your neck pain as anything else.
Providing ineffective treatments based on a diagnosis will not help eliminate the cause of your neck pain. The key to treating neck pain is finding a solution. Multiple studies have shown that the McKenzie method effectively classifies the condition and educates patients on managing their condition independently!
How the McKenzie Method can provide relief
The main emphasis of the McKenzie method is education and instruction on effective exercises and proper posture. The main goals include:
- Reduce pain quickly through postural education and repeated movements
- Return to normal functioning in daily activities
- Minimize the risk of recurring pain (avoid painful postures and movements)
- Minimize the use of medication or surgery to eliminate pain
Your Physical Therapists will perform a thorough assessment to identify the category for treatment. They will then use the information obtained from this assessment to recommend specific neck exercises and advise on which postures are beneficial and which ones to avoid. These exercises allow you to identify how to resolve your current and future symptoms.
Our McKenzie-trained therapists at McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy will emphasize performing the movements and positions that provide relief and avoiding or modifying those that irritate or worsen your condition.
What to expect from the McKenzie-trained therapists at McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy.
Our McKenzie assessments enable your McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy therapists to identify the postures and movements causing pain and what to do to alleviate your pain. These particular postures and specific movements become the starting point for treatment.
One feature that separates the McKenzie Method from other systems is identifying and classifying neck pain into specific subgroups. These subgroups indicate how your symptoms will likely respond to specific movements and positions.
Your physical therapist will interpret your condition and clarify what postures and movements will resolve your neck pain. McKenzie therapists are guides to point you in the right direction.
Contact us for an appointment
The McKenzie Method focuses on treatments for the independence of patients with neck pain. Our McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy therapists trained in the McKenzie Method will provide you with the tools to promote independence in managing current pain and future recurrences.
Call McCabe and Brady Physical Therapy today for a comprehensive assessment and learn what steps you can take to alleviate your pain once and for all!