Neck Pain after Sleeping: Causes & Treatment

Waking up with a sore neck is often the cause of a bad sleeping position. When a morning neck pain hits your day, it turns your mood bad. This is not how you want to start your day. If you know the correct way, you can actually avoid such things. The muscles, ligaments and joints are stressed due to an awkward angle of your head and neck being held for a longer period of time while sleeping. This brings on symptoms including waking pain and stiffness. Treatment for bulging discs in the neck can prove to be beneficial in this regard.

Causes

• Sleeping Position

Sleeping position does play an important role in your neck pain. Everyone has his/her preferred sleeping position. But sometimes our sleeping positions are not the correct ones. If you are one of those who likes to sleep on his/her stomach, you’re likely to develop neck pain. When you sleep on your stomach, your head becomes one-sided for a longer period of time. This will strain your muscles and you will feel a sore neck while waking up. Sleeping on your stomach can also put pressure on your back and spine.

• Your Supportive Pillow

When it comes to the position of the neck, the pillow plays the most important role. And it can worsen your neck pain. When a pillow is too soft, flat, high and stiff, it affects your neck position and puts stress on your muscles. A pillow that maintains a natural curve of the neck is the right one in this regard. If you are experiencing neck pain for a longer period of time, contact your doctor for the treatment of a bulging disc in the neck.

• Sudden Movement & Other Injuries

Sudden movements of your neck can cause pain. Sitting up quickly from sleep and tossing or turning up in sleep can strain your neck muscles.

If you have previous injuries that might have hurt your neck, you will wake up in the morning with a sore neck.

Treatment

Treatment includes some home remedies and exercise:

• Applying ice in the sore part of your neck will reduce the inflammation.

• Applying a heat pack can also give you comfort when you have for a day or more.

• Painkillers such as ibuprofen and naproxen can provide you with pain-relief.

• Changing your sleeping position can help you avoid neck pain. Try to sleep on your side or back instead of sleeping on your stomach.

• It’s recommended not to use a high pillow. Sleeping on a high pillow will strain your neck muscles at night.

• Do meaningful exercises that strengthen your neck muscles. You can stretch your neck by slowly turning your head to your left.

When it comes to treating pain, you should consider Oklahoma Pain Treatment Centers. It has qualified pain physicians to help you find out the cause of your pain and provide you with the perfect treatment option. Give us a call today.

**Disclaimer: This blog post does not establish terms of a doctor-patient relationship and is not intended to be taken as a doctor's advice.