Neck Pain

Neck pain includes not only the pain at the cervical region, but also stiffness, discomfort or limited range of motion at or around the neck area. The degeneration or deterioration of the cervical spine, muscular or neurological mechanisms, can cause the pain. It can also be an extension from headache, accidents, sport injury, mal-position, stress or just an occurrence of itself. It is so commonly seen today due to the increase usage of technological devices such as telephone and computer, that people often ignored the symptoms until they have severely progressed.

Pain vs. "Discomfort"

Many people do not realize that they actually have neck pain. They would think that they simply have a "discomfort" at the neck region such as muscle stiffness, which is also a type of neck pain. Many people also think that the pain will go away by itself. This is a false statement! These perceptions often lead to great pain in the future. Neck pain may occur from children to adults, without the barrier of age. Every person will experience at least one episode of neck discomfort in his or her lifetime. Infants can also have neck pain due to the mal-position during sleeping. Today’s lifestyle of lacking of exercise and increasing of office jobs had greatly induced the chances of neck pain. However, the disease occurs more frequently after 40 years of age because of the general deterioration of the body function.

Acupuncture Treatments

Most people who suspect themselves being victims of neck pain often turn to painkiller drugs to be relieved from the pain. But drugs are sometimes harsh on the digestive and endocrine systems, which might cause side effects. The relief is also temporary, which will reappear once the drug is not taken. Acupuncture treatment benefits the body in a natural way without side effects and yet reaching the goal of permanent pain relief. It stimulates the body to produce a natural pain reliever within our biological system, the endorphin, to be released to the pain site and thus treat the symptoms. This can be done by inserting tiny and thin needles into certain acupoints along the body meridians whose pathways run along the neck region. Most acupuncture clinics provide treatments with disposable needles, to prevent cross contamination.

Further Benefits of Acupuncture

Besides treating the pain, acupuncture treatments can strengthen the muscles around the neck region to help support the cervical spine, putting less pressure on the bones while they slowly deteriorate as our age progresses. Acupuncture also promotes the circulation of qi (energy) and blood within our body to maintain our health.

Herbal Treatment

Herbal formulas are sometimes prescribed to patients besides the acupuncture treatment. Certain herbs are very effective in pain relieving, by relaxing the muscle tension and promoting tissue growth to replace the damaged tissue for a faster healing.

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