my neck is killing me, should I see a chiropractor?

[Melsky]

Yesterday about 20 minutes after waking up, I got a horible stiff, sore neck on one side. Is this something a chiropractor would be able to deal with, or should I just wait it out?

It's painful, and making it hard to do stuff like drive (can't turn my head) paint, do housework, computer, etc. I don't have any other symptoms or health problems.

[Dookus]

1. Why not see a real doctor?

An internist or orthopedist should be able to help.

[Eric J in MN]

4. yes, if the problem persists, see a real doctor, MD, not

Yes, if the problem persists, see a real doctor, MD, who will try to cure you.

Not a chiropractor who will try to keep you coming as a regular customer.

[ironflange]

6. My Mom's chiropractor made her feel great

Every Wednesday afternoon for 25 years.

:mad:

He sure had a big house.

32. not all chiropractors are quacks

Some give you yoga exercises to do so that you don't have to return to them.
Part of the idea regarding chiropractors being quacks comes from the AMA running a monopoly for years and "regular" doctors would be kicked out of the AMA if they recommended chiropractors. There was a lawsuit regarding this that the AMA lost.
From my own personal experience, I got kicked in the head really badly once in a fight & for days the swelling would not go down. The "real" doctor I had said there was nothing he could do about it and that I would just have to wait it out. I went to a chiropractor who used a technique similar to acupressure where he tapped nerves in the back of my neck that ran along the meridian where I had been kicked in the head & the swelling went down within the hour and I did not have to return for another visit.

[Dookus]

33. yes...

anecdotal evidence is what keeps chiropractic alive.

What is a subluxation? Ask 30 chiro's... you won't get the same answer. It's the basis of their "science". It doesn't exist.

34. I also believe that some chiropractors ARE quacks

but that is anecdotal also...
Does it make it less true?

[Dookus]

35. an entire

field of pseudo-science is based on a phenomenon never shown to even exist. I call that quackery, even if they do make a few people feel better.

37. ok I read this

http://www.echiropractic.net/what_is_a_subluxation.htm

Which confirms what you are saying.
I must have had that unusual chiropractor who used Chinese acupuncture meridians, which do exist.

Here's a humorous link to that affect.
"Both the American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) recognize the validity of acupuncture treatments for a wide variety of medical conditions"
http://www.idahovet.com/acupuncture.htm

I never had to return.

He didn't cure me since ten years later I started to get headaches again (that feel the way a formerly broken bone feels), but was ten years before this happened.

[Dookus]

38. well

there actually IS some evidence that acupuncture can be beneficial. But it's not, i assure you, due to manipulating "energy meridians". I'd wager my house it's due to nerves.

[jean]

2. a massage therapist could help greatly

[BigDaddyLove]

3. If it's muscular in nature, a masseuse might be a better idea.

Dang....beaten to the punch by less than a minute.

[flamingyouth]

5. When I hurt my neck I went to my doctor

Who promptly wrote me a prescription for 10 massages that my insurance paid for. Oh, those were the days ...

Hope you get relief very soon. That can be miserable.

[gate of the sun]

7. my neck is killing me too.....

and my upper back ouch I'm in pain...I'm getting a massage later this week until them lortab.

[Liberal Christian]

8. I see a chiropractor regularly

Chiropractors ARE real doctors. They heal through manipulation, not drugs and surgery. Yes, I go back repeatedly, but I'd still rather do that than take pain killers or have surgery.

I would say try massage first. Then try chiropractic.

Also try heat and ibuprofen.

[Snow]

27. They are not real doctors in the sense that they

do not have allopathic-- that is, the usual - medical school training. Granted, the usual med school training can be too narrow and skimp on some other traditions; chiropractic training can be downright hostile towards other traditions. They do not have the same understanding of anatomy & physiology that a 'real' doctor has, and while some might consider this an advantage, I would frankly worry about that because a lot of what they do is not based on solid evidence. True, allopathic medicine can have that problem too, but I think the biologic foundation for allopathic medicine is more solid. For instance, it used to be, don't know if it still is, that chiropracters did not accept germ theory of disease.

[Dookus]

29. When there are chiropractors

who claim they can cure allergies, asthma and infertility via spinal manipulation, it's clear they have no understanding of real medicine.

[Melsky]

9. Thanks

I am doing heat and advil, but it seems worse today than yesterday. I'm so cranky!

I might try to get a massage. I have a feeling if I go to the doctor he will just say to take advil and use heat on it, and charge a bunch of money.

[flamingyouth]

10. You might want to avoid heat on it 'til you see the doctor

or massage therapist, whomever you're seeing. Heat can irritate inflammation and can actually make it a bit worse, I have been told by both my doctor and the massage therapist. Ice would be better in that situation, I think. Just to be on the safe side.

[grasswire]

11. docs usually...

...allow bigger doses of ibuprofen than you might think to take yourself. My Ear Nose Throat MD recommended 800 mg three times a day for a week to ease out of some muscular neck pain.

[no_hypocrisy]

12. Please also consider Reiki treatments and/or accupuncture as

alternative therapies.

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

13. Roll your pillow up and put it under your neck and let your head

hang back over it. It creates traction and stretches the neck muscles..make sure to take a couple extra strength tylenol...that should help immensely...it sounds like you have torticollis ( big word for stiff neck) due to muscle spasms.....

[NJCher]

14. the pain in the neck; I know it well

I've had this problem many times. I've worked with both chiropracters and orthopedic surgeons plus done a lot of research on my own.

First, flamingyouth is right--it's ice, not heat. Ice because you probably strained the muscle by sleeping on it in an unorthodox fashion. Get those gel packs or an Ice Cube and put a cloth, then the Ice Cube, then a towel to hold it in place while you do whatever it is you're doing.

If you can take aspirin, it will help reduce the inflammation and pain. Just remember you have to take it on a regular basis for awhile for it to do any good.

Having worked with both chiros and orthopedic surgeons, I prefer the chiropracter PLUS a regular stretching routine. A good chiropracter will tell you that most muscle pulls and problems that come his way are due to the fact that most people don't stretch on a regular basis. They just want to come in for the quick fix. I used to visit a chiro on a regular basis but I found out (from him) that if I did a regular stretching routine it would take care of 99 per cent of my problems and it has.

The neck probably is out of alignment so it wouldn't be a bad idea to go to a chiro.



Cher

[yellowdawgdem]

15. I see a Chiro

and feel lots better afterwards. A good chiropractor can fix your neck with just one or two adjustments. I agree with Cher, though, that stretching, or swimming, can put things back into alignment naturally, and then I see a chiropractor maybe once or twice every 3 months, like if I get in bad pain. I never would've gone to one if I hadn't been in really bad pain, and the docs had nothing to offer. it's amazing how the medical establishment trashes alternative medicine.

[nuxvomica]

16. I would try arnica ointment. That may give immediate relief

I once used it at work for severe neck pain and I got relief in minutes. A few minutes later, the pain had travelled to my mid-back. So I rubbed arnica there. Relief was followed by lower back pain. More arnica. The cycle of arnica, relief, and pain at a lower level, continued until finally my foot cramped up.
I use it often but haven't again experienced the downward-travelling pain like I did then. Arnica ointment is sort of a homeopathic "Ben-Gay" but without the odor or the burning.

[NJCher]

17. forgot about arnica

It's the best! Yes, go to Whole Foods or your health food store and get some immediately! They have both little pearl like things you take like aspirin (take about five every four hours) and there is also the gel. Get both! It's amazing how well this stuff works.


Cher

[nuxvomica]

18. Yes, both forms are good. Sometimes one works when the other doesn't

I recently alleviated some back pain with the ointment after the pill form had no effect. And I've experienced it vice-versa as well.

[Ernesto]

19. Wait it out

However my chiropractors has done fine things for me over my many years as a construction worker.... If chiropractors are just "quacks", how come they have such popularity?

[Dookus]

20. well....

why are so many people into astrology, or why do so many people believe in homeopathy?

Try Michael Shermer's "Why People Believe Weird Things"

[The White Rose]

21. If you can get a good recommendation.

Some are quacks, some are excellent (kinda like MDs). I get the same problem on occasion and chiropractic works wonders for me. Wishing you well...

[NJCher]

22. actually

The myth that chiros are quacks has pretty much gone by the wayside. I'm going on memory from an article that was printed 12-13 years ago in the NY Times but it said that chiropractry had been shown to deliver relief at a substantial cost savings as opposed to other means.

How are you doing today, melsky? Check in and let us know!


Cher

[Dookus]

26. No...

it hasn't gone by the wayside by any means.

It's an entire fake science based on something called "subluxations" which haven't even been shown to exist. Furthermore, the claims made are preposterous - a quick google search will find "fertility chiropractors", "allergy chiropractors" and much worse.

If you're hurting, see a medical doctor.

[Snow]

30. I'm familiar with the study....

it was done by chiropractic associations to the end of persuading congress to let them get reimbursed for whatever it is they do. It worked. The field has expanded a lot and chiropracters are making more money and have a better rep since then. Neither, in my opinion, deserved, although I have a friend who's a chiropracter....we avoid certain subjects.

[Loonman]

23. Chiro is scam

Ever notice that you never need to see the chiro just once?

You have to go back, again, and again, and again.

[Bertha Venation]

24. See an orthopedic specialist FIRST.

Then if s/he refers you to a chiropractor, go for it. Because chances are it has nothing to do with your bone alignment.

:hug:

[Melsky]

25. I'm worse this morning!

It really hurts and I can't turn my head well. I had a hard time getting in and out of bed. Unless I am lying flat on my back it's pretty painful.

I have so much I wanted to do today.

I'm thinking of calling the doctor, but it's a 20 minute drive and I really don't feel like driving, it's so hard to turn my head. There's no one at all who could take me.

Thanks for all the responses, they gave me lots to think about.

[PVnRT]

28. I'd call the police

Sounds like a felony.

[TrogL]

31. See your dentist

I'm not kidding.

Do your teeth hurt, especially your molars on one side? Does your jaw click when you chew? Are you getting frequent headaches and/or earaches?

If you're getting that in addition to your neck aches, you may have TMJ.

I was getting all sorts of wierd problems with my ears and just about came to blows with my ear, nose and throat doctor until he told me about TMJ.

Google it.

[Melsky]

39. I had TMJ before

I had it as a teenager and they gave me a mouth guard to wear while sleeping. I know I still grind my teeth, but this came on very suddenly.

If it's not better by tomorrow I'm going to call the doctor.

[cally]

36. See a doctor or chiropractor

My experience is that I had neck spasms from severe stress from an old job. I went to a doctor who prescribed massive doses of pain killers and muscle relaxants. I couldn't take those because I had to work and think. I went to a chiropractor who did some adjstments and the pain was much less and I could finish my job. He also recommended endless treatments which I ignored.

A few years later my brothet-in-law became a chiropractor. His training was extensive and he knows what he can and cannot treat. If I had neck or back problems, I would go to a chiropractor. However, if your pain is worse, then you need to see a doctor immediately. Something serious is wrong.

[Rabbit of Caerbannog]

40. I recommend seeing

an osteopath. The are fully certified medical doctors but they take a more holistic approach to health care - and they do many of the same things as a chiropractor does - without selling you six years of adjustments for your supposed "subluxations". I speak from experience as I have had both. I'll stick with my DO (a doctor of osteopathic medicine).

When I throw my neck or back into spasm, my doctor hooks me up to what I lovingly call his electro-shock therapy machine for about 20 minutes. This causes the muscles to relax. Then he'll come in, and if necessary, do an adjustment. Side benefit - he also prescribes meds, checks my cholesterol and BP, is my sports med guru, etc, etc. You won't get all this with a chiropractor

[kiahzero]

41. Go see a normal doctor first

I had a back spasm of some sort, went to see a doctor, and he told me I had two options - Physical Therapy or Masseuse... fun thing is, since I had a referall, insurance covered the PT.