Neck pain is one of the most common musculoskeletal disorders.
What causes neck pain?
​Poor posture and muscle fatigue are often the origin of neck pain.
We live in a forward-facing world with tablets, smart phones, TV's, monitor, cars, where all facilitate our head shifting forward. This is a condition identified as forward head posture. When the head and neck project forward the effort increase very much for the neck muscle to keep that posture. Research estimates that for every 1 inch the head is forward the effort the muscles need to produce is 4-5Kg more.
There are also risk factors that increase the chance we suffer from neck pain: long term stress, anxiety, depression and lack of social support.
Other common origin for neck pain are facet joints and discs.
Facet joints can be strained or injured, or simply become stiff or locked and inflamed. 
Discs can wear and tear, bulges, prolapses or herniate. It is known in lay terms as a “slipped disc”, the disc protrudes backwards and can pinch a nerve in the neck causing pain travelling down the arm.
How to treat neck pain?
​1 Medication
Seek advice from your GP.
Anti-inflammatory medication can relief pain in the severe cases for a short period of time.
2 Osteopathy
Osteopathy is very effective relieving and resolve neck pain episodes.
Neural muscular activation is great to make neck pain better. It is also important to seek a treatment appointment as soon as possible. The closer is the appointment to the start of the injury the greater the chance to resolve the pain episode. 
3 Physical Exercise
Physical exercise is a key stone in the pain resolution. Particularly, in the morning when often the intensity of pain is unbearable, a few basic exercises can bring relief, facilitating movement and helping to start the day.
Find below the links to exercises to perform first thing in the morning.
How to flatten your neck - YouTube
Neck rotation stretch lying - YouTube
Please stop any exercise that causes pain. If you have any questions with an exercise, just email us on massimo@bodyflowosteo.com