Preventing Back and Neck Stiffness in the Morning

Posted by adortalukdar on January 24th, 2015

Whilst sleeping is supposed to relax and rejuvenate you for the day ahead, many Americans report that they actually awaken every morning with back and neck stiffness or pain, which can actually affect the rest of their day. If you find that sleeping leaves you feeling stiff, then the chances are that you are sleeping in a position that is not natural for your body. Making a few simple changes to your bed and your sleeping arrangements could help to prevent daily back and neck stiffness.

Neck pain is usually a much easier problem to solve than back pain is, and your pillow is the place to start. Sleeping without a pillow is bad for your neck, as your neck will be forced to curve downwards, but sleeping with too many pillows (or a single pillow which is too thick) will bend your neck in the other direction. Whilst your neck is fine to adopt these positions for a short while, being left in one of these positions for around 8 hours can really cause your neck to stiffen. As it worsens, neck problems can be felt all the way around the body, so stopping this issue from progressing can be very important. The best type of pillow will help to keep your neck aligned with your spine as you lay down. The pillow should be of medium firmness and not springy. A well stuffed pillow is recommended – if you feel as though the stuffing has clumped together or if there are patches which are not stuffed as well, it may be time to change your pillow. Pillows should be changed regularly if you want to maintain the benefit.

Back stiffness in the morning can be harder to sort out, because there are a variety of different causes. In the simplest cases, changing your sleeping position can help to alleviate some of your problems. Aligning the neck and the spine using a suitable pillow as mentioned above can really help with back stiffness too. One of the most problematic positions for people is sleeping face-down, as this can contort the back into an unnatural position. Try sleeping in a different position to see whether this helps.  If this fails, visit a qualified chiropractor who will be able to pinpoint the causes of your problems and come up with an individual solution to help you to relieve back stiffness in the morning.

Nault Chiro are experienced in dealing with patient back or neck stiffness in the morning. If your problems persist, visit Nault Chiro for professional help.