The 7 Typical Causes of Neck Pain


Injuries sustained from playing sports, improper lifting of heavy objects and car accidents are only but a few events that can cause different sorts of neck injuries and neck aches.

The neck is a very essential but vulnerable part of the body that is susceptible to pain and injuries that could occur from being involved in either competitive physical sports, lifting of heavy objects or accidents like where you just slip and fall etc.

neck injury

Neck Injury: The common causes of neck aches

Any form of accident or injury that puts pressure or strain on the neck has the tendency to result in a neck ache. Below are some general causes of neck injuries:

  • Accidental falls.
  • Rear-impact collisions or the impact of the air bag due to car accidents.
  • Carrying heavy objects.
  • Impact of a falling object of one’s head.
  • Playing contact related sports such as basketball, football, hockey, rugby etc.

There are some accidents you get involved in that not only affects the neck but the pains extend to the head, shoulder and sometimes the arms and even the legs. In these cases, you’ll need to find the best neck brace to help alleviate your pain.

A look at some more distinct type of accidents that end up causing neck pain are:

  • Whiplash: which happens as a result of an accident that leads to an aggressive movement of the head, is seen as one of the most recurrent types of neck pain. Whiplash causes damages to the soft tissues in your neck, the muscles, ligaments and nerves included. This can result in various symptoms such as stiffness of the neck, headaches, dizziness, numbness or weakness in the neck and limbs.
  • Repetitive strain: This type of neck ache is gotten from either poor sitting or sleeping postures, maintaining a rather uncomfortable position while working on a computer, writing or even watching TV. Sleeping with the use of a hard or inappropriate pillow, reading on bed are also postures that strain the muscles in the neck and overtime lead to neck aches.
  • Sprains and strains: some injuries, especially the ones gotten from sports are very likely to lead to strains in the neck’s muscles and ligaments. This neck injury is in most cases made worse by continuous activity and so with adequate rest and anti-inflammatory medications such as naproxen and ibuprofen can help neck sprains heal with time.
  • Nerve pinch injury: This is also a sport sprung type of injury that can cause neck aches, it is sometimes referred to as burner or stinger injury. An imperiled of pinched nerve can produce severe, shooting sensations in both the neck and arms. However these sensations tend to wear of fairly quickly.
  • Disk injury: If from lifting of heavy object an accident occurs that affect the vertebral disk, the nerves in the neck may end up being inflamed causing pains to connect from the neck down to the legs.
  • Vertebral fracture: There are terrible injuries or accidents that can cause a neck vertebrae to fracture of even break. When these type of accidents happen, it is always a medical emergency and should be handled as such because a spinal fracture can damage the spinal cord, resulting in paralysis and in worse case scenarios, death.
  • Spinal cord damage: A severe accident that leads to a neck injury can in some instances result in the damage of the spinal cord if there is distort in the vertebral bones that are designed to protect the spinal cord. Accidents that can really affect the spine are either accidents from diving, terrible falls, sports related accidents and car accidents.

Neck injury: Ways to prevent neck aches

As earlier stated, the importance and the vulnerability of the neck cannot be overemphasized. Any injury or accident that affects the neck can sometimes have minor effects on the neck and can heal with time, and can also have long lasting, devastating and life changing consequences. To prevent or reduce the risk or sustaining neck injuries, below are a list of things to adhere to;

  1. Always have your seatbelt strapped irrespective of whether you are the driver or a passenger.
  2. It is wrong and against the law to drink and drive, so never drink and drive.
  3. If for any reason you have to descend from a height downwards, it is advisable to jump with your feet first instead of diving especially if it is into unknown waters so you avoid an unlikely crash between your neck and a shallow ground.
  4. Be cautious and always use a helmet when running a motorcycle or an all-terrain vehicle.
  5. In contact sports, try as much as possible to avoid head-on collisions with opponents or teammates.

Because of how fragile an unguarded the neck is, it only takes a split second to get a neck injury, but can take months or even years to have it regain its full functionality if possible. Prevention as we know is always better than cure, adhering to these little ways to avoid neck injuries can save you a lot.