Most neck pain has one root cause. When that underlying cause is understood and addressed then a lasting solution can usually be found.
In this video Dr. Brant Pedersen (DC) shares how he approaches stubborn neck pain. He will discuss how fixing neck pain begins with addressing the foundation of the neck, the upper back. This is critical because any treatment to bring neck pain relief, without first looking at the thoracic spine, can lead to frustrating results.
Chapters 00:00 Introduction 00:31 Classic Neck Pain Case Example 03:48 Cause #1 - Addressing Thoracic Spine as the Foundation of the Neck 06:36 Cause #2 - Balancing Out Muscle 07:49 Upper Crossed Syndrome as a Cause of Neck Pain 12:17 Exercise #1 - Trigger Point Ball Massage at Pectoralis Muscles 15:48 Exercise #2 - Brugger's Exercise with CLX Band 18:21 Exercise #3 - Static Thoracic Spine Extensions over a Foam Roller 22:05 Exercise #3 Alternative - Egoscue Static Back Exercise 23:02 Exercise #4 - Supine Deep Neck Flexor Strengthening 25:58 How We Address Difficult Neck Pain Cases 28:17 Postural Analysis 29:16 Ergonomic Evaluation and Recommendations 30:15 Balancing Out Inhibited Muscles, Myofascial Adhesions, Muscle Weakness 34:32 Chiropractic Adjustments for Neck Pain Relief 35:07 Activator Adjustments for Neck Pain Relief 35:45 How To Assess for Cervical Spine Instability
Next Dr. Pedersen will talk through a classic case of neck pain and the solutions that helped a middle-aged man relieve his neck pain and get back to exercising and playing with his kids.
Exercise #1 uses a trigger point ball to massage the pectoralis muscles. Exercise #2 is Brugger's exercise with a CLX Theraband to help tone all the upper body extensor muscles. Exercise #3 involves doing thoracic spine extensions over a foam roller to improve upper back posture and decrease Dowager's hump. Exercise #4 strengthens the deep neck flexor muscles to help decrease forward head posture and help relieve neck stiffness.
Dr. Pedersen then dives deep into the steps he takes when he sees a chronic case of neck pain. This includes discussion of neck and upper back posture and how he uses postural analysis software to uncover spinal imbalances. He then talks through ergonomics and how they are addressed to help people get rid of neck pain for good.
Then Dr. Pedersen discusses balancing out muscles. He discusses solutions for tight muscles and muscle that have myofascial adhesions with IASTM techniques like Graston (https://grastontechnique.com/) and Fascial Distortion Model (FDM at https://www.fascialdistortionmodel.com/). He also covers using applied kinesiology for muscle that are functionally inhibited, using the sternocleidomastoid (SCM) as an example. Finally he talks through solutions for muscles that are weak and how individualized strengthening exercises are critical.
Dr. Brant is a sports chiropractor who founded Positive Motion Chiropractic in northern California (Los Gatos). He specializes in finding rapid and lasting solutions to muscle and joint pain issues. He enjoys sharing tips and tricks for how to stay active and pain-free and employs them daily to stay active as an extreme sports athlete.
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