Physical Therapy Treatment for Neck Pain in Egg Harbor Township, NJ

If you experience pain, stiffness, or limited range of motion in your neck, our physical therapists can work with you to improve movement and reach your treatment goals. Physical therapy treatment for neck pain in Egg Harbor Township, NJ, can reduce pain, improve posture, and help you perform daily activities. Located in Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey, SMC Physicians offers customized rehabilitation for patients dealing with neck and spinal issues.

Your neck supports your head and allows you to rotate your chin and move your head up and down. When you experience neck pain, it can make everyday tasks, such as working at a desk, driving, exercising, sleeping, and even looking over your shoulder, difficult. A physical therapist will assess your symptoms, their cause, and their patterns before developing a treatment plan specific to your limitations, goals, strength, and movement.

What Commonly Causes Neck Pain?

There are many reasons you might experience neck pain. It commonly occurs due to strains, sustained posture, arthritis, age-related changes in your spine, sports injuries, work injuries, or car accidents. Pain in your neck can appear suddenly after trauma or develop over time with repetitive motions.

Looking down at your phone for hours, sitting at an improperly arranged desk, or sleeping with your neck bent at an awkward angle can strain your neck muscles. Strains can also occur from falls or auto accidents that impact your neck, causing whiplash.

If you’ve been diagnosed with arthritis or have age-related changes in your cervical spine (neck), you may experience chronic neck pain and stiffness. Cervical spondylosis is a common cause of chronic neck pain that can develop over time, but many cases are treated without surgery.

How Can Physical Therapy Help Neck Pain?

Physical therapy can help reduce neck pain and improve mobility by strengthening the muscles that support your neck, improving movement patterns, and teaching you ways to manage your symptoms. Weakness or stiffness in your shoulders and upper back can cause added stress to your neck. Physical therapy can help strengthen those areas as well.

Exercise, education, and certain manual therapy techniques are recommended to treat most cases of nonspecific neck pain. Your physical therapist will determine the best treatment techniques and exercises to help alleviate your pain based on whether you have limited movement, muscle dysfunction, headaches, nerve pain, or other issues.

At SMC Physicians, we provide physical therapy services at our Egg Harbor Township location for musculoskeletal conditions affecting the neck, back, pelvis, hips, and other areas of the body. We can customize your physical therapy treatment to include stretching, strengthening, postural correction, chronic pain management techniques, and personalized rehabilitation.

What Happens During the First Physical Therapy Appointment?

During your initial appointment, your physical therapist will review your symptoms and the history of your pain. They will test your range of motion, posture, strength, and functional mobility. They may also assess how your neck, shoulders, upper back, and arms move together.

Be sure to explain when your pain started, any motions that make your symptoms worse, and if your pain radiates into your shoulder, arm, or hand. Any previous injuries or surgeries, prior imaging studies or tests, current medications, and past treatments will also help with your evaluation.

They will use the information gathered during your visit to create a rehabilitation plan tailored to your individual needs. Because each patient's symptoms, limitations, and goals are different, physical therapy treatment should be individualized as well.

What Exercises May Be Used for Neck Pain?

Physical therapy for neck pain can include exercises to help improve your flexibility, muscle strength, posture, and cervical spine and shoulder blade control. It is important that the exercises you perform are progressed and monitored by a physical therapist.

You may perform exercises that work on:

• Gentle neck range of motion
• Deep neck muscle strengthening
• Shoulder blade strengthening
• Stability
• Upper back mobility
• Postural endurance
• Safe lifting techniques and workplace mechanics
• Gradual return to exercise or sports

Exercise is one of the main treatments for chronic neck pain. You want to make sure the intensity and difficulty of the exercises you perform are not worsening your symptoms.

Can Physical Therapy Help Pain Caused by Poor Posture?

If you experience pain in your neck from maintaining the same position for too long or inefficient posture, physical therapy can help. Your physical therapist can analyze what positions and activities you do that may contribute to unnecessary stress and strain on your neck muscles and joints.

Treatment does not mean maintaining one position or trying to hold a "perfect" posture for hours at a time. It can also include learning how to set up your workstation to promote good posture, changing positions frequently, and building muscular endurance. They can teach you how to sit, stand, and hold your electronic devices in more comfortable positions to prevent neck pain.

Our physical therapists at SMC Physicians in Egg Harbor Township use stretching, strengthening, and postural correction exercises as part of their customized treatment plans.

Can Physical Therapy Treat Neck Pain That Travels Into the Arm?

Physical therapy can help patients who experience neck pain that travels down into the shoulder, arm, and hand. If you experience this type of pain, a thorough evaluation can help determine whether irritated nerves or another condition may be contributing to your symptoms. Radiating pain, tingling, numbness, and weakness can be symptoms of irritated nerves that exit your cervical spine (neck).

Treatment can include exercise, strengthening, postural education, and other manual therapy techniques that are progressed based on your physical examination. For cervical radiculopathy, which can cause neck pain that travels down the arm, a thorough assessment can help determine an appropriate treatment program.

If you experience progressive weakness or loss of function in your hand or arm, be sure to let your physical therapist know immediately. They may recommend seeking additional medical treatment if your condition requires further testing.

Can Athletes Receive Treatment for Neck Pain?

Yes, athletes can benefit from physical therapy when they experience neck pain. Physical therapy can help treat neck strains, overuse pain, stiffness, and other musculoskeletal injuries that affect your performance. As your rehabilitation progresses, treatment can increasingly focus on the strength, mobility, and movement needed for a safe return to your sport.

SMC Physicians offers sports rehabilitation therapy at our Egg Harbor Township clinic that can help treat sports-related injuries including neck pain, strains, and overuse injuries.

When Does Neck Pain Require Immediate Medical Attention?

If you experience neck pain after a severe fall, collision, or accident, you should seek medical attention right away. Other symptoms that require immediate medical attention include major weakness, loss of movement in your limbs, or loss of sensation. These symptoms should be evaluated by a medical professional before starting physical therapy.

Neck pain accompanied by a fever, severe headache, rapidly worsening numbness or weakness, or any other serious symptoms should be checked by a medical professional immediately.

Our physical therapists will screen you for red flags during your initial evaluation. If your physical therapist thinks your symptoms may be from a fracture, infection, serious nerve disorder, or another serious injury, they will advise you to seek medical care.

Where Can You Receive Physical Therapy in Egg Harbor Township?

SMC Physicians provides physical therapy services at our Egg Harbor Township location for patients with conditions affecting the neck, spine, pelvis, hips, and other areas of the musculoskeletal system.

For physical therapy treatment for neck pain in Egg Harbor Township, NJ, turn to SMC Physicians. Our physical therapy team provides personalized rehabilitation for posture-related pain, injuries, chronic pain, and movement limitations. Call (609) 770-7804 or request an appointment online to begin your journey to moving pain-free once again.