Neck pain is a common complaint. Through strengthening exercises, patients can help reduce the frequency, and intensity of the neck pain that they are experiencing. In order to help individuals reduce their neck pain, Dr. Reece Hayden of Synergy Chiropractic of Houston created a quick video in order to demonstrate an inexpensive way to strengthen the neck muscles with a simple exercise that can be performed at home.

For your convenience, below is a transcript of Dr. Hayden’s video of Neck Strengthening Exercises to Reduce Neck Pain.

Howdy everybody,

This is Dr. Reece Hayden again with Synergy Chiropractic of Houston. As you remember, last time we talked about how herniations in the spine can lead to pain and discomfort.

Today, what we are going to be talking about is active therapy for the neck, for people who suffer from neck pain that could be associated with a herniation in the cervical spine. One thing that we like to use in our office is a cervical rehabilitation unit, sometimes referred to as a four square ball, that can be purchased at any general store that sells sports equipment.

What you are going to do is stand up against the wall and place the ball behind your head. Its going to take some practice getting the right amount of pressure to hold the ball in place without using your hands. If you feel like you need to at first, you can hold the ball with your hands. That is perfectly fine.

Now what you are going to do is push your head up against the ball, nodding backwards. You can also push your neck backwards against the ball, causing a double chin. This is going to help strengthen the neck muscles in the back (of the neck). It also helps push the jelly substance that’s inside the disc, that has been herniated and pushed outward, back towards the center, helping decrease the effects of the herniation. You do this in each way you can think of for movement of the neck. You can nod sideways, called lateral flexion. You can turn your head into the ball. You can even put the ball in front of your fore head and the wall and nod downwards as well as push strait forward.

These are all just different exercises you can do using something that has resistance to help build muscle in your neck and relieve pain. This is also some good exercise for someone who constantly has their neck in a forward position. For example, someone who sits at a computer or who has bad posture.

I hope this was beneficial for you. If you have any questions, please feel free to give us a call. Have a nice day.