Deskercise: Stretches and self-massage for neck pain

Neck pain is a truly democratic clinical condition. Whether you are an IT professional or a physician, a student, or a teacher, you must have faced work-related neck pain. These pains usually happen due to poor posture, and (or because of) overuse. Postural neck pain can be easily identified by its nature: It occurs when poor posture is maintained for a prolonged amount of time, goes away fairly quickly once the poster is changed and movement almost always helps to ease the pain. If you have neck pain that lasts beyond 5 minutes even after correcting the poor posture, then your neck needs a check-up from a professional before you try these exercises.
In previous posts, I have discussed correct ergonomic techniques to prevent pain provoking postures and corrective exercises. In this article, I will describe a few ways to reduce pain and relax the muscles of the back of the neck to produce immediate relief. All of these qualify as deskercise because you can perform them sitting at your workstation.

Upper trapezius stretch

This muscle, when overused produces pain on the side of the neck and the back of the head. To stretch the right upper trapezius keep the right hand behind the left side back pocket. Now place the left hand over the right temple. Turn the head a little towards the left side. Finally apply stretch by bending the head towards the left using the left hand. Repeat on the other side.

Back of the neck stretch

Make a fist with your right hand. Place it on the top of your chest bone. Rest your jaw on this list. Use your left hand to grab the back of the head and pull it forward.

Trapezius self massage

Use your left hand to support the right elbow. Now bring your right hand towards the left trapezius area. Gently squeeze the back part from the neck to the shoulder. You should feel better immediately.

Back of neck massage

The GIF images are self-explanatory. Just be careful with going too much on the sides of the neck, as they produce some discomfort.

Most physiotherapists detest the word massage and for valid reasons. Massage is a broad term and can be used for various purposes, a lot of which fall outside the therapeutic context. The processes used here can be alternatively termed as muscle release.

Before finishing I would like to emphasize that all these exercises and massage techniques are designed to produce significant, but short term relief. For lasting benefits you must fall back to correct ergonomics, alignment correction, and remedial exercises.

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About the author

Dr Subhanjan Das (PT)

BPT, MPT (MSk & Sports), CMP(NZ), Diploma in football medicine (FIFA)

Consultant Physiotherapist of Apollo & Reliva Clinic, HSR Layout, Bangalore

Contact: +91 8967549104

Dr Subhanjan Das (PT) has over 14 years of clinical and 12 years of academic experience.  A friendly professional with lots of patience and skilful hands, Dr Subhanjan has worked with thousands of his patients for instant relief of pain and rapid return to activities.  He has treated elite athletes for recovery, injury prevention and performance enhancement.

Dr Das is specialized in Orthopaedic and sports physiotherapy and has keeps himself updated with the latest advancements in the field of physiotherapy. He has undergone training on advanced orthopaedic techniques such as Dry Needling, Mulligan Concept, McKenzie method, Pilates, Cupping therapy, McConnel and kinesio  taping from the best faculties around the world.

Dr Das has taught in 5 universities across India and has trained physiotherapists in 50+ workshops within and outside India.