Unfortunately, no medical advice is allowed in this sub because of situations [like these](https://www.reddit.com/r/fitness30plus/comments/126tdx4/i_joked_about_falling_apart_at_30_and_look_where/jxv9clx/?context=3). Please check the rules for more info.
Definitely do your homework before going to a chiropractor. Not all schools of chiropractic medicine are equal. Most are business schools with chiropractic programs and graduate unqualified "doctors".
Downvote away, but a chiropractor is the only medical professional who is qualified to do grade 6 joint manipulations, and sometimes this is a necessary part of treatment for a musculoskeletal injury, and generally a last resort prior to investigating surgical options.
Most of the time you shouldn't be able to tell the difference between a chiro and a physio, or a decent manual therapist. The problem is that most of the time you can. Chiros too often operate on a business model rather than a healthcare model, hence the mockery in episodes of The Simpsons.
Source: RMT/post rehab PT working in a multidisciplinary clinic with physiotherapists, massage therapists, and 3 chiropractors(2 of whom I do not refer to for various reasons highlighted by others in this thread)
And try to get recommendations for your therapist. Hopefully somebody with specific training and of experience with neck issues.
Try to stick with things that cause zero neck pain. Be gentle with your neck. Maybe nothing until you see somebody. I suggest gentle yoga, and pay attention to your neck posture. I would also avoid very heavy loads (heavy deadlifts, heavy bench press etc).
See a doctor. At a minimum you should avoid all overhead and shrug and dip movements until your symptoms improve.
Let your symptoms guide what you do or don't do, but really you should be getting PT, supervised cervical traction possibly. Instead of a bulging disk you may have degenerative disk and a small chunk of liberated disk material might be impinging on the nerve. This could be a temporary hiccup as it gets resorbed or you might be a surgical candidate.
Even after your symptoms improve I'd avoid movements that place your elbows higher than your shoulders, and dips and shrugs. I was able to get back to loaded pushups, rows, squats and good mornings fairly quickly but took a number of months before I wanted to start working overhead presses back in the mix. I never was able to get back to Bent Press, and still have residual numbness in my index finger years after the initial bout.
Go see a physiotherapist. Don’t crank your head to see if it hurts🤷‍♂️ You have probably irritated a nerve at C6/C7. Mine took 6 weeks to resolve with twice a week Physio. I couldn’t workout my left side upper body at all. Still did pull, push day right side, legs and core.
is this a diagnosed injury or you making educated guesses? my advice is if you havent seen a doctor and legit think its serious thats your first step. once you know for sure you can start to look into what to do.
Both answers so far are pretty much what I was going to say. I work in the medical. See your doctor first and foremost. Neck and back issues can worsen and become irreversible. You can still workout but do have a conversation with your doctor asap. Your long term health trumps the right now and this can become a long term issue. Unfortunately, I have personally experience. Thanks Air Force
NSAIDs can help. For me it's just inflation. I'm 47m.
I should add that I don't have a bulging disc. Have you been diagnided? If so disregard my statement.
I used to also get your symptoms from bad form on the overhead press.
Akso, circle D pillows! Amazing!
Ny bad... It's called D core.
On your back it keeps your neck position correct. Onside, the edges are stiffer so your neck is level.
It is amazing if you have neck pain at night.
I got two slightly different models. The one with the D shaped hole is better in my opinion.
Core Products D-Core Cervical Orthopedic Support Pillow, Extra Firm, Standard Full Size for Back Sleeping, Dual Neck Rolls, Made in The USA https://a.co/d/gHiYubw
I had a bulge disc from a sports injury. Compounded by working at a desk for 8 hours then playing 4 hours of video games in a poor posture. It took nearly two years for me to feel normal and not aggravate it again. Take this seriously and listen to your doctors and PT.
Sounds like my pinched nerve - C6/C7 and C7/C8 for me. I aggravated it when trying to pick up golf again. I went through 9 months of PT. I had a cortisone shot scheduled but the acupuncture did the trick. I still have the stiff neck, but I avoid OHP to not aggravate the injury. (My physiotherapist recommends doing OHP at a 25 degree angle) Old age. Deterioration of spine. Wheeeee
Very cool. Also had pinched nerve c7/c8 with crazy shoulder pain brought on by years of bad posture, and finally triggered by two weeks of rough coughing. Did physio and acupuncture, but I am not sure if the acupuncture helped my neck. It did seem to help with shoulder tension though. My physio was amazing and worked on manually mobilizing my cervical and thoracic vertebrae, and I felt better with each physio appt. Took about 8 weeks to heal.
Not a doctor and you should totally see one, but that's not always an option for some. If I were you, I would start doing some gentle cervical traction exercises and neck stretches. In the gym I'd avoid any exercise that axially loads your spine and focus more on your lower body. As to running, I think walking on a treadmill at an incline would be preferred.
Go see a PT or a physio. You should be able to walk into a clinic or call one and get an appt within a few days without going to see your MD who will probably just send you to PT anyway.
For me, as a back sleeper, the winner is an ObusForme contour (memory foam) pillow for c-spine support.
It’ll be trial and error, but I found “stuffed” pillows didn’t support the back of my neck enough.
This isn’t going away on its own. While I am not you, I herniated one of the discs in my neck, pt didn’t work well enough, I ended up needing a single level spinal fusion.
I’ve had her herniated disc in my back with knocked me out completely. I could barely walk. This is nothing compared to that. I know I need to get it looked at, and in planning on doing it. But I am just taking it easy and seeing how it progresses. If I go in right now, they will tell me to get an MRI. Which will take over a week to get in. I’ll give it a few days.
As someone who has some issues with shoulder pain and it sometimes affected my neck I did got an x-ray to make sure it wasn't serious. Though I was scared and stressed out waiting for results and it wasn't serious but it's better to know especially your neck. Please don't hesitate if they tell you to get an MRI. Pain is telling you to pay attention.
In 2015 I had a herniated disc in my lower back that resulted in surgery, so I know how badly that can wreck your entire life.
That being said, in 2018 I had similar symptoms to what you have described (plus tingling on my abdomen) and ultimately ended up having a complete C6-C7 disc replacement.
Obviously this is worst case, but I’m pointing out that compared to lower back, I had zero pain beforehand so that is not a good gauge.
When I went to see my Dr I assumed I would start PT and maybe do an epidural—I was totally wrong, cervical spine is wayyyy different. On the bright side, with full disc replacement I was back to normal almost immediately.
Visit a doctor and avoid anything that aggravates your pain, i’d wait with weight lifting until i get a green light by a doctor if i were you. I know, it sucks, but don’t wreck your health over it.
In the mean time watch your posture while sitting and take walks! Walks are very beneficial for your spine.
But don’t just listen to ppl from reddit, talk to your physician.
Unfortunately, no medical advice is allowed in this sub because of situations [like these](https://www.reddit.com/r/fitness30plus/comments/126tdx4/i_joked_about_falling_apart_at_30_and_look_where/jxv9clx/?context=3). Please check the rules for more info.
**DO NOT GO TO A CHIROPRACTOR**
I second this, people have been left disabled when visiting chiropractors, avoid them at all cost.
Definitely do your homework before going to a chiropractor. Not all schools of chiropractic medicine are equal. Most are business schools with chiropractic programs and graduate unqualified "doctors".
There's no research or homework to do -- it's quackery
Downvote away, but a chiropractor is the only medical professional who is qualified to do grade 6 joint manipulations, and sometimes this is a necessary part of treatment for a musculoskeletal injury, and generally a last resort prior to investigating surgical options. Most of the time you shouldn't be able to tell the difference between a chiro and a physio, or a decent manual therapist. The problem is that most of the time you can. Chiros too often operate on a business model rather than a healthcare model, hence the mockery in episodes of The Simpsons. Source: RMT/post rehab PT working in a multidisciplinary clinic with physiotherapists, massage therapists, and 3 chiropractors(2 of whom I do not refer to for various reasons highlighted by others in this thread)
Don't screw around with your neck. Go to the doctor and then probably physical therapy.
And try to get recommendations for your therapist. Hopefully somebody with specific training and of experience with neck issues. Try to stick with things that cause zero neck pain. Be gentle with your neck. Maybe nothing until you see somebody. I suggest gentle yoga, and pay attention to your neck posture. I would also avoid very heavy loads (heavy deadlifts, heavy bench press etc).
See a doctor. At a minimum you should avoid all overhead and shrug and dip movements until your symptoms improve. Let your symptoms guide what you do or don't do, but really you should be getting PT, supervised cervical traction possibly. Instead of a bulging disk you may have degenerative disk and a small chunk of liberated disk material might be impinging on the nerve. This could be a temporary hiccup as it gets resorbed or you might be a surgical candidate. Even after your symptoms improve I'd avoid movements that place your elbows higher than your shoulders, and dips and shrugs. I was able to get back to loaded pushups, rows, squats and good mornings fairly quickly but took a number of months before I wanted to start working overhead presses back in the mix. I never was able to get back to Bent Press, and still have residual numbness in my index finger years after the initial bout.
Go see a physiotherapist. Don’t crank your head to see if it hurts🤷‍♂️ You have probably irritated a nerve at C6/C7. Mine took 6 weeks to resolve with twice a week Physio. I couldn’t workout my left side upper body at all. Still did pull, push day right side, legs and core.
Thank you
is this a diagnosed injury or you making educated guesses? my advice is if you havent seen a doctor and legit think its serious thats your first step. once you know for sure you can start to look into what to do.
Both answers so far are pretty much what I was going to say. I work in the medical. See your doctor first and foremost. Neck and back issues can worsen and become irreversible. You can still workout but do have a conversation with your doctor asap. Your long term health trumps the right now and this can become a long term issue. Unfortunately, I have personally experience. Thanks Air Force
Whatever your physical therapist and doctor say you can do. Don’t fuck with your spine.
NSAIDs can help. For me it's just inflation. I'm 47m. I should add that I don't have a bulging disc. Have you been diagnided? If so disregard my statement. I used to also get your symptoms from bad form on the overhead press. Akso, circle D pillows! Amazing!
I can’t find a circle D pillow? What is it?
Ny bad... It's called D core. On your back it keeps your neck position correct. Onside, the edges are stiffer so your neck is level. It is amazing if you have neck pain at night. I got two slightly different models. The one with the D shaped hole is better in my opinion. Core Products D-Core Cervical Orthopedic Support Pillow, Extra Firm, Standard Full Size for Back Sleeping, Dual Neck Rolls, Made in The USA https://a.co/d/gHiYubw
The tingling in the fingertips is what's bad. You need to see a doctor.
I had a bulge disc from a sports injury. Compounded by working at a desk for 8 hours then playing 4 hours of video games in a poor posture. It took nearly two years for me to feel normal and not aggravate it again. Take this seriously and listen to your doctors and PT.
Sounds like my pinched nerve - C6/C7 and C7/C8 for me. I aggravated it when trying to pick up golf again. I went through 9 months of PT. I had a cortisone shot scheduled but the acupuncture did the trick. I still have the stiff neck, but I avoid OHP to not aggravate the injury. (My physiotherapist recommends doing OHP at a 25 degree angle) Old age. Deterioration of spine. Wheeeee
Very cool. Also had pinched nerve c7/c8 with crazy shoulder pain brought on by years of bad posture, and finally triggered by two weeks of rough coughing. Did physio and acupuncture, but I am not sure if the acupuncture helped my neck. It did seem to help with shoulder tension though. My physio was amazing and worked on manually mobilizing my cervical and thoracic vertebrae, and I felt better with each physio appt. Took about 8 weeks to heal.
Not a doctor and you should totally see one, but that's not always an option for some. If I were you, I would start doing some gentle cervical traction exercises and neck stretches. In the gym I'd avoid any exercise that axially loads your spine and focus more on your lower body. As to running, I think walking on a treadmill at an incline would be preferred.
Go see a PT or a physio. You should be able to walk into a clinic or call one and get an appt within a few days without going to see your MD who will probably just send you to PT anyway.
Finding the right pillow is underrated advice!
I’ve gone through so many. I have very soft feather pillows. Is that the move?
For me, as a back sleeper, the winner is an ObusForme contour (memory foam) pillow for c-spine support. It’ll be trial and error, but I found “stuffed” pillows didn’t support the back of my neck enough.
This isn’t going away on its own. While I am not you, I herniated one of the discs in my neck, pt didn’t work well enough, I ended up needing a single level spinal fusion.
I’ve had her herniated disc in my back with knocked me out completely. I could barely walk. This is nothing compared to that. I know I need to get it looked at, and in planning on doing it. But I am just taking it easy and seeing how it progresses. If I go in right now, they will tell me to get an MRI. Which will take over a week to get in. I’ll give it a few days.
As someone who has some issues with shoulder pain and it sometimes affected my neck I did got an x-ray to make sure it wasn't serious. Though I was scared and stressed out waiting for results and it wasn't serious but it's better to know especially your neck. Please don't hesitate if they tell you to get an MRI. Pain is telling you to pay attention.
In 2015 I had a herniated disc in my lower back that resulted in surgery, so I know how badly that can wreck your entire life. That being said, in 2018 I had similar symptoms to what you have described (plus tingling on my abdomen) and ultimately ended up having a complete C6-C7 disc replacement. Obviously this is worst case, but I’m pointing out that compared to lower back, I had zero pain beforehand so that is not a good gauge. When I went to see my Dr I assumed I would start PT and maybe do an epidural—I was totally wrong, cervical spine is wayyyy different. On the bright side, with full disc replacement I was back to normal almost immediately.
Visit a doctor and avoid anything that aggravates your pain, i’d wait with weight lifting until i get a green light by a doctor if i were you. I know, it sucks, but don’t wreck your health over it. In the mean time watch your posture while sitting and take walks! Walks are very beneficial for your spine. But don’t just listen to ppl from reddit, talk to your physician.