Why Does My Neck Pain Keep Coming Back?
If you’ve experienced recurring neck pain, you’ve probably asked yourself this question more than once. Perhaps you’ve explored many different treatment options, and although it improves for a short time, the symptoms seem to return.
Recurring neck pain is rarely caused by a single factor. Instead, it is often influenced by a combination of movement habits, muscle conditioning, stress, workload, sleep quality, and general health. One factor that is increasingly being recognised, but is still frequently overlooked, is breathing.
What Does Breathing Have to Do With Neck Pain?
At first glance, breathing and neck pain might seem unrelated.
However, the muscles involved in breathing and the muscles commonly associated with neck pain are often closely connected. When breathing is efficient, the diaphragm does most of the work. The neck and upper chest muscles contribute when required, such as during exercise or periods of increased respiratory demand.
However, some people develop breathing patterns that rely more heavily on the muscles of the neck and shoulders. When this occurs, muscles such as the scalenes, sternocleidomastoid, and upper trapezius may become more active than they need to be.
Over time, this can contribute to:
- Neck and shoulder tension
- Upper back tightness
- Headaches
- Jaw tension
- A feeling of muscular fatigue or stiffness
This doesn’t mean breathing is necessarily the cause of the pain, but it may be one of several factors influencing it.
Breathing Patterns Can Change
Breathing patterns are not fixed.
They can be influenced by:
- Stress and anxiety
- Pain
- Injury
- Illness
- Poor sleep
- Sedentary work
- Reduced physical activity
- Habitual posture and movement patterns
Sometimes these changes are temporary. Sometimes they become persistent and continue long after the original trigger has resolved.
Why Assessment Matters
Breathing has become a popular topic in health and wellness, with countless breathing techniques available online.
However, before introducing breathing exercises, it can be helpful to understand how a person is breathing in the first place. Not everyone with neck pain has a breathing dysfunction. Likewise, not everyone who breathes inefficiently experiences neck pain.
This is why an assessment is important. Understanding whether breathing is contributing to symptoms allows treatment to be more targeted and individualised.
Could Breathing Be Relevant to You?
If your neck pain tends to recur despite appropriate treatment, or if it is accompanied by symptoms such as persistent shoulder tension, upper chest tightness, frequent sighing or yawning, headaches, or stress-related muscle tension, it may be worth discussing breathing as part of your assessment.
While breathing is rarely the whole story, it is sometimes a factor that has never been explored. At Bespoke Physiotherapy we offer Breathing Consultations where we test and measure your breathing techniques and assess how we can help you. Book in now if you feel this could help.