What is the best complementary treatment for neck, shoulder, and knee problems?

Question

I am 38 years old, for years I have had chronic stiffness and strain in my neck, if I try to move it. Also, I have had aching and straining in my knees whilst walking up stairs or up hills. When I wake up in the morning I feel about 90! Massage does not seem to help.

Answer 1

Chiropractic or osteopathic treatment where they manipulate your spine would hopefully correct any misalignments which cause referred pain such as you describe. Also your matress may not be suitable as you say you feel ancient when you wake up! Look for an orthopaedic matress as too soft or too hard beds put plenty of cricks in all sort of places.

Also taking a supplement with chondrotin and glucosamine will help keep joints supple if there was any underlying arthritic causes.

These have both worked for me anyway!!

Answer 2

You should start stretching every morning when you wake up. Dedicate at least 15 minutes to stretching. After the first week, start using lightweight dumbbells in addition to your stretching. Buy a cheap 70cm workout ball and use this for shoulder presses with the dumbbells. You will notice an improvement in the next couple of weeks. As for the knee problems, try to perform standing squats (without weight) with feet shoulder width apart. You should feel 38 again very soon.

You should also add a joint supplement to your regimen. I read about a product that actually helped a guy with a severe bulging disk and many others with other types of joint issues. It's an all natural product, not a prescription drug. In the newspaper writeup they said you could get it at http://www.healthypainfreelife.com . I can't vouch for this product because I have not tried it, but they seem to have many happy customers.

Answer 3

There is a host of possibilities to cover this description and all of them need specialized help to diagnose and/or attend.

One step that you can do for yourself, and I would highly recommend you do it, is to buy a softer pillow and a firmer mattress.

Pillows are hugely misunderstood, yet they play a massive part in our lives, as we are with them 6 to 8 hours every day. Some people sleep only on their sides, and need a firm pillow, while other sleep only on back or stomach, and should use only a pillow that has barely any loft. Others mix their sleep positions and need something soft but substantial enough to permit its being bunched or flattened to suit all sleep positions.

What you need is to maintain the normal position of your head relative to the body, whether lying on your back or side. Having the head pushed up too far, or allowed to drop too low, is a direct cause of neck strain, and thus neck pain.


A great many people sleep on pillows that are too hard or have too high a loft. They may be fine while lying on your side, but they force your neck into an unnatural position for hours at a time when you are lying on your back or stomach and this causes pain for many people. Pillows need not be expensive, and you can try a few to find the one that best suits your body and sleep position.

A hard mattress works for some people, but not all, and a soft one is almost invariably bad news if you have existing back pain.

A good compromise may be a firm mattress equipped with a pillow-top, as this combination gives support to curves in your body while providing a substantial base for the body weight.

A mattress built with individual coils also helps if you share the bed with someone else, as these allow each of you to be supported separately.

Excepting the knees, I have a history of concerns similar to yours and after getting a mattress that incorporates all of the above, coupled with the correct pillow for me, the incidence of back and neck pains has been very substantially reduced.

Answer 4

Go to your Doctor and ask for the Physiotherapy Direct telephone number. Call it and speak direct with a QUALIFIED PRACTITIONER that has been properly trained in all aspects of muscle, cartilage and joint pain. They will help you on the phone and it will cost you nothing. You will be given an appointment and then a proper check will be made on you. If they cannot help they will refer you to the appropriate consultant. All this will cost nothing but it is the safest and best route to follow.

Answer 5

it somewhat is rather achieveable your neck and shoulder issues could reason head subject concerns. whilst interpreting x-rays a superb style of docs do no longer pay lots interest to misalignment, they're searching for pathology like tumors, breaks, etc... i could see a chiropractor or osteopath to handle those subject concerns. contained in the recommend time, paintings on recuperating posture an spinal alignment.

Answer 6

See Pain Management doctor in your area.

Answer 7

try psysio therapy. they found which muscle is damaged or out of sync. and give you exercises to do to unlock the muscles. I was referred by my doctor and so got physio for free. (In England). good luck.

Answer 8

Try acupuncture, it is excellent for all those areas