Why do athletes get neck pain?

If there are problems in the cervical spine, this will inevitably worsen your reaction to stressful events. Why does this happen? The blood supply to the brain directly depends on its condition. The neck is the “conductor” that connects the head with the rest of the body in the most literal sense.

Blood flow in it is often disrupted: it is insufficient or asymmetrical (when the vessels are pinched on one side and one half of the brain does not receive enough oxygen and nutrients, and the other is “overfed” with both). If such clamps appear, this first causes chronic hypoxia (oxygen starvation of the brain), and then changes at the anatomical and physiological level in the brain tissue. Naturally, if your brain exists in a state of chronic deficits, it will not be able to withstand stress normally.

The most obvious reasons are old injuries (including those received at birth and worsened with age), curvature of the spine, prolonged sitting motionless at a computer, desk, or driving a car. A less obvious reason is chronic stress, when you involuntarily seem to “squeeze” your neck into your shoulders. On the one hand, you seem to want to become smaller, on the other hand, you tense your muscles, as if trying to create a muscular armor and fence yourself off from the attacks of the outside world. It turns out to be a vicious circle – your neck is tense because you are stressed, and because of the tension, a clamp is formed and blood flow worsens, which, in turn, aggravates the experience.

Stress can also be provoked by work. Complex tasks, psychological stress, fatigue, irregular hours, lack of sleep and rest, sitting at the computer for a long time in a motionless position – all this creates a favorable environment for stress. In the modern world, it is difficult to give up gadgets, especially at work. But it is in your power to adapt to the conditions and create a comfortable environment for yourself. You can also use techniques to reduce muscle tone in the neck.