Today I woke up with a feeling that is becoming all too familiar. I feel as though I have strained the left side of my trapezius muscle. I have pain from my neck, just below my hair, down to around shoulder level, and outward from the center of my body towards my left shoulder. I can turn my head right with no problems, but I can only turn my head left around half way. Tilting my head back and looking up hurts. Tilting my head DOWN and looking down hurts. This is starting to happen around once a month to every 6 weeks. It usually lasts 2-3 days with it coming on very sharply (Like today. Yesterday I had no pain, today I woke up with a heap of it) and dissipates day by day. I’m not even sure what caused it. I went for an easy 6k run yesterday. That’s it! I thought it could be caused by swimming, but my last swim was Thursday, and I woke up with pain Sunday morning. Usually I would just write it off to sleeping with too many pillows or something but I’m wondering if it’s something else?
When I swim, I try to breathe bi-laterally, but when the set heats up and I start working hard, I usually default to breathing to my left. Maybe I’m lifting my head too much when I breathe, or not rotating my body enough? Also, I am a carpenter, and I am right handed, so the muscles on my right side are probably more developed from daily use of hammers, heavy tools, etc. However, I do strength train, and I haven’t really noticed my left side failing first when doing movements with dumb bells or anything.
Does anyone else suffer with this issue? I hate having to constantly deal with this as it effects my work, general happiness, and most importantly, my training! =)
Today I woke up with a feeling that is becoming all too familiar. I feel as though I have strained the left side of my trapezius muscle. I have pain from my neck, just below my hair, down to around shoulder level, and outward from the center of my body towards my left shoulder. I can turn my head right with no problems, but I can only turn my head left around half way. Tilting my head back and looking up hurts. Tilting my head DOWN and looking down hurts. This is starting to happen around once a month to every 6 weeks. It usually lasts 2-3 days with it coming on very sharply (Like today. Yesterday I had no pain, today I woke up with a heap of it) and dissipates day by day. I’m not even sure what caused it. I went for an easy 6k run yesterday. That’s it! I thought it could be caused by swimming, but my last swim was Thursday, and I woke up with pain Sunday morning. Usually I would just write it off to sleeping with too many pillows or something but I’m wondering if it’s something else?
When I swim, I try to breathe bi-laterally, but when the set heats up and I start working hard, I usually default to breathing to my left. Maybe I’m lifting my head too much when I breathe, or not rotating my body enough? Also, I am a carpenter, and I am right handed, so the muscles on my right side are probably more developed from daily use of hammers, heavy tools, etc. However, I do strength train, and I haven’t really noticed my left side failing first when doing movements with dumb bells or anything.
Does anyone else suffer with this issue? I hate having to constantly deal with this as it effects my work, general happiness, and most importantly, my training! =)
I have had something very similar. I think mine was caused by cycling. Something to do with a low position causing strain holding the head up? Since I gave up cycling I have been free rom it. i never had it before I started cycling. That might be coincidence and my neck pain might not be the same as yours anyway.
Think my doctor called it frozen neck. It would start in the morning and last 3 or 4 days, very painful. See doctor, I was given some very strong pain killers and a muscle relaxant which worked.
I’ve had the exact same symptoms, for me it turned out to be a disc issue after an MRI was taken. YMMV. It took six months to go away, eventually had to sit upright on the bike or it was too painful to consider saddle time for a long time, also the tiniest bump in the road caused excruciating pain.
Yeah I do for sure. With all the whiplash, crashes, colossal hockey hits, and the dang waterskiing my neck was in a world of hurt. Problems after sleeping ( to me) point to internal tension from RSI or other injuries not properly re-habbed.
Swinging a hammer right handed, or working a Skil saw etc, I would classify as asymmetrical activity.
The neck is a tough one to get at because of the angles. Here’s how I have done it:
Ball roll against the wall back of shoulders as high as I can go (this one hurt!)
Foam roll mid-upper back, in swim streamline " "
I rigged up a water ski handle, foamed up so I could work the left side of the my neck at the junction.
I was really tight up front, so dropping my head back (mouth gently closed) has really helped. But stretching the neck in all directions is a must do.
Finally I designed a neck collar or “koozie” originally for hockey (as a skate cut guard as well). Turns out that the koozie is awesome so I use it daily for cycling. I am amazed at how much the neck moves and works during cycling. The Koozie supports the neck and for the winter keeps me warm too! It’s heat molded & fits perfectly. It also protects against hyper-extension in the event of a crash, something I unfortunately tested last month when I hit the deck.
I had this happen to me years ago (over 20) and I started going to a chiropracter. X-rays showed my neck canted over at a pretty good angle. She crack-snapped my neck and sent me home with instructions to return 2-3x week until it was better. I left thinking, ‘wait a minute, she never asked how this happened…’
That night, I lay in bed reading, with my head propped up on my hand, braced up my elbow with basically my entire body weight straining against my neck and I decided I had figured it out. Now I read on my back with a couple pillows and it has never returned.
I still sleep mostly on my side, so I didn’t have to totally change the way I sleep. Hope you feel better,
As others have said above, you may well have a muscle imbalance as the root of this problem. My recent n=1 experience showed that my lower rotator cuff / rhomboids weren’t doing their jobs, so my trapezius had started to do too much. In my case symptoms included shoulder impingement, but I’ve had symptoms of tight/sore/uncomfortable trapezius muscle(s) as well. In your case, BCtriguy1, it may be worth visiting a PT to determine if you need to spend some time doing rehab exercises to help recover such muscle balance.
…but, quite frankly, it sounds like changing your sleep habits is cheaper, easier, and faster.