Weightlifting and neck sprain

[ugarza]

I was lifting weights to work on my shoulders, but after doing some heavy frontal raises, I kind of felt a little pain in my neck. I did more shoulder (different) exercises and finished after 15 more minutes, but by the time I went to bed, I had quite a bit of pain in my neck. I was able to sleep, only with minor problems turning from side to side.
The pain I feel is not in my neck muscles, but in the center of my neck. I can turn from side to side without much problem. I feel a little more pain when I try to touch my chin to my chest or backwards. I know I'm going to have to rest for a couple of days, but what therapy can I follow at home to get better? Cold pads on my neck, antiinflamatory pills?
Could this be a simple sprain? or something more serious?

Thank you.

[UnregisteredRobin]

I was lifting weights to work on my shoulders, but after doing some heavy frontal raises, I kind of felt a little pain in my neck. I did more shoulder (different) exercises and finished after 15 more minutes, but by the time I went to bed, I had quite a bit of pain in my neck. I was able to sleep, only with minor problems turning from side to side.
The pain I feel is not in my neck muscles, but in the center of my neck. I can turn from side to side without much problem. I feel a little more pain when I try to touch my chin to my chest or backwards. I know I'm going to have to rest for a couple of days, but what therapy can I follow at home to get better? Cold pads on my neck, antiinflamatory pills?
Could this be a simple sprain? or something more serious?

Thank you.
This sounds like what has happened to me. Do you have any suggestions or help?

[Help]

Hi there,

How did this turn out for you in the end? Did your condition heal itself?

I don't mean to scare you, but I had something similar happen to me and it turned out to be more serious than expected. I was doing lat pulldowns and felt a twinge around the inside border of my left shoulderblade (also known as interscapluar region). A mild pain persisted for about a week and then it really flared up. Turned out that I had managed to damage a disc in my neck - a disc protrusion which pushed on a nerve root.

This was almost 7 weeks ago and I have visited a couple of neurosurgeons, physios etc. The situation may or may not require surgery which is very scary.

My message is: get it checked out properly - especially if you feel it again. I never would have imagined a disc in my neck would refer pain in this way.

[Nicholas]

Sounds frightning. A way to find out would be to get an XRay.

[spot356]

Last night I had a similar injury. Was doing shrugs in the Smith machine, 325 lbs (this isnt too heavy for me), I had a very sudden pain and heard a "pop" right in the middle of the back of my neck, where there is a bony protrusion. I've never had a neck injury before, but I'm afraid this is a disc injury. The whole back of my neck area was very sore last night, and it still sore today. Heading to a doc on Friday.

[KingDavid5000]

I have the same problem doing barbell shrug 315 lbs for 10 times. Right now and its been 5 weeks and it healed minorly by puttin some ice on my neck and feel the bony part painful. I'm scared that i might get surgery or what because i don't wanna have surgery. Will it eventually heal by putting some towel at night and ice in afternoon?

[He4dsp1n]

About 12 months ago, I was performing an overhead press exercise to strengthen the shoulders and I too suffered the same symptoms ugarza did. The condition did not improve, it only got worse until about 3 months ago I decided to see my doctor and he referred me to see a physio.

By this time I was experiencing muscle spasms and loss of strength in my right arm to the point i couldn't carry anything in my right hand. The pain came and went over a period of a couple of weeks at a time.

Turns out that between the C7 and T1 (the base of the neck) there is a nerve that branches out and runs down the arm. This nerve is contained in a protective sheath that enables the nerve to move freely inside while performing movements. This sheath became damaged at the point where it joins the neck (overstressed), when I was performing the overhead press.

Since then I have been going to the physio sometimes twice a week, or at least once, for the past 3 months. He has given me nerve stretching exercises which I thoroughly recommend. I had xrays, and a scan and there was no damage to the discs in the area as first suspected. Its not an obvious injury if xrays and scans come back negative, but it is a common one, associated with lifting overhead.

So my advice is this:
1. Stretch and warm up properly, include nerve stretches for the neck shoulder arm area (see a physio, it is well worth it)
2. Maintain correct posture at all times, being a hero and lifting more than you can manage and sacrificing posture is not worth it.
3. Stretch at the end (we all forget this one)
4. If you do injure yourself, dont wait until it gets better by itself - like in my case, it never did, it got worse.

And you will enjoy exercise and sport with a lot less injuries.

Ed.

[PhysioAdvisor]

Hi guys,

Disc bulges in the neck are a relatively common injury that are seen in clinical pratise and certainly may be a result of overhead lifting activities (particularly with the head down or in poor posture - ie. slouching). Whilst a small percentage of these injuries are serious and may require surgical intervention, the vast majority can make a full recovery with appropriate physiotherapy treatment (so do not worry unneccesarily).

If you have a neck injury, it is definitely worth seeing a physiotherapist to get it properly assessed and treated and to prevent it turning into a serious condition. Check out the following link which has detailed information about disc bulges in the neck (cervical disc bulges):

Cervical Disc Bulge (http://www.physioadvisor.com.au/8043050/cervical-disc-bulge-cervical-disc-herniation-p.htm)

Also for your information, a X-ray will not show a bulging disc. A CT scan or MRI is usually required to show a bulging disc. However, some patients who have a bulging disc based on a clinical examination may have a normal CT or MRI scan, as the disc can 'go back into position' whilst lying therefore giving a normal result.

Hope that helps and good luck,

[DavidA]

About 12 months ago, I was performing an overhead press exercise to strengthen the shoulders and I too suffered the same symptoms ugarza did. The condition did not improve, it only got worse until about 3 months ago I decided to see my doctor and he referred me to see a physio.

By this time I was experiencing muscle spasms and loss of strength in my right arm to the point i couldn't carry anything in my right hand. The pain came and went over a period of a couple of weeks at a time.


Ed.

I have the exact same symptoms, except on my left side. I started seeing a chiropractor since they specialize in the spine and nervous system and have been adjusted twice so far. I have noticed my grip strength returning in my left hand but still occasional get that annoying pain in the back/shoulder region. I'm going to give it a few weeks to see if the adjustments are indeed working.

[nikkolas]

This is common injury.. Ice and Advil cures all :)

[D.Query]

Hey dennyt, I was wanting to know how you are doing now, as well as the treatments after radiation. I am just starting my fifth week of radiation and I am hoping that this will all pass soon. Please let me know how you are doing as well as any other information you have for me.

Thanks in advance,

Dramkaran