Why your neck won’t release (Hint: It’s your breathing)

I’ve recently had several patients with chronic, severe neck pain that just won’t respond to the normal manual therapy and adjustments.

They have stiffness, pain, limited range of motion, and often secondary symptoms like peripheral neuropathy in the arms and hands, dizziness and even brain fog.

What all of these patients have in common, is a high level of stress and dysfunctional breathing patterns.

It is common to see someone with high stress (trauma history, high performer, over exerciser) who has deeply grooved breathing dysfunction.

Here is a quick self-assessment you can do at home:

Stand in front of the mirror and take a few deep breaths. What do you see?

• Are your shoulders hiking up?

• Are the muscles of your neck engaging and releasing?

• Is the rib cage lifting exageratedly?

• Is there puckering of the skin around your throat and collare bone?

If so, you are likely a neck breather.

This is to be expected when you are working out intensively and struggling for every extra ounce of breath.

But with periods of chronic stress, our bodies will literally remodel and lock in this breathing pattern.

When this happens, the neck CANNOT release. It has become a primary driver of breathing. We can stretch, adjust, scrape, cup, and laser, but the neck is not going to give up when it has been tasked with breathing, one the most important job in the body!

The root cause treatment in this case is to restore proper breathing mechanics. We need to address the diaphragm, rib cage dynamics, accessory breathing muscles, core stability, stress management, posture and more.

Honestly, I find dysfunctional breathing pattens to be the root cause of most musculoskeletal problems.

Try This:

Place your hands on the side above your waste on your lower ribs. Press in firmly. Take a deep breath and try to feel the ribs expanding side to side rather than forward and back. As you exhale, try to exhale from this place. Feel the diaphragm ascending. Completely empty your lungs.

Do you notice the neck muscles engaging less as you take your attention to your lower rib cage? You may have to experiment and work at not engaging the neck.

It will take some work, and it is challenging because these patterns are subtle and hard to unwind. But it is worth the effort.

In the long run, training proper breathing mechanics will make your breathing more efficient increasing athletic performance, decreasing pain and suffering, and turning off that chronically tight neck and shoulder.

Our breath is also the most efficient stress management and self- regulation tool we have. One is wise to understand it deeply.

If you feel like this is describing you and are interested in learning more about restoring functional breathing patterns, please reach out or come in for a breath focused session!

In Health and Service,
Dr. Peter Leopold