5 Tips for Neck and Shoulder Care Between Massage Appointments

People with neck and shoulder issues often have their pain return before their next massage appointment. Work, play and children all make demands on the body. A dull ache can quickly turn into a burning pain especially while doing household chores, yard work, playing on the computer or any of the other million things you do in a day.

What can you do between massage therapy treatments to help take the edge off your neck and shoulder pain? Here are some ideas.

1) Take a Break

Take short breaks as often as possible if your job requires you to sit at a computer all day. Move your neck and shoulders around and get your stretch on. Ideally, get up and move around a bit. But even if you’re chained to the desk, you can squeeze in a little Deskercise into your day to stay loose.

2) Involve the kids

Have a short yoga break together! There are plenty of videos made specifically for kids, and the yoga poses are just as beneficial for adults. Bonus: you can spend some quality time with the kids and do something good for yourself at the same time.

3) Heat it

Just 10-15 minutes of heat on your shoulders can make a huge difference in how your tissue moves and feels. You don’t need a fancy heating pad, you can DIY that.

4) Self-massage

Try it! It feels great and you might be surprised how much it helps! It’s not complicated, just grab a tennis ball or lacross ball and check out these techniques.

5) Choose the right pillow

You spend about a third of your time in bed, so be sure it’s comfortable for your neck. Side-sleepers, back-sleepers and stomach sleepers all have different needs. The right pillow at night can make a huge difference and help you feel better the next day.

A few minutes of self care every day, little changes, can make a huge difference in how you feel.

See you at your next appointment 🙂