What causes neck pain and can chiropractic fix it?
Neck pain
Most neck pain comes from the middle joints of the neck locking up, often from hours at a desk or on a phone. When those joints stop moving, the muscles around them tighten and the pain spreads into the shoulders and head. Adjusting the joint releases the whole pattern.
What it usually looks like
- Trouble turning your head one way
- Tightness across the shoulders
- Headaches at the base of the skull
- Pain that started at a desk
How Dr. Frank treats it
Gentle, specific adjustments to the segments that are actually stuck. Drop table if you would rather not be popped.
Why it happens
What causes neck pain
Screens and forward head posture
For every inch your head sits forward of your shoulders, the neck carries roughly ten extra pounds. A day at a laptop or a phone adds up to hours of that load, and the joints at the base of the neck and the top of the shoulders pay for it.
A joint that locked
The classic "I slept wrong" neck is one facet joint that stopped gliding, with the muscles around it in spasm. It hurts to turn one way and feels fine the other. This is the fastest kind of neck pain to fix.
Old whiplash and wear
A crash from years ago, a fall, or simply age can leave joints that move less and discs that are thinner. The result is a neck that is stiff in the morning and aches by evening, and headaches that start at the skull base.
What to expect
Visit one, and how long it takes
Your first visit
Dr. Frank checks how far and how smoothly your neck turns, which joints are stuck, and whether the nerves to your arms are involved. He asks about your desk, your pillow, and your commute, because that is usually where the fix lives. If it is safe, you are adjusted the same day, and most people turn their head further on the way out than on the way in.
How many visits
A locked joint often improves in 1 to 3 visits. Posture-driven neck pain takes 4 to 6 visits plus the changes at your desk that keep it from returning. Neck pain with arm symptoms takes longer and gets a plan mapped out before you start.
When it is not a chiropractic problem
See a medical doctor first if you have
- Neck pain with fever, or a stiff neck you cannot bend forward at all
- Numbness or weakness in both arms, or in the legs
- Sudden severe headache with the neck pain, or pain after a fall or crash with any confusion
Dr. Frank screens for every one of these on visit one and refers out when he finds them. If any of them is happening right now, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
Questions
About neck pain
Is it safe to have your neck adjusted?
Yes. Dr. Frank has been adjusting necks for Central Florida patients since 2009. He examines first, and if a manual adjustment is not right for you he uses a gentler technique instead.
Why does my neck pain give me headaches?
The top neck joints share nerve pathways with the back of the head. Restore motion there and the headaches usually go with it.
Is neck cracking dangerous?
A properly examined and delivered cervical adjustment has a very low risk. Dr. Frank screens for the rare conditions where it is not appropriate and uses gentler techniques when it is not. Cracking your own neck repeatedly is a different story: it loosens what is already loose and skips what is stuck.
What pillow should I use?
One that keeps your neck level with your spine when you lie on your side, and lower when you sleep on your back. Dr. Frank will tell you which you are and what to look for.
Can neck pain cause headaches?
Yes. The joints at the top of the neck refer pain into the back of the head and behind the eyes. If your headaches start at the skull base and get worse with a long day at a desk, they are probably coming from the neck.
The patient and any other person responsible for payment has a right to refuse to pay, cancel payment, or be reimbursed for payment for any other service, examination, or treatment that is performed as a result of and within 72 hours of responding to the advertisement for the free, discounted fee, or reduced fee service, examination, or treatment.
Reviewed by Dr. Frank Comparetti, D.C. Last updated September 28, 2026.
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