Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria, IL
  • home
  • services
    • activator methods
    • webster technique
    • spinal decompression
    • consultations
    • x-ray
    • other therapies
  • conditions
    • headaches >
      • migraines
    • neck pain >
      • jaw pain
      • pinched nerve
      • text neck
      • torticollis
      • upper crossed syndrome
      • whiplash >
        • car accident
    • arm pain >
      • shoulder pain
      • elbow pain
      • wrist & hand pain
    • back pain >
      • low back pain
      • mid back pain
      • disc problems >
        • degenerative disc disease
        • disc herniation
      • scoliosis
    • hip pain >
      • piriformis syndrome
    • leg pain >
      • sciatica
      • knee pain
      • foot & ankle pain >
        • plantar fasciitis
        • sprained ankle
    • women's health >
      • back pain during pregnancy
      • fibromyalgia
    • children's health >
      • ear infections
      • chronic strep throat
      • congenital torticollis
    • other conditions >
      • asthma
      • Diarrhea
      • high blood pressure
  • what to expect
    • what is chiropractic?
    • insurance
    • download forms
    • for medical doctors
    • links
  • hours
  • find us
    • locate us
    • contact us
  • about us
    • meet the doctor
    • FAQ
    • patient testimonials
  • blog

Peoria. Health. Blog.

The Towel Roll

2/10/2011

3 Comments

 
Working on a computer can force you to sit in unnatural postures, causing headaches, neck pain, and back pain.
The people in this picture are busily and happily productive. Their laptop computers enable them to work in their bathrobes and provide instant worldwide communication from their kitchen table.

But there's a semi-sinister undertone to this picture. The well-trained eye of a health professional immediately spots what is called "anterior head carriage". In order to see their computer screens, these folks have pushed their heads forward from their bodies. The muscles in the back of their neck are working overtime to keep their heads from tumbling into their laps, and the muscles in the front of their necks are being used incorrectly. Their shoulders are rounded forward, out of normal postural alignment. And, even worse, the normal backwards "C" shaped curve in the neck has been straightened out into a diagonal line.

Hours of consistent computer use will lock the neck and shoulders into unnatural positions, putting strain and stress on back, neck, and shoulder muscles, straightening the cervical curve, and causing inflammation to impact and influence the nerves in the cervical spine. All of these anatomical anomalies can cause tension headaches, cervicogenic headaches, neck pain, shoulder pain and tightness, and more.

Here's an easy way to relax those muscles and help restore a natural curve to your neck. It's called The Towel Roll, and you can do it yourself, at home, for free.

Begin by rolling up a household towel.

A rolled towel for neck and headache relief.
Lay on your back on the floor or another hard surface (not your soft bed). Place the towel roll under your neck. Make sure that the roll is high enough so that the back of your head doesn't touch the ground. This allows gravity to work on restoring your cervical curve.
How to lay on the rolled towel for neck and headache relief.
To intensify the stretch across your chest and tired shoulder muscles, spread your arms to the sides, with your hands above your head.
When lying on the rolled towel for neck and headache relief, spread your arms, palms up.
This is a fabulous stretch for chest muscles. However, nerves and blood vessels in your shoulders might become impinged by tight chest muscles, causing your hands or fingers to tingle or go numb. If this occurs, simply lower your arm angle slightly.
When lying on the rolled towel for neck and headache relief, lower your arms if your fingers begin to tingle.
This simple stretch is best done in the 15 minutes prior to bedtime, but, as already mentioned, don't do it on the bed. This is a good time to listen to soothing music, podcasts, or books on tape. Be careful not to fall asleep on the floor, however, or you'll find yourself mighty sore in the morning.

Easy. Peaceful. Free. Does it get any better?
3 Comments
Daniel Bockmann, DC link
2/19/2011 04:46:01 am

Fantastic article, great photos, wonderful site and very useful Chiropractic information! I'm going to recommend the "towel roll" to my patients!

Sincerely,

Daniel Bockmann, DC
<a href="http://austinspineandsport.com">chiropractor-austin-tx</a>

Reply
shawn jonas link
6/19/2013 02:03:24 pm

does the towel roll really work on your patients ,and does it eventually align your neck to your back to your normal curve.

Reply
Dr. Johnson link
6/21/2013 03:58:19 am

Shawn, my patients have reported wonderful success with the towel roll, though it does require some dedication. Although nothing beats active care for curvature problems, prolonged passive care like the towel roll does have a functional effect. That is, patients who do the towel roll do, over time, regain functions that they had lost, such as turning or flexing their head fully without pain. I haven't performed a study to identify if the cervical curve itself is altered by the stretch, nor how long that would take, but a multidisciplinary approach is usually required for a curve alteration to take place: ongoing exercises, active care, physical therapy, and chiropractic care.

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    RSS Feed


    Categories

    All
    Activator Methods
    Anatomy Academy
    Ask The Doctor
    In The News
    Peoria & Illinois
    Research Roundup
    Testimonials
    Tips And Tricks
    Webster Technique
    X Y Z

    Disclaimer

    Unless otherwise attributed, all content is written by Kyle Johnson, DC, of Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria.

    All images used are under Creative Commons license.

    Although every effort has been made to provide an accurate description of our chiropractic care and its benefits, the information given on this website and blog is not intended to be, nor should it be interpreted as, medical advice for any condition.

    If you have any questions regarding your condition, you should seek the help of Dr. Johnson in person, so that he may properly assess your condition.

    This blog is provided by Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria, PC, proudly located in Peoria, IL.
Activator Methods  |  Webster Technique  |  Testimonials  |  Meet Dr. Johnson  |  Blog  |  Contact Us  |  ©2018 Johnson Family Chiropractic of Peoria
3227 N. Prospect Rd.
Peoria, IL  61603
(309) 688-8773

Google+
Photos used under Creative Commons from CircaSassy, Looking Glass, Mykl Roventine, ivoryelephantphotography, SantaRosa OLD SKOOL, MasonJars, foodswings, The U.S. Army, Tobyotter, ElvertBarnes, cliff1066™, ttarasiuk, laura dye, Herkie, Inha Leex Hale, geishaboy500, Sunfox, visual.dichotomy, lewing, Claus Rebler, h.koppdelaney, Donnaphoto, kevindooley, gordontarpley, majcher, ThrasherDave, Ivy Dawned, a loves dc, greatlettuce, goosmurf, timsamoff, landhere, Robert Couse-Baker, Pop Top Lady, bradkeb, tuchodi, Marco Bellucci, Polygon Medical Animation, Shane's Stuff, paul bica, Tambako the Jaguar, Emery Co Photo, erix!, OregonDOT, Helga's Lobster Stew, Amy Wilbanks Photography *prev. SymaSees*, vmiramontes, adactio, Kimberly*, lissalou66, eperales, CLCsPics, B Rosen, everyone's idle, chispita_666, miggslives, All-seeing Angler., brains the head, n0nick, dougtone, ruurmo, sunshinecity, CarbonNYC, no lurvin here., Näystin, Neticola - Raúl A., okalkavan, Ateo Fiel, bengrey, mahalie, JerrytheSaint, billaday, dearoot, quinn.anya, Mark Wooten, Andreanna Moya Photography, Mitya Kuznetsov, owlpacino, Vince Alongi, avinashkunnath, wolfpix, thesearenotpolaroids, Life Mental Health, Bolshakov, j.clark, Redcorn Studios [Matt], hoyasmeg, abardwell, Rodrigo Basaure, scazon, Dave Sizer, maessive, lrargerich, alisdair, Shardayyy, Base Camp Baker, h.koppdelaney
  • home
  • services
    • activator methods
    • webster technique
    • spinal decompression
    • consultations
    • x-ray
    • other therapies
  • conditions
    • headaches >
      • migraines
    • neck pain >
      • jaw pain
      • pinched nerve
      • text neck
      • torticollis
      • upper crossed syndrome
      • whiplash >
        • car accident
    • arm pain >
      • shoulder pain
      • elbow pain
      • wrist & hand pain
    • back pain >
      • low back pain
      • mid back pain
      • disc problems >
        • degenerative disc disease
        • disc herniation
      • scoliosis
    • hip pain >
      • piriformis syndrome
    • leg pain >
      • sciatica
      • knee pain
      • foot & ankle pain >
        • plantar fasciitis
        • sprained ankle
    • women's health >
      • back pain during pregnancy
      • fibromyalgia
    • children's health >
      • ear infections
      • chronic strep throat
      • congenital torticollis
    • other conditions >
      • asthma
      • Diarrhea
      • high blood pressure
  • what to expect
    • what is chiropractic?
    • insurance
    • download forms
    • for medical doctors
    • links
  • hours
  • find us
    • locate us
    • contact us
  • about us
    • meet the doctor
    • FAQ
    • patient testimonials
  • blog