Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine can ruin a person’s life. The result of its progression is a sharp and painful pain in the neck, shoulder blades, and collarbone. Frequent squeezing of the spinal canal and constriction of the veins lead to headaches, migraines and disorders of neck mobility. Treating the disease at home requires an integrated approach because it is not so easy to get rid of cervical osteochondrosis.
Why the disease occurs: basic prerequisites
Osteochondrosis is accompanied by degenerative changes in the joints of the vertebrae of the cervical spine. Due to osteochondrosis, the joints wear out faster, they lose mobility, and bone growths are formed on the body of the cervical vertebrae, which consist of salts - osteophytes. As a result, pinching of nerves and blood vessels, narrowing of the spinal canal, destruction of joints, protrusions of the vertebrae with the appearance of intervertebral hernias develop.
Inpatient and home treatment of osteochondrosis begins with determining the cause of the disease and removing it. These can be:
- Lack of physical activity.
- Sedentary lifestyle.
- Uneven load distribution on the muscles of the cervical spine.
- Abuse of harmful (salty, fatty, fried, smoked) food.
- Metabolic disorders due to chronic diseases.
- Scoliotic back deformity.
The specialist will be able to accurately determine the cause of osteochondrosis after collecting a history of the disease.
How cervical osteochondrosis manifests: first signs
A list of early symptoms of the disease will help identify the development of cervical osteochondrosis at home:
- Reduced performance.
- Discomfort in the neck when turning the head.
- Restrict the movement of the door to one side.
- Characteristic crunch when turning the door.
- Frequent headaches.
- Painful and cramping pains in the muscles of the neck.
As the disease progresses, the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis increase:
- Pain occurs at rest.
- Shoots are felt in the area of the scapula and clavicle.
- Bringing the door forward or backward becomes difficult.
- Dizziness occurs due to cerebral hypoxia.
In the absence of appropriate treatment, progression of osteochondrosis symptoms is observed:
- Numbness of the tongue occurs.
- Upper limb sensitivity is impaired.
- Paresthesias of the hands occur.
- The mobility of the door is completely lost.
The appearance of the first signs of cervical osteochondrosis requires urgent medical help in order to establish an accurate diagnosis and choose treatment tactics. The patient can observe this at home.
Diagnostic Basics: Who to Contact
If osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is suspected at home, a neurologist, orthopedist or vertebrologist should be contacted. Examination and confirmation of the diagnosis of "osteochondrosis" occurs after:
- Taking medical history. The doctor will learn all the details about the patient’s lifestyle.
- Internal and palpation examination. The degree of pain and movement disorders of the vertebrae, the presence of tissue edema and the preservation of their sensitivity are determined.
- Conducting diagnostic studies. These include X-rays of the spine. If necessary, magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography is performed to assess the condition of the cervical spine joints, confirm or refute the formation of hernias.
During the examination, the doctor will make a diagnosis and offer the patient a series of measures to treat the disease at home.
How to treat osteochondrosis of the cervical spine at home
Early diagnosis, proper choice of treatment and responsible attitude of the patient towards therapy, cervical and thoracic osteochondrosis can be successfully treated at home.
The main home treatment measures are aimed at eliminating the causes of cervical osteochondrosis:
- With physical inactivity, a gradual increase in physical activity at home has been shown. When you sit at a desk or computer for a long time, frequent breaks are prescribed, which implies physical activity.
- In case of posture disorders and uneven loading of the cervical muscles, special fixators, correctors and corsets are used to ensure a symmetrical body position.
- In case of overweight and improper diet, appropriate adjustments are made to the patient's lifestyle and diet is prescribed.
- Cervical osteochondrosis caused by metabolic disorders in the background of chronic diseases is removed by treatment of the underlying disease.
The main treatment at home is strict adherence to medical prescriptions for taking medications - nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, muscle relaxants, chondroprotectors. The patient must follow the recommended regimen, clearly maintaining the duration of treatment until the desired result is achieved.
Home treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine involves adjusting the patient's diet and drinking regimen. Prerequisite is the use of two liters of clean water per day, excluding drinks and liquid food. Homemade food for the patient should be nutritious and balanced. The diet should include:
- Sources of fiber for the normalization of metabolic processes: vegetables and fruits in large quantities.
- Sources of polyunsaturated fatty acids to improve metabolism: nuts, vegetable oils, fatty fish.
- Low fat protein sources: poultry, legumes, eggs.
- Sources of calcium and potassium in easily digestible form: cottage cheese, leafy vegetables, dairy products.
Of course, home treatment will have to exclude fatty, fried, smoked, salty foods from the diet.
Home treatment may require visits to specialized inpatient rooms for physiotherapy. You should not ignore them. An electrophoresis session ensures the delivery of medicinal substances directly to the tissues affected by osteochondrosis, which is impossible to achieve at home. Physiotherapy recommended by a doctor should be attended regularly, it is necessary to undergo a comprehensive treatment recommended by a doctor.
In the early stages of home treatment, the patient may be advised to rest in bed until the pain syndrome is eliminated. It is important to consider that bed rest with cervical osteochondrosis can not last longer than 2-3 days. After this period, the patient should gradually become active and increase physical activity, even if all the treatment will take place at home.
For more efficient home treatment of osteochondrosis, the purchase of a special orthopedic pillow is indicated. It is able to effectively relieve the tension of the cervical muscles when the patient is sleeping.
Recipes of traditional medicine
Doctors do not prohibit the combination of drugs at home with the use of means proven by popular experience. Moderation, adherence to safety rules and elimination of the risk of neck skin damage are important conditions.
Natural compresses for cervical osteochondrosis allow you to get rid of painful sensations, and swallowing infusions helps to normalize metabolic processes, removing excess salt deposits from the body. Below are proven folk recipes for home treatment of osteochondrosis of the cervical spine.
Pour a teaspoon of dandelion root into a glass of boiling water. The drug is insisted for 15 minutes, after which it is filtered and taken orally. The tool removes salt deposits.
5 tablespoons of dried nettle leaves are poured over a liter of boiling water. They insist on an hour. After straining, add to the bath. The course of treatment is 2 weeks of daily baths. Some healers recommend overcoming the localization of pain with fresh nettle branches.
Garlic and ginger are mixed in equal proportions. Dilute with vegetable oil to obtain a porridge. Rub the composition into the neck muscles for 20 minutes. The remaining funds are removed with a napkin.
Horseradish leaves are steamed with boiling water for a minute, after which it is applied to the cervical spine. Leave the compress on overnight, warming it with a tissue.
Treatment of osteochondrosis at home only by folk methods is ineffective. It will most likely only be possible to reduce the symptoms, but not to cure the disease. Treatment with folk remedies is best arranged with a doctor.
Massage for cervical osteochondrosis
Comprehensive home treatment for cervical osteochondrosis, recommended by doctors, includes massage. It is better to entrust its implementation to a qualified professional. In the absence of such a possibility, self-massage will help cure osteochondrosis of the neck, which the patient can perform at home at any convenient time. Its main rules:
- The impact on the neck muscles is done with the pads of the fingers, not the palm.
- Movements should be strictly peripheral and also from top to bottom.
- It is forbidden to press and rub the cervical vertebrae too quickly.
- For gentle sliding of the fingers, the massage is performed with oil.
Homemade honey massage helps well against osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. Approximately a teaspoon of honey is rubbed on the surface of the cervical spine and muscles, lightly kneading with your fingers until the honey becomes viscous, after which it is rinsed with warm water.
Medications: we eat and lubricate at home
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis should be chosen by a physician. The whole complex often consists of injections, oral and topical medications.
- Injection forms. They are prescribed to eliminate acute inflammation in the early stages of home treatment. These are chondroprotectors, muscle relaxants, B vitamins. Home use lasts up to 10 days.
- Preparations for internal use. They are the most appropriate way to treat cervical osteochondrosis at home. Anti-inflammatory pain relievers, muscle relaxants, chondroprotectors are prescribed. Treatment with drugs of the latter group is long-term. The minimum course of treatment is 3 months.
- External facilities. These are ointments and gels based on nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs to relieve pain or chondroitin sulfate to speed up cartilage recovery.
At home, complex treatment helps to resolve cervical osteochondrosis much faster than using only one group of drugs. It is almost impossible to cure osteochondrosis of the cervical spine only by external means.
Physiotherapy exercises: principles of application and result
Home therapy for cervical osteochondrosis is based on special exercises for the neck muscles. Exercises are performed according to the following rules:
- The list of exercises and their amplitude is determined by the doctor.
- All exercises are done slowly and slowly to eliminate the risk of injury.
- Do not start gymnastic treatment for acute neck pain.
- The load is gradually increasing.
- Patient regular gymnastics, several times a day, at the same time.
Exercises to treat cervical osteochondrosis are very simple. If you perform them properly at home, they will speed up recovery and help relieve pain. Treatment of the cervical spine with exercise therapy includes:
- Turns the head to the side to the end point.
- Bending the head to the side, back and forth.
- Circular movements of the neck and shoulders.
The gymnastic course lasts until the end of the treatment and complete elimination of symptoms. If the patient continues to do gymnastics, he will be able to prevent a relapse of the disease. Results of home treatment of osteochondrosis with gymnastics:
- Removal of cervical muscle hypertonia.
- Stretching of ligaments.
- Improving vertebral mobility.
- Pain relief.
- Increased range of door movement.
- Normalization of blood circulation in the cervical spine.
Home treatment against cervical osteochondrosis includes a large list of therapeutic and preventive measures. The most important condition is that they are supervised by an experienced specialist so that home treatment can bring positive results as quickly as possible, and the patient can forget about unpleasant symptoms forever.