Homemade Stiff Neck Remedies

If you’ve ever waken up in the morning with a stiff, painful neck, you have probably tried numerous anti-inflammatory medicines, or  maybe asked your spouse to rub your neck and give it a massage. You probably also tried using one of those muscles rubs that smell really bad; and nothing seemed to help ease the pain of your stiff neck. Do you know this feeling?

I do. I speak from personal experience; there have been many occasions where I have woken up with a very bad stiff neck and there was nothing I could do to relieve the pain. That was until I discovered some really cool home remedies that work wonders. Interested in learning more? Before we discover the wonderful world of home remedies, we need to know why w get stiff necks in the first place.

We get stiff necks for many different reasons — stress, physical activities, whip lash; just to name a few. They almost always come on in the morning after you have slept and the muscles have had time to react to whatever strain or abuse you might have done to them. As your body relaxes your neck muscles that have been damaged begin to tighten, thus causing the stiff neck when you wake up.

If you are over-stressed, lifts weights or participate in some type of physical exercise program, or you’ve had a fender bender that jarred you and caused your head to whip back and forth, you most likely won’t feel the pain right away; it will be the next day before the total effects start to set in. It would be a good idea to prepare yourself and maybe even prevent a sore and stiff neck in the morning if you are able to get the neck muscles to relax with a nice hot shower or bath, take a pain reliever before bed, and drink a large glass of water.

What exactly are the best homemade remedies for a stiff neck, and do they actually work? Let's take a look together.

The Best Homemade Remedies for a Stiff Neck

A very effective and simple way to relieve the pain of a stiff neck has been used in Chinese traditional medicine for centuries. It is suggested that you massage the neck with a special technique that warms up and loosens the muscles in your neck. You do this by rubbing your hands together very quickly to get them warm and then begin massaging the area of the neck that is stiff and sore. The heat along with the massage stimulates the flow of blood into your neck as well as to your upper back and shoulders. You can also decide to use some essential oils which may help to warm up your neck and stimulate the blood flow. 

Another Chinese remedy for a stiff neck is called skin scraping. This remedy is very easy to learn but you will need the assistance of somebody to help you with it. For this homemade remedy, You will need a spoon and some oil; just a few drops of oil is sufficient.  You can use massage type oils, mentholated type cream, or simple baby oil will work.  What you are trying to do with this type of massage is to scrape the area of the neck with the edge of the spoon until the area is red or purple; this is getting the blood flow to the area of the  neck that is painful.  First you apply the oil to the neck; you don’t want too much as that will inhibit the spoon from scratching the surface of the skin.  The person who is doing this for you should start scraping the skin with the edge of the spoon from the top of your neck all the way down to the top of your shoulders; they should apply as much pressure as they can without causing you too much discomfort.  The person doing this should make at least fifty strokes so that the blood can rise to the area where the pain is the worse.  Continue the process at least three times or until you can no longer stand the pain of the scraping. 

You may need to repeat this treatment two or three times in a week, depending upon how badly the pain in your neck is.  Although this technique seems a bit odd, it is one of the most effective treatments for a stiff neck.  The purpose is the get the energy and blood flow to the neck muscles which will relieve that pain.

A few More Suggestions to get rid of your Stiff Neck

It is important to remember that if you were in a fender bender and have what is called “whip lash” you should probably see a doctor before trying any of these home remedies just to make sure there is no actual skeletal damage to your neck.

Another way to help relieve a stiff neck is a process some chiropractors use; you will need the help of somebody to do this technique.  All it actually is, is traction for your neck and all you need is a rolled up towel that is about 2 inches thick and three feet long.  Lay down on the ground on your back with the towel under your neck.  The person helping you should take each end of the towel and very slowly lift your head up off the ground while pulling your head backwards and holding it there for about ten seconds and then release the traction slowly.  Do this about ten times and although it may sound a bit painful it really is a very good and quick technique to relieve a stiff neck. 

Read More: Neck Problems: What to Do About Neck Stiffness?

Stress and Stiff Neck

Stress is one of the main contributors to having a stiff neck in the morning.  The best way to prevent waking up with a stiff neck due to being over stressed is to learn some meditation and yoga exercises; if you are relaxed when you go to sleep you shouldn’t wake up with a stiff neck.  Tension brought on my stress makes the muscles in your neck stiffen up.  The more tension you have and the more stress you have, the more likely you will suffer from having a stiff neck when you wake up in the morning.  My mother always said, “An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure” and I am quite positive she is very correct with that statement. 

Your body will let you know when something is not right so you should pay attention to the signs you body sends out to you.  If you rub the back of your neck and can feel that it is tight and painful, chances are if you don’t stop it before you go to bed, you will wake up with a stiff neck.  It’s always important to listen to your body; it speaks to us in many ways; we just don’t always listen until it’s too late.