Osteochondrosis of the cervical spine can ruin a person's life. His progression results in sharp and painful pain in the neck, shoulder blades, and clavicle. Often, squeezing the spinal canal and squeezing veins leads to headaches, migraines, and neck mobility disorders. Treating the disease at home requires an integrated approach as it is not so easy to get rid of osteochondrosis of the cervix.
Why the disease occurs: basic prerequisites
Osteochondrosis is accompanied by degenerative changes in the vertebral joints of the cervical spine. Due to osteochondrosis, the joints wear out faster, they lose their mobility, and bone growths of salts - osteophytes - form on the body of the cervical vertebrae. As a result, nerve and blood vessel pinching, spinal canal narrowing, joint destruction, and vertebral protrusion occur with the occurrence of intervertebral hernias.
Inpatient and home treatment for osteochondrosis begins with identifying and eliminating the cause of the disease. These can be:
- Lack of physical activity.
- Sitting lifestyle.
- Uneven distribution of load on the muscles of the cervical spine.
- Abuse of harmful (salty, greasy, fried, smoked) foods.
- Metabolic disorders caused by chronic diseases.
- Scoliotic posterior deformity.
A professional will be able to pinpoint the cause of osteochondrosis after gathering a history of the disease.
How does osteochondrosis of the neck manifest itself: the first signs
Listing the early symptoms of the disease will help identify the development of cervical osteochondrosis at home:
- Decreased performance.
- Neck discomfort when turning the head.
- Restrict neck movement to one side.
- The characteristic crunch when the neck is rotated.
- Common headache.
- Aching and cramping pain in the neck muscles.
As the disease progresses, the symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis increase:
- Pain occurs at rest.
- The shoots are felt in the scapula and clavicle.
- It is difficult to bring the neck forward or backward.
- Dizziness occurs due to cerebral hypoxia.
In the absence of appropriate treatment, progression of osteochondrosis symptoms can be observed:
- Tongue numbness occurs.
- The sensitivity of the upper limbs is impaired.
- Armed paraesthesia occurs.
- Neck mobility is completely lost.
The onset of the first signs of osteochondrosis of the neck requires immediate medical attention to make an accurate diagnosis and select treatment tactics. The patient can observe at home.
Diagnostic Basics: Who to Contact
If osteochondrosis of the cervical spine is suspected at home, you should contact a neurologist, orthopedist, or vertebrologist. The diagnosis and confirmation of the diagnosis of "osteochondrosis" occurs after:
- Record anamnesis. The doctor learns every detail of the patient’s lifestyle.
- Internal and tactile examination. They determine the degree of pain and movement disorders in the vertebrae, the presence of tissue edema, and the maintenance of their sensitivity.
- Perform diagnostic tests. These include X-rays of the spine. If necessary, MRI or computed tomography is performed to assess the condition of the joints of the cervical spine, to confirm or refute the formation of a hernia.
During the examination, the doctor makes a diagnosis and offers the patient a number of measures to treat the patient at home.
How to treat cervical osteochondrosis at home
Osteochondrosis of the neck and chest can be successfully treated at home with early diagnosis, the right choice of treatment, and a responsible attitude of the patient to therapy.
The main measures of home treatment are to eliminate the cause of osteochondrosis of the neck:
- In case of physical inactivity, a gradual increase in physical activity at home is seen. If you sit at a desk or computer for a long time, frequent breaks are prescribed, which means physical activity.
- In case of postural disturbances and uneven loading of the neck muscles, special fasteners, correctors and corsets are used to ensure a symmetrical posture.
- In case of overweight and malnutrition, the patient's lifestyle is adjusted accordingly and diet is prescribed.
- Cervical osteochondrosis due to metabolic disorders underlying chronic diseases is eliminated by therapy of the underlying disease.
The main treatment at home is strict adherence to medical regulations for taking medications - non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, muscle relaxants, chondroprotectors. The patient should adhere to the recommended dosing regimen, clearly maintaining the duration of treatment until the desired result is achieved.
Treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home involves adjusting the patient's diet and drinking system. It is a condition to use two liters of clean water a day, except for drinks and liquid food. The patient’s homemade food should be nutritious and balanced. The diet should include:
- Fiber sources to normalize 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 should exclude fatty, fried, smoked, salty foods from your diet.
Home treatment may require visits to special inpatient physiotherapy rooms. They should not be neglected. An electrophoresis session ensures the delivery of therapeutic substances directly to the tissues affected by osteochondrosis, which cannot be achieved at home. You should attend the physiotherapy recommended by your doctor regularly, and you must go through the full treatment recommended by your doctor.
In the early stages of home treatment, the patient may be advised to rest in bed until the pain syndrome resolves. It is important to note that cervical osteochondrosis bed rest should not last longer than 2-3 days. At the end of this period, the patient should gradually activate and increase physical activity, even if all treatments take place at home.
More effective treatment of osteochondrosis at home requires the purchase of a special orthopedic pillow. It can effectively relieve tension in the neck muscles when the patient is asleep.
Recipes for Traditional Medicine
Doctors do not prohibit the combination of home medication with means proven by folk experience. Moderation, adherence to safety rules, and eliminating the risk of neck skin damage are important conditions.
Natural compresses of cervical osteochondrosis allow the release of painful sensations, and the reception of infusions helps to normalize metabolic processes, remove excess salt deposits from the body. The following are proven folk recipes for home treatment of cervical spine osteochondrosis.
Pour a teaspoon of dandelion root with a glass of boiling water. The cure is adhered to for 15 minutes, after which it is filtered and taken orally. The tool removes salt deposits.
Pour 5 tablespoons of dried nettle leaves with one liter of boiling water. They insist on an hour. After filtration, add to the bath. The cure is 2 weeks of daily bathing. Some healers suggest beating the localization of pain with fresh branches of nettle.
Mix the garlic and ginger in equal proportions. Dilute with vegetable oil to obtain a crumb. 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 one minute and then spread on the cervical spine. Leave the compress overnight, warmed with a handkerchief.
Treatment of osteochondrosis at home using folk methods only is ineffective. You can probably only reduce the symptoms, but you can’t cure the disease. Treatment with folk remedies is best discussed with a doctor.
Massage for cervical osteochondrosis
Comprehensive home treatment for cervical osteochondrosis, as recommended by doctors, includes massage. It is better to entrust its implementation to a trained professional. In the absence of such an option, self-massage helps to cure osteochondrosis of the neck, which the patient can perform at home at any time. Its main rules are:
- The effect on the neck muscles is done with the inserts of the fingers, not the palms.
- Movements must be strictly peripheral and top-down.
- Do not push or rub the cervical vertebrae too quickly.
- To massage the fingers slightly, the massage is performed with the help of oil.
Home honey massage is good for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine. About a teaspoon of honey is rubbed onto the surface of the cervical vertebrae and muscles, gently kneading with your fingers until the honey becomes viscous and then washed off with warm water.
Medicines: we eat and lubricate at home
Medical treatment for cervical osteochondrosis should be selected by a physician. Often a whole complex of injectable, oral and topical drugs is used.
- 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. These are the most convenient methods for treating cervical osteochondrosis at home. Anti-inflammatory analgesics, muscle relaxants, chondroprotectors are prescribed. Treatment of the latter group with drugs is long-term. The minimum course of treatment is 3 months.
- External facilities. These are non-steroidal anti-inflammatory ointments and gels for pain relief or chondroitin sulfate to accelerate cartilage recovery.
At home, complex treatment helps to get rid of cervical osteochondrosis much faster than using only one group of drugs. It is almost impossible to cure osteochondrosis of the cervical spine by external means alone.
Physiotherapy practices: the principle of implementation and outcome
Home therapy for cervical osteochondrosis is based on special exercises for the neck muscles. The exercises are performed according to the following rules:
- The list and range of exercises will be determined by your doctor.
- All exercises are performed smoothly and slowly to eliminate the risk of injury.
- Do not start gymnastic treatment for acute cervical spine pain.
- The load gradually increases.
- The patient exercises regularly, several times a day, at the same time.
Exercises for treating cervical osteochondrosis are very simple. Doing them correctly at home will speed up healing and help relieve pain. Exercising the cervical spine with therapy involves:
- Turn the head sideways to the extreme point.
- Bend the head sideways, back and forth.
- Circular movements of the neck and shoulders.
The gymnastics course lasts until the end of the treatment and the complete elimination of the symptoms. If the patient continues to exercise, he will be able to prevent the disease from recurring. Results of home treatment for osteochondrosis gymnastics:
- Removal of neck muscle hypertonicity.
- Stretch the tapes.
- Improving vertebral mobility.
- Pain relief.
- Increased neck range of motion.
- Normalization of blood circulation in the cervical spine.
Home treatment for cervical osteochondrosis includes a large list of therapeutic and preventive measures. The most important condition is that they be supervised by an experienced professional so that home treatment can bring positive results as quickly as possible and the patient can forget about unpleasant symptoms forever.