The Science of Neck Pain & Stiffness
Neck pain involves complex interactions between joints, muscles, and nerves. The small joints in your neck bear significant load during daily activities, especially with modern computer use. The deep stabilizing muscles often become weak while surface muscles overwork to compensate. The upper part of your neck is responsible for half of all neck rotation and can refer pain to the head. This explains why neck problems often cause headaches.
Contributing Factors
Forward head posture is the biggest culprit I see in my clinic. When your head sits forward of your shoulders, it multiplies the weight your neck muscles must support - every inch forward doubles the effective weight of your head. Your average head weighs about 10 pounds, but with forward posture, your neck muscles work as if supporting 20-40 pounds.
Screen work compounds this by requiring you to look down or crane forward, while your upper shoulders creep up toward your ears. This creates a cascade where your deep neck stabilizers weaken while your larger, more superficial muscles overwork and become tight.
Sleep position plays a role too - pillows that are too high or too flat force your neck into awkward positions for hours. Combined with stress-related muscle tension and the repetitive nature of modern work, these factors create the perfect environment for neck pain to develop and persist.