Stiff Neck

You never know how blessed you are just by being able to move your neck or your head normally until you get a really bad case of stiff neck. Recently, I have been having more trouble with my neck muscles (signs of old age?) that I've gotten a stiff neck about thrice in 2006.

What caused my stiff neck? Sleeping in car without enough neck support. Lazily reaching for things without positioning the rest of my body properly. And the last -- wrapping a gift with just one hand -- for a game at a Christmas party.

The last stiff neck was particularly bad. It wasn't something that I could just live with for days (as I had in the past). It came with severe pain -- when I would lie down to sleep and when I would rise from bed. That's when I realized that just being able to lie down on your bed or get up from it, without feeling any pain, was a great blessing in itself. I have recovered from the stiff neck but nowadays, I feel especially happy when I go to sleep or when I wake up and I don't feel any pain in my neck area.

I went through intense pain for one whole day. I got a massage. It helped a bit but did not really improve things. People suggested putting a warm compress but I didn't get to do that. The next day, I trooped to the drug store (Mercury) -- I couldn't continue with a painful stiff neck forever -- and asked the people at the counter what I could take for a stiff neck. The lady suggested Dolfenal (which goes by the generic name Mefenamic Acid). She suggested taking one every 6 hours for as long as there was pain. I asked about Alaxan (that's what Manny Pacquiao endorses, right?) but she said that Ibuprofen was more appropriate for headaches. I also got some Salonpas Gel which its box says is for Muscles and Joints (Arthritis, Strains, Bruises, and Sprains).

What do you know? It only took one Dolfenal to improve the way I felt. No wonder Dolphy agreed to endorse this product. The gel helped too -- I didn't know it would feel that warm on your skin and even felt like it was seeping into my neck. I was better in a day. Now, everyday that I enjoy without a stiff neck is already a good day. =)

What did this teach me? Never wrap a gift with only one hand again. It just isn't balanced. Your body is not designed to work that way. Just like everything in life, if there is no "balance," chaos results. We get stressed. Same thing with your neck muscles.

So, if you happen to be reading this and there is nothing wrong with your neck, be grateful. If you happen to be suffering from a stiff neck, please consult your doctor. What worked for me may not work for you. This is just a re-telling of my experience and is not my way of giving you medical advice as I am not a doctor. Am just a wife/mother with a website who is just so happy to have her normal neck back. Stay healthy!