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Thread: Repeated Neck/Trap Issue

  1. #1
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    Default Repeated Neck/Trap Issue

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    Over the past months I've had my NLP repeatedly derailed by a recurring injury to my neck/Trap area on the left side. Basically, mid-set I'll feel and hear a popping noise, followed by a lot of pain. Typically the pain will last 1-3 weeks before healing up enough to train again. The first time I had no idea what was going on and went to the urgent care. Doctor said all the muscle in the area was extremely pissed off and gave me a toradol shot and prescribed muscle relaxers and ibuprofen (too weak help shit). The pain is sharp and prevents me from driving since I can't turn my head, and makes sleeping difficult until it subsides.

    I've triggered it during the overhead press several times and once during the deadlift as well. Even when these episodes subside, my neck area feels tight, and if I look down or up, the same area hurts with a similar, but lesser pain. So that's what it's like normally, and I guess it gets randomly set off badly while training at times. Does anybody have any idea what's going on and how I can prevent this happening again?

    I know how this board feels about silly shit, but is this potentially something I can prevent by stretching or doing some sort of warm up protocol for? If not what might work better? Thanks

  2. #2
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    I had a periodic "crick" in my neck for decades, and as it turned out it was the result of childhood neck injuries. When I was 43 I had a cervical fusion at C6-7, and I haven't had any trouble since then. You may be in this same situation. Until then, find a conservative chiropractor and see if that helps, keep your neck rigid under the bar, do not mash the back of your head into the bench, arrange your pillows to support your neck while you're asleep, get decent pillows, and treat the inflammation with NSAIDs when it flares up.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    I had a periodic "crick" in my neck for decades, and as it turned out it was the result of childhood neck injuries. When I was 43 I had a cervical fusion at C6-7, and I haven't had any trouble since then. You may be in this same situation. Until then, find a conservative chiropractor and see if that helps, keep your neck rigid under the bar, do not mash the back of your head into the bench, arrange your pillows to support your neck while you're asleep, get decent pillows, and treat the inflammation with NSAIDs when it flares up.
    Thanks Rip. Any tips on finding a decent chiropractor who won't make things worse? Also what type of scan should I think about requesting my doctor to see if there's a disc issue?

  4. #4
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    Can't help you with the chiropractor. The test is an MRI.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Can't help you with the chiropractor. The test is an MRI.
    Thanks. What sucks is I can’t really find a way to train around it till it subsides. Traps are heavily involved in the press and deadlift, neck takes pressure during the bench, and the area is loaded with the bar in the back squat. Even chins light it up. Guess I’ll just have to wait for it to calm down.

  6. #6
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    Hey Rip,

    Had an update on this I was wondering you could advise on. It almost seems as though I'm dealing with two issues. One is the usual, mild pain I feel to the left of my cervical spine up in my neck. I usually ignore it since it's not bad. Seems it flairs up a bit too, but isn't the source of the majority of the pain.

    Whatever has been flairing up bad and knocking me out of training, I'm realizing the pain originates further down in the back. It's a muscle to the left of my t-spine. It's just inside the bony protrusion of the shoulderblade, but definitely to the left of the spine. I'm not great in anatomy, but it might be a lower portion of the trap, or maybe a rhomboid potentially? The queue that did me in the most recent time was to tuck my chin down hard during the press. That was a mistake for me, apparently. I've also fucked it up by pulling the deadlift with my cervical spine hyperextended in the past. Is it possible I just have a mild-moderate muscle tear?

    Does this change how I should rehab this thing at all?

  7. #7
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    You don't have a muscle belly tear, you have a spasm from what is most likely a C6-7 injury that will be diagnosed with an MRI. That injury refers down to the area you are describing. There is no rehab if the bone is impinging the nerve root. This will have to be dealt with, very likely with the same allograft fusion procedure I had in 1999.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    You don't have a muscle belly tear, you have a spasm from what is most likely a C6-7 injury that will be diagnosed with an MRI. That injury refers down to the area you are describing. There is no rehab if the bone is impinging the nerve root. This will have to be dealt with, very likely with the same allograft fusion procedure I had in 1999.
    Well shit, thanks for letting me know. Hopefully it's not as bad as a lumbar surgery. Does having a cervical fusion prevent training for strength or the Olympic lifts?

  9. #9
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    Cervical surgery is absolutely nothing like lumbar surgery. If the surgeon is good, you'll be fine. I have trained for 23 years with this repair, starting about 2 weeks post-op.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Mark Rippetoe View Post
    Cervical surgery is absolutely nothing like lumbar surgery. If the surgeon is good, you'll be fine. I have trained for 23 years with this repair, starting about 2 weeks post-op.
    That's great news! I'll see how long I can last without needing it.

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