Neck pain can be really debilitating and can make it difficult to execute the simplest motions. It's tough to get a good night's sleep when your muscles are tight or a nerve is pinched. Some neck pain is caused simply by bad posture.

Whether you visit a chiropractor or a medical doctor for neck pain treatment, they will observe the way you sit and stand. The frequency with which you allow your head to lean forward tells a great deal about the amount of strain put on your neck.

If you are not standing and sitting up straight, you may not even be aware how your posture is affecting your body's ability to have a full range of motion in the neck.

Posture truly is your body's language. It tells a great deal about where your symptoms stem from. A good rule of thumb is to pretend that a string is attached to the top of your head and that you are being pulled up by it. Your ears should line up over the middle of the shoulders .

When the head is tipped down and the shoulders roll forward it causes the muscles to develop a stress syndrome. It is just by force of bad habit that poor posture feels more comfortable. It seems like work to consciously stand up straight. You just need to retrain your muscles to remember the correct posture.

It's difficult to maintain this upright pose consistently if you have fallen into bad habits with your posture. However, if you make a mental note to be aware and correct your posture once or twice and hour, in time you will attain a neutral spine position and gravitate towards good posture. At first, it will feel forced and perhaps uncomfortable, but soon enough you will enjoy the benefits good posture brings to muscle groups of the neck shoulder and back.

Some neck pain results from something abnormal in the soft tissue. This means a tightness, shortness, or spasm of the muscles, joints, or ligaments. Soft tissue also refers to the nerves. When a nerve is pinched or somehow under too much pressure, this can cause severe acute pain.

It's rare, but sometimes a tumor or a severe infection can cause neck pain. Arthritis and other degenerative inflammatory diseases cause pain because of the wear and tear on the joints in the neck.

Whatever the cause of your neck pain, improving your posture will improve your disability. For those of us working in fields that require us to sit for most of the day it is really important to be mindful of the spine's alignment. Don't sit slouched over at your desk all day. This puts unnatural pressure on your back day in and day out. Sit with a straight back and your knees raised slightly above your hips.

Get up and stretch every couple of hours because the repetitive motions of cubicle life can also cause muscles to tense up. Neck pain is a pain in the neck, but you can really cut down on its impact on your life. Consider your posture; it truly is your body's language.