Frankly speaking, I hate the neck pain on left side; well, of course, not only on the left, but on the right side as well. The worst thing about it is that it won’t go during the day! Even if the cause is just wrong sleeping, you will have to wait until the next day to get some relief. At least it is so in my case.
Symptoms of the Neck Pain on the Left Side
The main symptom of course is the pain; but its nature may vary. The most common symptoms are: recurring pain on the left side; it may recur 10 times a day, especially when talking. It feels like a sore muscle and sometimes it feels behind the eye or above the eyebrow, and even shoots in the head. The pain may go down the left arm and shoulder or to the chest, as well as behind the ear, which may also cause the ear ache and popping. Actually the ear and neck pain on left side are often come along. The serious cases include ringing sound in the ear and even some hearing loss. The pain may be experienced under the jaw or at the base of skull as well.
Some people say they have a blur in the eyes, especially in their left eye; other serious symptoms include the increase in bodily temperature, sweaty palms and feet, heart racing, loss of feeling in some parts of the body and foggy mind. These symptoms are not always associated with the pain in neck only and usually indicate a more serious condition.
Causes of Neck Pain on Left Side
Just as the symptoms the causes vary greatly; here is the list of the most common ones:
Bad posture – the most common cause and luckily the easiest to treat.- Wrong sleeping – another common cause for the pain in the left side of the neck.
- Anxiety – another popular cause for pain in the neck; anxiety can also lead to back pain and other unpleasant disorders.
- Cervical Strain – this may take place if there are other conditions present such as inflamed neck muscle, excessive physical or emotional stress, bad sleeping habits and injury.
- Whiplash Injury occurs in an accident where your spine has to move forward or backward suddenly, which can lead to neck pains along with spasms and swelling.
- The diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (DISH) – here the pain in neck is caused by the hardening of the cervical spine’s ligaments.
- If there is a tearing or wearing the cervical spine and neck tissues, Cervical Spondylosis may occur. In this case the ache is caused by the bone spurs.
- Demyelination as a result of the nerve compression; there is a demyelinating disease – multiple sclerosis, which may lead to pains, but not always.
There are other left side of neck pain causes such as meningioma, tumor, vestibular schwannoma (acoustic neuroma), epidermoid, carotid artery inflammation, etc.
Neck Pain Treatment
If you have got the pain due to wrong sleeping, or because of the bad posture, the treatment is simple – correct the posture and make sure you cultivate proper sleeping habits as well as have the right bed for you.
Regular physical activity can help – there are yoga poses to correct the posture.
If your symptoms go beyond the simple pains due to bad posture or wrong sleeping, it is obvious that you need to visit a doctor, particularly if your pain lasts for a while already. As it was mentioned before, the real cause of your pain may be different from what it may look like. So the timely and correct treatment may prevent you from developing some serious disorder.