The human neck has to carry the weight of the head, and it is prone to injury, yet there are not a lot of exercises one can do to speed up the recovery or make a stronger neck.
So my suggestion? First, take care and try not to hurt you neck. If you do hurt your neck in any way, then seek medical care.
A quick update about my neck pain. I went back to work last week and it has been very busy. I worked 7 days straight, and my neck pain did not improve much. I have been just barely hanging in there. These 2 days, I could finally turn my head to the left to talk to Jack without turning my whole body. My head still slightly tilts to the right side out of pain or habit. I did receive 2 long back massages from Jack, who used to be a masseur back when he was in grad school. We still have the massage table setup in the living room in front of the big TV.
Here are the exercises I do to care for my pinched nerve in the neck these days. I wish you will find this helpful.
At first you may feel very weak and tender, so you may not be able to do the full set of exercises, but try breathing deeply to help ease the pain and to focus your energy. Do what you can, and when it hurts, stop. Use smaller range of motion until your muscles get stronger and less painful. Inhale deep into your belly and exhale from your belly when doing these exercises, the slower the breath the better. Slowness and gentleness are the keys here, because you don't want to unintentionally strain your neck or shoulders even more. If you are in a lot of pain, you should not do too much work to stress your physical body.
This set of exercises will take about 15 minutes to complete, and you should try to do it once every hour, if possible. Be patient with the exercises and with your body.
1. Gentle head rolls
Roll your head from left to forward to right, while taking a full breath each time you drop your head slightly in different position. When your head lowers straight forward, hold it there for 3 full breaths, then inhale, exhale and roll the slowly head to the right on each breath. When your head drops to the right, hold there for 3 full breaths, then slowly roll it from right to center to left, and hold on the left for at least 3 breaths. (Please do this only under the guidance of your medical care provider)
2. Turn you head from side to side
Slowly turn your head from right to left on inhale, then left to right on exhale. Repeat 3 times. Gently turn your head to the right, hold for 3 full breaths, then slowly and easily turn it to the left side and hold it for 3 breaths.
3. Shoulder shrug
Shrug your shoulders up on inhale, then lower them down on exhale, and do so slowly. Repeat 3 times.
4. Shoulder roll
Slowly and gently roll your shoulders forward taking a full breath on each shoulder roll. Roll forward for 3 times, then backwards for 3 times.
5. Modified eagle arms
Use the left hand to hold the right shoulder so that the right arm is straight across the front body. Stretch the right shoulder lightly if it feels possible. Hold this for 3 breaths, then do the other side. Repeat if it feels good.
6. Seated twist and staff pose
Sit with right leg straight in front of you, and the left leg bend and cross over the right knee, left foot on the floor and left knee up. Gently turn your body toward the left, hug you left knee with your right arm. Hold this pose and take 2 full breaths. Place both legs straight in front of you, and place your hands on each side of your body for support. Straighten your body and your legs so that your upper body and your legs are in a 90 degree angle. This is the staff pose. Hold the staff pose for 2 breaths before doing seated twist on the right side.
7. Recline knees to chest
Lie on the floor. Hold your knees to chest with your arms. Mildly move the knees around from side to side, and feel the whole spine and back slightly push towards the floor. Hold for 5 breaths, then repeat for 2 more times.
Other helpful tips:
a. Try to sit on a hard surface such as on the floor with a folded yoga blanket, or a yoga bolster with your back straight. Keeping your spine and back straight may help ease the pain on the shoulders and the neck.
b. If you are in pain, try breathing deeply, inhale into the navel center and long exhale from the navel center while meditating or chanting your favorite mantra. This is a good chance to use these methods to help you relief the pain for the moment. I used the Gayatri Mantra, which is a Hindu mantra for removing obstacles.
c. Do not sit or lie down for an extended period of time during the day. Try to walk around, such as taking a walk or do light housework to distract yourself from the pain. When you notice that your body is stiff and in pain, then start changing the position or moving around.
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