7 Things You Can Do to Prevent Neck Pain While Traveling

Traveling? You're in great company!

According to AAA, more Americans are traveling than ever before, with increasing numbers of trips taken both domestically and internationally. Just during last year’s holiday season, over 107 million Americans traveled more than 50 miles away from their homes—the highest number ever reported, according to estimates. 

With so many people hopping into trains, planes, and automobiles, now is as good a time as any to talk about one of the most common travel-related problems—neck pain. While this broad musculoskeletal condition affects millions of people every year, there are plenty of simple things you can do to avoid dealing with it yourself while venturing away from home.

1. Be Aware of Your Posture

Checking bags? How about checking your posture?

Poor posture (especially slouching in your seat) increases strain on ligaments, muscles, discs, tendons, and other connective tissue structures in and around your cervical spine.

What does good seated posture look like? While there's no one "perfect" position, here's a good alignment to start:

• Head is directly over your shoulders and hips 
• Shoulders are relaxed, back and down
• Core is slightly engaged (you can do this by performing an abdominal brace, as if you were gently bearing down to defecate—strange, but it works, and can increase the stability of your spine, which if left unstable can contribute to "upstream" problems like neck pain)
• The spine is straight and supported, with the back of the buttocks pressed firmly against the back of your seat
• Hips are level with your knees

2. Try a Supportive Neck Pillow or Lumbar Pillow

A comfortable and form fitting neck pillow offers you the support you need to rest, relax, or even sleep during travel without allowing your neck to fall into an awkward or uncomfortable position.

A lumbar support cushion can also decrease stress in the spine and help you maintain better seated posture. Lumbar cushions are also available with seat cushions built-in to even further improve your comfort and seated support.

3. Avoid Tech Neck

Staring down at your phone or tablet for hours on end is bound to give you neck pain and stiffness—along with other symptoms including headaches, jaw pain, and shoulder and arm discomfort. 

To use your "smart" technology in a smarter way, take frequent breaks from your devices. If texting on your phone, try holding your device up at eye level to avoid looking down.

4. Use Good Body Mechanics When Lifting and Carrying Bags

Even small bags can lead to aches and pains if carried improperly! Be sure to use bags with thick and padded straps, use both straps of a backpack, and use caution when using roller bags, as these can easily snag and tip, leading to strains in the shoulder and neck.

Additionally, ask for help if you need assistance getting a bag in or out of an overhead bin, trunk, or other compartment. 

5. Move As Much As You Can

The human body was meant to move. When it doesn't, a snowball effect can begin, leading to pain and dysfunction.

If you're taking a long trip, get up and move around at least once per hour, or as much as possible. This is essential for reducing tension in your neck and back—amazingly, sitting imposes more force on your spine than standing does!

Additionally, add in some simple neck and shoulder stretches at least one to three times per hour. Effective ones to try include:

• Cervical retraction: keeping your chin level, tuck your head back, as if you were trying to press the back of your skull against a headrest.
• Shoulder shrugs: bring your shoulders up toward your ears, then back, down, and forward. Then reverse directions. 
• Lateral neck stretch: bring your right ear toward your right shoulder. Grab the edge of your seat with your left hand, pull gently, and lean slightly toward the right for an added stretch. Hold for 60-90 seconds, then switch. 

6. Stay Hydrated

Staying well hydrated during your travels offers several benefits—beyond just neck pain.

For one thing, adequate hydration can help minimize jet lag. Plus, staying hydrated helps your circulation and naturally encourages you to get up frequently, since—ahem—you'll need to use the facilities more often. 

Lastly, the connective tissues in your neck (as well as the rest of your body) need adequate hydration to stay pliable and healthy. Any neck stiffness or pain that you do experience while traveling may only grow worse if you're dehydrated.

By the way, headaches and neck pain are a common side effect of dehydration, which can make a case of neck pain even more challenging to deal with.

7. Stay Calm

Stress is a common underlying factor of neck pain. And while staying relaxed while traveling can seem almost impossible at times, it's certainly a worthwhile goal, for physical and mental reasons. 

Some tips for staying calm during travel include:

• Planning extra time in your itinerary so you don't have to rush
• Making copies and backups of your important documents
• Doing simple breathing exercises to reduce anxiety, such as box breathing, alternate nose breathing (a yogic technique known as nadi shodhana pranayama), or even breathing through your left nostril only (a yogic technique known as chandra nadi pranayama)
• Enjoying relaxing aromatherapy through a muscle-relieving neck pillow, or in a convenient fragrance spray that can be added to your own pillow or clothing.
• Listening to relaxing music, podcasts, or audiobooks can help engage your mind and help you tune out the anxiety-inducing hustle and bustle of travel time.

It's never a good time for neck pain...especially when you're supposed to be enjoying a little R&R with your loved ones! Be sure to test out these neck pain prevention tips for your future travels, and stay safe, comfortable, and healthy no matter where the road takes you.