Initially immediately and honestly: treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is not possible quickly. But this disease cannot be cured in a short time and in a hospital - it is still a long process.
Home methods can really help relieve the most unpleasant symptoms quickly and are usually very important in fighting the disease.
Main methods of treating osteochondrosis
Regardless of which parts of the spine are affected, there are general therapeutic methods:
- Medication with external agents, tablets or injections.
- Physiotherapy (electrophoresis, magnetic therapy, ultrasound, laser . . . ).
- Reflex treatment (acupuncture, acupressure).
- Massage, manual therapy.
- Physiotherapy, climatology and spa treatments.
Different folk methods (compresses, rubbing, teas) should rather be attributed to the first group. Although therapies made according to folk recipes are not official medicines, the principle of their operation is similar. And in official medicine, plant extracts and other biologically active substances are often used.
However, not all treatments can give quick results. Many were designed for a long process. They help more reliably, but they cannot relieve pain, dizziness, or other unpleasant symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis. Some should not be used during the aggravation of the disease.
What methods can give you fast results
Treating cervical osteochondrosis at home is the easiest way to accomplish it quickly with medication. Their action is aimed at relieving inflammation, hypertension of the neck muscles, improving blood circulation and accelerating healing processes in cartilage tissues. Many drugs indicated for osteochondrosis are available in convenient form of tablets or topical agents. Well-known analgesic gels help relieve pain quickly.
Injections as well as acupuncture and manual therapy are very effective. But these methods have a number of serious limitations. You should only perform physiotherapy in a hospital or clinic.
massage can also bring fast results. Doctors recommend self-massage techniques to quickly eliminate dizziness, tinnitus, and neck muscle pain.
Among the folk methods, external agents have a quick effect - compresses, patches, rubbing. But they only provide temporary relief, after which longer treatments will still be needed.
Movement therapy rarely works quickly. It takes weeks to notice a noticeable improvement. In addition, most doctors advise not to exercise the body as the disease worsens, recommending it during healing and remission. Sanatorium and climate treatments are also not working immediately and are difficult to access at home. On the other hand, these methods give stable, long-term results.
Is it possible to inject at home?
In theory, yes, but only if there is a qualified nurse or paramedic in the household who knows the job. It is very difficult to inject into the neck, you must be able to choose the exact location, direction and depth of the needle insertion, otherwise it can cause serious damage. Damage to nerve roots or important blood vessels can be a more serious problem than osteochondrosis.
But the injections are very effective, and it is possible to treat cervical osteochondrosis quickly at home with their help. The injection block can relieve even very severe pain in a few minutes. Relaxing, anti-inflammatory, restorative drugs that get directly into the blood and muscles are more effective.
However, injections are usually recommended in advanced cases where the symptoms of osteochondrosis are severe. If the disease is in its early stages, it can be done completely without them. In a difficult situation, it is better to be treated with an injection in a medical institution and use additional methods at home that will improve and consolidate the result.
Home osteochondrosis massage
A full-fledged massage should also be performed by a specialist. Some of the patient’s relatives can be trained in this area, but the specialist is still better.
However, simple self-massage techniques help reduce the painful manifestations of osteochondrosis in moments when it is uncomfortable to go to the master. This massage consists of lightly kneading the muscles of the neck using the fingertips. It helps relieve muscle tension, improve blood circulation, tinnitus and headaches.
There are some basic rules to follow during self-massage to make it safer and more effective:
- Use only fingertips for work.
- Movements should be made from top to bottom and from the spine to the sides.
- Kneading movements should be alternated by stroking (in the same direction).
- You should not bother much while massaging, even if the strength of your hands allows it.
This method works very quickly, but not too hard and not for long. Massage should be combined with other treatments.
Traditional methods of rapid treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
In order to quickly reach the number of folk recipes, it is better to choose products for external use. Various teas and infusions give good results, but you have to wait a long time.
But compression and rubbing can remove some of the symptoms of the disease in hours or minutes:
- Ordinary paprika vodka is suitable for grinding. Alcohol can be produced in the factory, but it is better to stick to pepper alone.
- Another grinding recipe: mustard, camphor alcohol, vodka (50 g each), 3 beaten egg whites, leave for half a day.
- Vodka, honey, aloe juice (2: 2: 1), mix, leave to cook overnight. Good anti-inflammatory agent.
- Ideal for compresses - horseradish and burdock leaves, pre-boiled with boiling water.
- A mixture of honey and grated potatoes (evenly distributed) is also suitable. You can keep it for several hours.
- Grated radish as an ointment. It should be washed off when there is a noticeable burning sensation in the skin. Good distraction. Stimulates blood circulation.
Rapid treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home with folk remedies also includes the use of uterine venom as well as caffeine and larkspur roots. It’s not easy to collect yourself, but you can buy dried roots at the pharmacy or use ready-made ointments based on them.
How Exercising Your Neck Muscles Can Help
Physical education is not a fast-acting method, but it is the most reliable. Once you have been diagnosed with osteochondrosis, it is better to do therapeutic exercises regularly throughout your life. They’re pretty simple, even on a break, sitting in a chair:
- The head tilts sideways and back and forth.
- Head turns, neck rotations.
- Pull the neck forward.
- Raising and lowering shoulders.
- Stretching exercises (mentally stretch the head crown mentally).
- Self-resistance: pressure with the hands on the forehead or back of the head and resistance from the neck.
- Air "drawing": write imaginary words or numbers with your nose in the air.
How can this type of exercise help? They strengthen the muscles and provide additional support to the spine. In addition, exercise improves blood circulation and oxygen supply to the brain. There is a greater chance of freeing the pinched roots. Muscle overload ceases.
But you don't have to wait for immediate results. Therefore, you should first relieve the aggravation with medication and then exercise.
Although spinal diseases are very stubborn, symptomatic treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is possible quickly. But the patient should remember that the temporary disappearance of symptoms does not mean the release of the disease and should continue treatment with other, less rapid methods.