Neck Problems!

Every since I had dreadlocks, I have been getting neck problems. My neck is always sore, cramped, achy. It's hard to turn my head to the side. Wearing them down gets in the way, but wearing them up causes even more pain. I wash my hair every other day because it just gets oily...and I would prefer not to smell like an oily scalp even though I personally don't mind it.

I find it very hard to be comfortable when I sleep. My hair gets in the way, and putting it in a bun just does something more to my neck pain. Ive seen the doctor and they said everything is fine, but that it might be the weight of my hair and the certain little hairs growing, tugging, and pulling giving that tension sensation to my scalp.

Does anyone have any tips or advice on neck pain? Last night was so bad that I almost to the clippers to my head.

updated by @katie-fairchild2: 01/22/20 09:33:16AM

damn how long are they?

As for sleeping, I have always found it to work when I toss my hair over the top of my bed. So it doesn't hang around me, and I don't have to wear it up when I sleep. It stays out of the way all night.

Is there anything else that you do during the day that could cause pain? Are youexercising? Have you been sleeping poorly (not just hurting)?

If the weight of your dreads is taxing your neck muscles, perhaps doing some neck exercises would help?
I believe there are a few exercises you can do that require no equipment, but you would have to Google those, as I don't know them.

If you have some free weights available, there are three exercises I know of that would help to strengthen the muscles that support your head.

my personal experience has been that as my dreads get longer and heavier my neck is slowly getting stronger to deal with the additional weight. Or so I believe anyway. Your body should adapt, but maybe it depends on how long they are when you start, how thick your hair is etc etc. I only notice neck strain when they are sodden with water and super heavy.

I also sleep with my hair over the top of my pillow, and I find it very uncomfortable to have my hair up at all, which means it is always in the way! I think putting it up at night might make your neck worse, but I'm no expert.

I always had neck problems that I thought were from a variety of things--playing the violin, swimming--then I realized that the problem was from my pillow and these activities just aggravated a problem that was already there! So I found a pillow that worked for me--the contoured memory foam ones, and my neck has never hurt again! Now I can play violin, swim, do whatever and it doesn't hurt anymore... Maybe there's another problem (like maybe even your pillow) that is causing you to have neck pain. It seems like dreads are the problem but they just make it hurt a little worse because there is another problem.

Gee, sorry to hear about your neck pain. Do you really think it is from the dreads? You have not had them long enough to cause weight problems. It is hard to tell from your pic, do you have fat dreads/congos? The heaviness from these may cause stress points on the scalp. If you have any sections over one inch, try separating them into smaller sections, that may help you. Were you ever prone to migraines? If so, then dreads may not be for you. You said your hair gets in the way when you sleep, so perhaps you are positioning your head in an awkward way when you do sleep, so the muscles are getting sore. Try placing all you hair above your head when you sleep, or even try tucking them under you neck and use them as support. Have you been having emotional stress in your life right now?, sometimes this can cause the pain you are experiencing. Oh yeah, when you did the Twist & Rip, did you do them tightly right up to the scalp? This will cause discomfort, as dreads need to have loose roots in order to move around, so if this is your problem, it will correct itself as the hair grows, making the roots looser. Let's see what your answers are so we can help you. We would hate for you to cut them off if there is a solution for you.....Peace

They are only to the middle of my back, and they are small...so it's not like they are super heavy or anything. I just find my dreads rather annoying. I love them, but they are a handful. I wish i didn't have to wash them so much, but luckily theydon'ttake that long to dry...so it's not a lot of weight. I have many different pillows i use, and have tried everything to ease my neck pain. I have noticed that my posture has gotten pretty bad sinceI'vehad dreads. Maybethat'ssomething I can work on. I doexercisedaily, but nothing so rough to be hurting me. I was just curious if anyone else has experience neck problems due to their dreads. Thanks for the comments everyone! I see now that it could be many factors. <3 love to you all.

Here is a post comment below from Baba Fats about oily hair. I hope you find it useful. Please keep us up do date on your neck problems and if you found a solution. We are here for you....Peace

Are you adding oils to your BS wash? When you wash with that, are you doing the ACV rinse?

Oily hair means your scalp is too acidic. ACV is an acid. If you are using it, stop. Try washing with JUST BS for a few weeks. The oiliness should go away. Wash like that a few more times. Then VERY GENTLY reintroduce the ACV mix 1 capful of it with 1 gallon of water. Only do this once a week. The other times you wash, don't use any ACV. If you don't get oily after a couple of washes, do the same thing twice a week. If, after another couple of weeks, you still are dry, do it 3 times a week. If you still stay dry after a few washes, you can raise the amount of ACV a little bit 1 wash at a time.

Read more: Hair Gets Greasy After One Day Without Washing - dreadlocks forums http://www.dreadlockssite.com/forum/topics/hair-gets-greasy-after-one-day-without-washing?xg_source=activity#ixzz2OrSQzuPA
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Out of curiosity, are any of your pillows hard, or fat? if so, that could easily tweak your neck and upper back. A neck problem is always about the muscles in your neck itself. Other muscles can be trying to compensate and pulling to much on your neck muscles. Like how many skinny women with large breasts have back problems. If you sleep you your sides, your spine can be pinching on an uncomfortable angle, and your neck is trying to fix it, but can't without pulling too much on certain muscles. I'm not a doctor, so I don't know the exact science of it. But I know when I sleep without a pillow and on my back, my upper back and shoulder pains are much better in the morning.