“Is it dangerous to crack your neck?”
I am a 33 year old male. I crack my neck every day. Is it dangerous to crack your neck?
13 Answers
ChiropractorChiropractor
Yes it’s dangerous to try to adjust your own neck. Have a professional do that for you, please.
YES, please go to a professional and stop adjusting your own neck. I have had many patients end up seeing me because of the damage they have done to their own necks. The "popping" sound does not mean it went well, just gas being released so don't go by that. Please see a chiropractor.
The short answer is yes, I would not suggest it if you are not a licensed Chiropractor. The reasoning behind that is you are moving the joints above and below the restricted joints, those above and below are compensating for the joints that are restricted so essentially you are keeping the issue alive buy trying to self correct.
It might be. While "cracking" your own neck relieves tension, it will lead to lax ligaments that won't hold the neck in place. I would recommend against that habit. See a professional chiropractor and find out why you feel the need to manipulate yourself. With a professional adjustment and correction, you will prevent a serious problem.
Hi there!
Common question, and the short answer is yes. In everyone's spine, there are joints that are moving too much, too little, and just the right amount. When you crack your own neck, you are stressing the good parts of your spine, when the bad parts are why you feel the need to crack it; those you cannot move on your own and where a chiropractor comes into play. Hopefully this helped! Enjoy your weekend!
Common question, and the short answer is yes. In everyone's spine, there are joints that are moving too much, too little, and just the right amount. When you crack your own neck, you are stressing the good parts of your spine, when the bad parts are why you feel the need to crack it; those you cannot move on your own and where a chiropractor comes into play. Hopefully this helped! Enjoy your weekend!
Absolutely not safe at all. Stop doing that.
It isn't dangerous, but it's not good for you. If you are able to "crack" your own neck or back, you are almost for sure cracking the wrong joint making the actual stuck joint more stuck and more stuck (which is a likely cause of your initial discomfort). You are also making the loose joint more and more hyper-mobile. Your body doesn't like that. It will feel instability and lay down more bone. That's one of the ways you get early arthritis.
Dr. Jonathan Donath, DC, MS
Dr. Jonathan Donath, DC, MS
It can be. You can strain muscle and/or sprain ligaments in your neck much easier than the think. The motion of cracking your own neck can do that. Also, when you crack your own neck, you are moving joints that are already moving properly. If you could crack your own neck and the correct segment that needed to release would do that on its own, I wouldn’t have a job.
If you “crack” your neck, especially daily , you can cause muscle strain and tendonitis symptoms. As chiropractors, we are trained for 4 years to manipulate the joints of the body using safe, correct methods – resulting in greater range of motion and correct motion of the joints manipulated. We also adjust or manipulate the joint in the correct plane and vector to maximize the adjustment – something you cannot do by yourself without training. You might get the ‘pop’ or ‘crack’, but that is just gasses moving from one area of the joint to another -NOT the proper adjustment. See your chiropractor to get adjusted!
Yes, because you are potentially making your neck more unstable which will result in more severe injury.
Yes.
This is most likely harmless. The issue I have with anyone trying to adjust themselves is that the segment(s) you are cracking are already moving, and the stuck segment remains stuck.
Endorphins can be released with cracking your own neck and this may feel good. However in my opinion no untrained individual should crack their own neck or anybody else's neck. Let a trained and licensed Doctor make an evaluation and determine of the need for making proper manipulations.
