To start, immediately and frankly: treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is not possible quickly. But it is impossible to cure this disease in a short time and in a hospital - it is still a long process.
Homemade methods can really help to quickly relieve the most unpleasant symptoms and are very important in the fight against the disease in general.
The main methods of treating osteochondrosis
Regardless of which parts of the spine are affected, there are general methods of therapy:
- Medication with external agents, pills or injections.
- Physiotherapy (electrophoresis, magnetic therapy, ultrasound, laser. . . ).
- Reflex treatment (acupuncture, acupressure).
- Massage, manual therapy.
- Corrective gymnastics, climatological treatment and spa.
Several popular methods (compresses, scrubs, teas) should be assigned to the first group. Although the remedies prepared according to popular recipes are not official drugs, their principle of action is similar. And in official medicine, plant extracts and other biologically active substances are often used.
However, not all treatment methods can give quick results. Many are designed for a long process. They help more reliably, but they cannot relieve pain, dizziness or other unpleasant symptoms of cervical osteochondrosis. Some are completely banned for use during an exacerbation of the disease.
Which methods can give a quick result
The treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is the easiest way to perform it quickly with the help of medications. Its action aims to relieve inflammation, hypertonicity of the neck muscles, improve blood circulation and accelerate the recovery processes of cartilage tissues. Many drugs indicated for osteochondrosis are available in the convenient form of tablets or external agents. The well-known pain relief gels help to relieve pain quickly.
Injections, as well as acupuncture and manual therapy are very effective. But the use of these methods has a number of serious limitations. Only in a hospital or clinic can you do physical therapy.
Massage can also give quick results. Doctors recommend self-massage techniques to quickly eliminate dizziness, tinnitus and muscle pain in the neck.
Of the popular methods, external agents have a quick effect - compresses, plasters, friction. But they provide only temporary relief, after which longer courses of treatment are still needed.
Exercise therapy rarely works quickly. It takes weeks to see a noticeable improvement. In addition, most doctors advise against exercise during an exacerbation of the disease, recommending it during recovery and remission. The sanatorium and climate treatment also do not work instantly and it is difficult to obtain them at home. But, on the other hand, these methods provide a stable long-term result.
Is it possible to treat with injections at home?
In theory, yes, but only if the home includes a qualified nurse or paramedic who is familiar with the job. It is very difficult to give injections to the neck, you need to be able to accurately choose the location, direction and depth of needle insertion, otherwise you can cause serious damage. Damage to nerve roots or major blood vessels can be a more serious problem than osteochondrosis.
But injections are very effective and treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is possible quickly with your help. An injection block can relieve even very severe pain in a matter of minutes. Relaxing, anti-inflammatory and restorative remedies, which go directly into the blood and muscles, are most effective.
However, injections are generally recommended in advanced cases, when the symptoms of osteochondrosis are severe. If the disease is at an early stage, it is quite possible to do without them. In a difficult situation, it is better to have the treatment with injections in a medical institution, and at home to apply additional methods that will improve and consolidate the result.
Massage for osteochondrosis at home
A full massage should also be performed by a specialist. Some relatives of the patient may be trained in this area, but a professional is still better.
But simple self-massage techniques can help to reduce the painful manifestations of osteochondrosis at times when it is inconvenient to go to the master. This massage consists of lightly massaging the neck muscles with the help of your fingertips. Helps relieve muscle tension, improve blood circulation, tinnitus and headaches.
When doing the self-massage, you need to follow some basic rules to make it safe and effective:
- Use only your fingertips to work.
- The movements must be performed from top to bottom and from the column to the sides.
- It is necessary to alternate movements of kneading with caressing (in the same direction).
- You shouldn't make much effort when massaging, even if the strength of your hands allows it.
This method works very quickly, but not very difficult and not for long. The massage must be combined with other treatments.
Traditional methods of rapid treatment of cervical osteochondrosis
To obtain a quick result from the number of popular recipes, it is better to choose products for external use. Various teas and infusions give good results, but they take a long time to wait.
But compresses and rubs can remove some symptoms of the disease in hours or even minutes:
- Ordinary pepper vodka is suitable for grinding. Alcohol can be made at the factory, but it is better to insist on the pepper alone.
- Another grinding recipe: mustard, camphor alcohol, vodka (all 50g each), 3 beaten egg whites, leave for half a day.
- Vodka, honey, aloe juice (2: 2: 1), mix and let it ferment overnight. A good anti-inflammatory agent.
- Ideal for compresses - horseradish and burdock leaves, pre-scalded with boiling water.
- A mixture of honey and grated potatoes (equally divided) is also suitable. You can keep it for several hours.
- Grated radish applied as an ointment. It should be washed when a noticeable burning sensation appears on the skin. It's a good distraction. Stimulates blood circulation.
The treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home quickly with folk remedies also involves the use of bee venom and comfrey and spore roots. They are not easy to collect, but you can buy dried roots at the pharmacy or use ready-made ointments based on them.
How neck muscle exercises can help
Physical education is not one of the fast-acting methods, but it is the most reliable. Having been diagnosed with osteochondrosis, it is best to do therapeutic exercises regularly for the rest of your life. They are quite simple, they can even be performed during a break while sitting in a chair:
- The head tilts sideways and back and forth.
- The head rotates, the neck rotates.
- Pulling the neck forward.
- Raising and lowering the shoulders.
- Stretching exercises (mentally stretch the top of the head upwards).
- Autoresistance: pressure with hands on the forehead or neck with resistance on the neck.
- "Drawing" in the air: write imaginary words or numbers in the air with your nose.
How can this type of exercise help? They will strengthen your muscles and provide additional support for your spine. In addition, movement improves blood circulation and oxygen supply to the brain. There is a better chance of releasing stuck roots. Muscle overvoltage will disappear.
But you don't have to wait for instant results. Therefore, you must first relieve exacerbation with medications and then exercise.
Although spinal diseases are very stubborn, symptomatic treatment of cervical osteochondrosis at home is quickly possible. But the patient must remember that the temporary disappearance of symptoms does not mean getting rid of the disease and continuing treatment with other, less rapid methods.