Sadly, millions of people from all corners of the globe suffer from acute or chronic neck pain. The causes of this condition can be as varied as the people who are afflicted with it. Anything from a previous high school sports injury or automobile accident to just sleeping in the wrong position can cause a person to suffer from mild to severe neck pain, for an indefinite period of time.

However, the main, most common reason for neck pain is not accidents or sports injuries but is in fact simply age. Getting older can be very hard on our bodies, particular our muscles and joints. As we grow old, the joints in bodies start to show the signs of physical wear and tear; this often results in a medical condition called osteoarthritis of the neck.

Another result of aging is the drying out of the ´cushion´ that separates the disks in our spine and neck. This drying out causes the spaces between the disks (vertebrae) in your neck to narrow. Consequently, the nerves running through the neck sometimes get trapped or pinched and become irritated, in turn causing acute or chronic pain.

There is no shortage of prescribed or over-the-counter pharmaceutical or natural formulated herbal remedies that have been specifically designed for the treatment of neck pain. But, unfortunately, none of them seems to offer a long term solution for anyone suffering from chronic or acute neck pain.

One very effective and increasingly popular therapy for helping to ease and control painful neck conditions is physical therapy. This treatment option is considered a conservative choice and is rapidly becoming the first step taken by many neck pain patients. Physical therapy is usually based around the sufferer engaging in special stretches and gentle exercises that are specifically designed for the type of pain the patient is experiencing. These special exercise routines generally help, over a period of time, to control and minimize the severity of the pain that the sufferer feels.

However, the first important sources for pain management information should always be your own personal medical doctor, just to ensure that there are no other underlying medical conditions attached to your pain.

Physical therapy as a treatment option is just the tip of the iceberg for trying to manage your pain and there are many more available, such as a chiropractor or osteopath treatments and in some circumstances neck pain can be aggravated due to an overweight problem - in which case your consultant may decide to recommend a suitable quick weight loss diet along with a mild exercise program such as gentle aerobics or even pilates exercise routines to help speed-up any necessary or required weight loss.

But always bear in mind: no-one is more interested and concerned in getting, and keeping, you pain free than you are. So when considering which treatment to opt for, whether it be physical therapy, a chiropractor, osteopath, or a special "diet for quick weight loss your best advocate in this matter will always be you.