Whether your neck pain is caused by an injury, poor posture, stress, a pinched nerve or arthritis, it can range from mildly irritating to a sharp or burning sensation. Underlying conditions that could cause neck pain can include a slipped disc, whiplash from an automobile accident, or scoliosis.

Neck pain often resolves itself and disappears within a week. If you have had neck pain for longer than a week you might contact your doctor or chiropractor to have a look at it.

Doing these easy exercises is an effective way to build strength and flexibility in your neck and shoulder muscles and ligaments. Correcting your sitting posture if you spend long hours in front of a computer is another smart way to avoid future neck pain from strain.

Exercises to Relieve Neck Pain -

Move gently into these stretches and stop as soon as you feel a sharp or increased pain.

Side Stretch -

Sit comfortably with spine straight

Keep your shoulders down

Move your head slightly to one side bringing your ear to your shoulder

Breathe deeply and hold for 5-10 seconds

Chin to Chest -

Sit or stand comfortably with spine straight

Bring shoulder blades together

Inhale deeply and slowly bring your chin down towards your chest as you exhale

Keep your shoulders down

Hold for 10-20 seconds and slowly release

Head Rotation -

Sit or stand with your spine straight

Gently rotate your head to one side and then the other

Your goal is to turn your head far enough to line your chin up with your shoulder

Do 10 repetitions on each side

Neck Pain Exercises to Increase Strength and Flexibility -

These exercises are good to do if you've got an exercise ball at home, or you can do them at the gym.

Ball Crunches -

Begin by sitting on the ball and then walk it forward so that your lower back is braced on it. Crossing your hands in front of your chest, keep your neck in line with your spine, inhale and lean forward into a crunching motion as you exhale. Do 10 repetitions.

Human Rolling Pin -

Kneel on the mat with your fingers on the ball. Roll on the ball keeping your body in a straight line and then roll back in. This strengthens your back, neck and abdominals.

Yoga Poses for Neck Pain -

Bharadvaja's Twist -

This is a gentle seated twist that strengthens the neck and spine and massages the abdominal organs.

Cat and Cow Pose -

The cow is a gentle pose that warms up and mobilizes the spine while the cow provides a gentle opposing stretch that massages the spine and organs in the belly.

Savasana -

Corpse pose is another name for this pose that inspires complete relaxation of the body and mind.

There are many yoga pose directories on the Internet where you can find illustrations and even videos of these poses or asana being performed.

When you incorporate some of these exercises into your regular exercise routine, you may find that after a while you won't experience as much neck pain.

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