Don’t try to stretch it out. Neck muscles sometimes spasm because they are overstretched!

Ouch, you can’t move your neck. What to do?

• Put your neck and upper shoulder muscles on slack. To do this, lean on a counter or table. Shrug your shoulder towards your ear and slump your ear towards your shoulder. Now your shoulder/neck muscles are scrunched and if you touch them, they should be soft.
• Use the fingers of your opposite hand to move and manipulate these muscles, squeeze them between your fingers, squish and soften them. Even though there is less space in your neck/shoulder area than usual because of your shrugged position, you can effect some change in the muscles — without stretching them.

It usually takes a few days for a neck spasm to dissipate. While you wait — avoid testing and stretching it. But do try the gentle massage idea.

For the record, stretching your neck is okay, just not when you are experiencing a stiff neck from something like having “slept wrong”.