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[Treatment] Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
#1
Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
Hi all,

A soft cervical collar has reduced my OA events significantly, sometimes as low as 2 or 3 OA events total.  Last night I slept with a collar and no pillow.  I had zero OA events, a first for me.  I also woke with a horrible lower backache.  I NEVER have backaches, even though I'm obese (BMI 28).

Here's what I want to know: Is sleeping without a pillow a common source of backaches? Is no pillow plus a soft cervical collar a recipe for a backache?

I like driving down the number of OA events, but not at the cost of having a backache.

Thanks for any info.

Lance

(I haven't done an introductory post--I figured this was a general enough question that it isn't about my situation in particular.)
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#2
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
I wouldn't say sleeping without a pillow is a common cause of back aches although doing so for the first time after decades of sleeping with a pillow might be considered a common cause. Try using consecutively thinner pillows or give it a while to see if body adapts and pain goes away.
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#3
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
How does your collar fit? I have a small neck, and the collar made for normal people is enormously too big on me.  Grin  The two ends were lapping over each other, and the sticky velcro tab was way over on the stockinette rather than on the velcro "landing strip"

I actually cut it apart and cut out 5-1/2 inches worth of foam and then sewed it back together. (yes, that's 25% of the length!) Now the two foam edges butt up against each other and the velcro tab lands on the place it's supposed to. And more importantly, there isn't this big lump under the back of my neck -- which was pretty uncomfortable with or without a pillow. And, yeah, at least for me the lump would cause me to tense up my muscles, including back muscles.
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#4
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RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
I continued using a soft cervical collar without a pillow, and I'm getting excellent results.  And no backaches.

To summarize: on the first night I tried the collar without a pillow, I woke with a horrible backache. I never get backaches.  But I continued doing it, and haven't had a backache since.

Anyway, to answer a question above, my shirt collar ranges between 18" and 19", depending on my weight.

Thanks for the comments, and thanks everyone for this site.
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#5
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
That is good, just took body a while to get used to the new sleeping arrangement.
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#6
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
Glad to hear the backache was just your body complaining about the change!

Huh... is the BMI scale different in the US? I've always worked on the basis that 25-29.9 was overweight, and obese was 30+ - though it can be misleading for very fit and very short or tall people.
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#7
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
Yeah, I don't know anything about BMI.  I took the number from my primary care physician's portal, but I don't know how to interpret it. I'm definitely obese, not overweight.
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#8
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
Great that your backache is gone. If it returns, consider sleeping with a pillow under your knees.
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#9
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
I'd try a smaller, thinner pillows versus none. My neck size is 18.5 and BMI I lost track. 30 ish maybe.
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#10
RE: Soft cervical collar + no pillow = backache?
Can you tell me what kind of cervical collar you are using - maybe an Amazon, or otherwise, link?
  Thank you.
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