Clinically reviewed by What is breastfeeding neck pain
Feeding a newborn means sitting still with your head bent forward, holding three to five kilograms, eight to twelve times a day for twenty to forty minutes at a time. Nobody warns you what that does to your neck.
The result is an ache at the base of the neck and between the shoulder blades that builds through the day, and often pain at the thumb side of the wrist from lifting the baby. In Urdu it is gardan aur kandhon ka dard.
It is extremely common and almost never discussed. It is also one of the easiest problems to fix, because most of it comes from how you are positioned.
Symptoms you might have
- An ache at the base of the neck and between the shoulder blades, worse by evening
- Headache starting at the base of the skull
- Pain on the thumb side of the wrist, worse lifting the baby under the arms or wringing a cloth
- Numbness or tingling in the hand at night, which can be the nerve at the wrist. The carpal tunnel page covers that
- Much better on a day someone else does the feeds, which tells you it is load and position, not damage
Why it happens
- Looking down at the baby for the whole feed instead of bringing the baby up to you
- Arms unsupported, so the neck and shoulder muscles carry the baby's weight
- Feeding on a bed or a low chair with a rounded back and no support
- Feet dangling, which tips the pelvis back and rounds the whole spine
- Scrolling the phone through every feed, which doubles the time your neck is bent
- Lifting the baby with the thumbs out and the wrists bent, which strains the thumb tendons
When you should see a physiotherapist
Come in as soon as it is a daily problem. Most of it settles within two to four weeks once the positioning is corrected. Get your doctor's clearance before starting an exercise programme after delivery.
See a doctor the same day if one breast becomes red, hot, hard or painful with a fever, which can be mastitis and needs medical treatment, not physiotherapy. Go to a hospital the same day for a severe or unusual headache with blurred vision in the weeks after delivery, because preeclampsia can still happen then.
See a doctor urgently if your hands become clumsy, if you are dropping things, if your walking feels unsteady, or if there is any change in bladder or bowel control. Those are not feeding posture problems.
Al-Shama Physiotherapy Clinic
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How it is treated
The assessment checks the neck, upper back, shoulder blades and wrist, and it looks at how you actually feed, which is where most of the answer is.
- Positioning correction, the most effective part: pillow height, arm support, a stool under your feet and a supported back, so the baby comes up to you
- Manual therapy to the neck, upper back and shoulder muscles, which gives quick relief from the stiffness and the headaches
- Exercise therapy, deep neck and shoulder blade strengthening plus upper back mobility, three to five minutes a day
- A thumb and wrist splint for pain on the thumb side of the wrist, which is the single most useful thing for that problem
- Ultrasound and electrotherapy for a painful wrist tendon or a stubborn area of muscle pain
- Dry needling for tight bands in the shoulder and upper back muscles, and hijama across the upper back where it suits you
Treatment is applied to the neck, upper back and wrist, not over the breast. None of this needs surgery. Wrist tendon pain from lifting a baby settles with splinting, technique and time.
Exercises, and what to avoid
What helps
- Chin tucks: draw the chin gently back and level, hold five seconds, ten times, several times a day
- Shoulder blade squeezes: pull the blades down and back, hold five seconds, ten times after every few feeds
- Upper back extension over the back of a chair or a rolled towel along the spine, two minutes
- Gentle wrist and thumb tendon glides, and squeezing a soft ball with the wrist kept straight
What to avoid
- Lifting the baby with thumbs out sideways and wrists bent. Scoop from underneath with both forearms and keep the wrists straight
- Strong thumb stretching while the thumb side of the wrist is acutely painful
- Rolling the head in circles. One direction at a time is better
- Phone in hand through the feed, which is the biggest single add on to neck load in the day
What you can do at home
Bring the baby to the breast, not the breast to the baby. Build pillows or a folded blanket up until the baby is at nipple height, so you are not leaning forward or looking down.
Support your own body first: back against the chair, a cushion in the small of the back, elbows resting on pillows, both feet flat on a low stool.
Change positions between feeds. Cradle, cross cradle, under the arm, and side lying. No single position should carry every feed.
Heat on the neck and upper back for fifteen minutes in the evening. For a sharply painful wrist, ice for ten minutes with a cloth over the skin, and wear the splint, especially at night.
How long it takes
Neck and upper back pain from feeding usually improves within one to two weeks of correcting the positioning, and settles in three to four weeks with the exercises added. Headaches coming from the neck usually settle along with it.
Pain on the thumb side of the wrist takes longer, commonly six to twelve weeks, because you cannot stop lifting the baby. The splint and the lifting technique decide the timeline.
What makes it drag on is feeding in the same unsupported position for months and doing no strengthening at all. Three to five minutes a day is enough to change it.
Urdu / Roman Urdu
Choose your reading script / اپنی پسند کا رسم الخط منتخب کریں
اردوUrdu script
بچے کو دودھ پلانے کے دنوں میں گردن، کندھوں اور کلائی کا درد بہت عام ہے، لیکن اس پر بات نہیں ہوتی۔ یہ آسانی سے ٹھیک ہو جاتا ہے۔
اصل وجہ بیٹھنے کا طریقہ ہے: دن میں آٹھ سے بارہ دفعہ، گردن جھکا کر، بازوؤں پر بچے کا وزن۔
بہتری کے لیے بچے کو تکیوں پر اونچی جگہ پر لائیں تاکہ جھکنا نہ پڑے، کمر کو سہارا دیں، پیروں کے نیچے اسٹول رکھیں، اور بازوؤں کے نیچے تکیہ رکھیں۔ دودھ پلانا کے دوران موبائل دیکھنا چھوڑ دیں۔
بچے کو اٹھاتے وقت انگوٹھے باہر نہ نکالیں، دونوں ہاتھوں سے نیچے سے سہارا دیں اور کلائی سیدھی رکھیں۔ گردن پر گرم سیک، کلائی پر ٹھنڈا سیک۔ ورزش سے پہلے ڈاکٹر سے اجازت لے لیں۔
Roman Urdu
Bachay ko doodh pilane ke dinon mein gardan, kandhon aur kalai ka dard bohat aam hai, lekin is par baat nahi hoti. Ye asani se theek ho jata hai.
Asal wajah baithne ka tareeqa hai: din mein aath se baarah dafa, gardan jhuka kar, baazuon par bachay ka wazan.
Behtari ke liye bachay ko takiyon par oonchi jagah par layen takay jhukna na pare, kamar ko sahara den, pairon ke neeche stool rakhen, aur baazuon ke neeche takiya rakhen. Feed ke doran mobile dekhna chhor dein.
Bachay ko uthate waqt angoothe bahar na nikalen, dono haathon se neeche se sahara den aur kalai seedhi rakhen. Gardan par garam sek, kalai par thanda sek. Warzish se pehle doctor se ijazat le len.
Treatment at the clinic, and online
INFORMATION → INDIVIDUAL CARE
A plan built around you.
Talk with Dr. Zahra Fatima, DPT. Understand your next steps, with guidance for your own symptoms and daily routine.
Talk it through
Discuss your symptoms, what you find difficult and what you want to get back to.
Understand your next steps
Use the consultation to discuss which care and exercises fit your situation.
Take your plan with you
Your online consultation includes a written plan you can refer to afterwards.
Questions people ask
Why does my neck hurt so much since the baby came?
How should I sit while breastfeeding to avoid pain?
What is the pain on the thumb side of my wrist?
Can I have physiotherapy while breastfeeding?
Will the pain go when I stop feeding?
Related conditions
- Pelvic floor weakness and exercises
- Back pain in pregnancy
- Diastasis recti treatment
- Lower back pain in women
- Recovery after a C-section