Hi there!

Having ignored the pain at the base of my spine for years, then swiftly becoming bedridden, I suggest you see your doctor asap!

There's an excellent article about miscellaneous causes of neck pain and I'd advise you to read it before seeing anyone (see below).

Please don't leave it too late like I did. It may be nothing bar strained muscles, but you just never know.

Bye, Val

PS This is only my own opinion, but based on 'if only ....'

http://www.spine-health.com/conditions/back-pain/miscellaneous-causes-up...

hi and welcome to the forum! we are here to offer you support and answer what questions we can. i think val has given you some good advice.. better to be checked than to worry and hurt yourself!! so see a doctor!! good luck and i hope you feel better soon! Jenny

I suggest you see a doctor to have that checked. It may not be alarming but at least you’ll find out what exactly is causing it. At the same time, you may ask for a pain reliever since from the way you described it, it keeps you from getting a good sleep. For joint pain, the best pain medication is tramadol. So ask your doctor if it can help you with your case. Advise us on what your doctor will tell you what that is. Thanks and take care.

rocksteady apologies, but tramadol is not necessarily the best thing for joint pain. Tramadol might be the best medication in your case, but there are alternatives which could provide better relief.

Wherever possible, the user should contact their doctor and follow advice given.

Val

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Has this been the first time you have had a problem like this? You mentioned this started about 5 or 6 days ago. Was there anything that you might have done to hurt your shoulder/neck?
When you mentioned that you are having difficulties moving your neck, I would tend to lean on the side of a muscle related problem. Arthritis should not come on all that suddenly, its more of a progressive problem.
Has the situation started to get worse or has it stayed the same? What have you been doing for it?
(Any moist warm heat, Over the counter medications, etc)
I would at least start to call your primary care physician to see what they have to say.

A side note, regarding rocksteady's post.. Never tell a doctor what medication you want or even if you need pain medications, etc. Many times that would be the first red flag that a doctor may see in a patient. The best thing to do is to talk it over with your doctor, explain your situation, the pain level you are in, what you can and can not do.
At that point, the doctor would probably recommend some treatments. Narcotic pain medications is something that no doctor is going to jump into. There are many other ways to try to treat the problem.

As Ron has suggested above, a sudden neck stiffness is very likely a soft tissue problem. Strained tendon, tight muscles etc.
You may not have done anything to cause it suddenly, though as Ron suggests think back over what you were doing in the days before.
More than likely it is the result of a buildup of muscle stress and strain, and they eventually say STOP!!! The neck pain ensures that you comply.
In my case, i get that symptom when I overuse my trapezius muscles, which shorten and pull down on my neck muscles.
Very tight and sore neck.
Rest eventually settles it down. Hot baths, ice packs or heat packs, muscle relaxants can all help.
Watch your posture, especially when using electronic devices-games, PC etc.
These are very hard on arms, shoulders, back and neck.
You can get away with it for quite a while.....then it gets you suddenly with a whack!