Even legends need relief. Here's what 1,500 years of bad posture teaches us about chronic neck pain — and why a single treatment is rarely enough to fix it.

Let's talk about the Loch Ness Monster.

Not whether she's real — we'll leave that to the sonar crews and the tourists with binoculars. We're talking about her neck. Specifically, what roughly 1,500 years of craning it above the water has done to her cervical spine.

Because here's the thing: Nessie's neck problems? They're not so different from yours.

Chronic neck pain is one of the most common complaints we see at Nordstrom Chiropractic — and one of the most misunderstood. Most people assume it will just go away with enough stretching, enough ibuprofen, or enough time. For a lot of patients, it doesn't. It just becomes background noise they've learned to live with.

Why Chronic Neck Pain Sticks Around

The cervical spine — your neck — supports the full weight of your head while allowing more range of motion than any other part of your spine. That flexibility comes at a cost: it's also one of the easiest places in the body to strain, misalign, or overload.

Common causes of chronic neck pain include:

1. Poor posture from desk work, driving, or looking down at phones
2. Sleeping in an awkward position, repeated night after night
3. Stress, which causes the neck and shoulder muscles to chronically tighten
4. Old injuries that never fully healed
5. Misalignment in the cervical vertebrae putting pressure on surrounding nerves
6. Weak supporting muscles that can't hold proper posture for long
7. And apparently — surfacing above a Scottish loch for over a millennium

The last one is Nessie's problem. The rest? Those are very human problems — and they're exactly what we treat every day at Nordstrom Chiropractic in Anchorage.

Why One Treatment Usually Isn't Enough

If you've dealt with neck pain before, you've probably tried at least one of these:

1. Over-the-counter pain relievers
2. Heating pads or ice packs
3. Stretching routines found online
4. A single massage or chiropractic visit, hoping it would “fix it”
5. Just waiting it out

These approaches can help temporarily, but chronic neck pain is rarely caused by just one thing — which means it's rarely solved by just one treatment. Misalignment, muscle tension, and deep tissue inflammation often layer on top of each other after months or years of strain. Treating only one layer leaves the others to keep causing pain.

That's why we don't hand every patient the same treatment. We build a plan.

A Comprehensive Plan: Chiropractic, Massage, and SoftWave

At Nordstrom Chiropractic, every new patient starts with a full evaluation — not a guess. From there, we build a treatment plan around what's actually causing the pain, drawing from three complementary approaches:

Chiropractic Care

Chiropractic adjustments correct misalignment in the cervical spine, relieving pressure on nerves and restoring proper joint motion. This addresses the structural root of many neck pain cases — not just the discomfort it causes.

Massage Therapy

Chronic neck pain almost always comes with chronically tight muscles in the neck, shoulders, and upper back. Licensed massage therapy releases that tension, improves circulation, and helps the surrounding tissue actually respond to chiropractic care rather than fighting against it.

SoftWave Therapy

For deeper inflammation or tissue damage that adjustments and massage alone can't fully resolve, SoftWave Therapy uses advanced acoustic wave technology to stimulate your body's natural healing response at the cellular level — without surgery, injections, or downtime.

Not every patient needs all three. Some just need an adjustment and a massage plan. Others — especially those with longer-standing, more inflamed conditions — benefit most from combining all three approaches into one coordinated plan.

That's the difference between a quick fix and an actual recovery.

BE LEGENDARY. BOOK YOUR EVALUATION.

New patients: try SoftWave Therapy for just $49.

If a 1,500-year-old cryptid can finally ask for a real plan — so can you.

Call us or book online at thebestanchoragechiropractor.com

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need chiropractic care, massage, and SoftWave, or just one?

It depends on your evaluation. Many patients start with chiropractic care and massage, and add SoftWave Therapy if deeper inflammation or chronic tissue damage is found. We build the plan around your specific diagnosis — not a one-size-fits-all package.

Is SoftWave Therapy painful?

Most patients describe mild discomfort during treatment — nothing like the pain they've been living with. Sessions typically last 10–15 minutes.

How long does it take to see results?

Many patients notice improvement within the first few visits. A typical comprehensive plan runs several weeks, with results building progressively as the underlying causes are addressed.

Do I need a referral to see a chiropractor in Alaska?

No referral is needed. You can call or book online directly with Nordstrom Chiropractic.

Is the $49 new patient offer really that good?

Yes. It is. Even Nessie thought so.

Nordstrom Chiropractic | Anchorage, Alaska

Serving Anchorage, Eagle River, JBER, and surrounding communities.

thebestanchoragechiropractor.com