Tech Neck: How to Relieve Neck Pain From Phones and Computer
Why screen time makes your neck hurt and the two easiest ways to reduce the strain.
Almost every client we see either mentions their neck or appreciates the moment we start working there. Some come in specifically asking for neck and shoulder work. Others don’t think of it as their main problem until we get to that part of the massage. Considering how much time all of us spend on phones and in front of monitors, it is not surprising. We already know that hours at a desk can bother the low back and hips, while keyboards and phones can wear on the wrists and forearms. Screens create their own challenge: they give us endless reasons to hold our heads still, lean forward, or look down for much longer than we realize.
What Is Tech Neck?
“Tech neck” is the everyday name for neck and shoulder soreness, stiffness, fatigue, reduced movement, or headaches that show up around heavy screen use. It is not a precise medical diagnosis, and the research does not support the scary idea that simply looking down at a phone automatically damages your neck. Neck pain is more complicated than one posture. What seems to matter more is how long you stay there, how often you repeat it, and whether your body gets a chance to move. [1]
How Technology Affects the Neck
The examples are everywhere: scrolling with your phone in your lap, watching a tablet in bed, working on a laptop with the screen below eye level, leaning toward a monitor because the text is too small, turning toward a second screen all day, gaming for hours, or holding a phone between your ear and shoulder. Unsupported arms matter too. When your elbows float while you type, scroll, or join a video call, the shoulders tend to lift and the muscles running from the upper back into the neck keep working just to hold everything in place.
What Is Really Bad for Your Neck?
What Is Really Bad for Your Neck?So what is actually the worst? Usually, it is not one dramatic posture. It is a fairly ordinary position held for a very long time. Even a textbook-perfect setup can become uncomfortable if you barely move for two hours. The combination of a low screen, a forward reach, lifted shoulders, and no breaks is especially rough because several areas are working without much relief. Pain that travels down an arm, or comes with numbness, tingling, or weakness, deserves medical attention rather than being written off as tech neck. [2]
Two Things You Can Do Right Now
The first thing to do right now is raise the screen and support your arms. Bring your phone closer to eye level, prop up your tablet, and place the top of your computer monitor at or just below eye level. If you raise a laptop, use a separate keyboard and mouse so you are not trading neck strain for lifted shoulders and awkward wrists. Center your main screen when possible and let the desk, chair arms, or a pillow take some of the weight of your forearms. [3]
The second thing is to move before discomfort makes the decision for you. About every 20 to 30 minutes, change position for a minute: stand up, let your arms hang, roll your shoulders, and gently turn your head from side to side within a comfortable range. Massage can help settle muscles that have been working overtime, but no treatment can make one position ideal for eight straight hours. Technology is not going anywhere, and it does not need to. Our bodies just need more variety than our screens tend to give them.
References
- Resende, P. A., et al. (2025). “Neck pain and text neck using Hill’s criteria of causation: A scoping review.” Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 42, 132–138.
- Yale Medicine. (2026). “What Is Tech Neck—and How Can You Prevent It?”
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration. “Computer Workstations eTool: Good Working Positions.”
Tag: Tech Neck: What It Is and Two Things You Can Do Right Now
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