Why Your Neck Hurts. What your pelvis has to do with it.

Let’s talk about neck pain. You know — that dull, nagging ache that creeps in after a long day at your desk, or the stiffness that makes you roll your shoulders every few minutes hoping for relief. It’s so common that many of us just accept it as part of modern life.

If you’ve ever found yourself massaging your neck at the end of the day, wondering “why does it always feel like this?” You’re not alone — and it doesn’t have to be that way.

The Forward Head: When Your Neck Takes One for the Team

Take a second and notice where your head is right now. Is it sitting neatly over your shoulders, or is it leaning forward toward the screen? If you’re like most people, it’s probably the latter. 

That’s what’s known as forward head, and it means your head is sitting a few centimetres in front of your shoulders rather than balanced above them. It doesn’t sound like much, but since the average head weighs around 5–6 kilograms, every bit of forward movement increases the load on your neck muscles dramatically. For every inch the head goes forward in this way, the load on the muscles of the neck increases by around 2.5 kilos!! They end up working overtime just to keep you from toppling forward — and over time, that extra effort turns into fatigue, stiffness, and pain.

It’s simply a reflection of how we live now.

Our Sedentary, Screen-Bound Lives

We sit more than any generation before us. At desks, in cars, on couches. And when we sit, we’re often focused on a screen — computer, phone, tablet, TV — each one pulling our attention (and our head) forward.

You know that feeling when you look up from your laptop after a few hours and realise your shoulders are up by your ears, your jaw feels tight, and your neck is aching? That’s your body’s way of saying, “Hey, I wasn’t designed to hold this position for so long!”

Over time, this “tech neck” posture becomes the new normal. 

We also live life at a pace. Our minds are full and busy and we are always thinking “ahead” this can also change our organisation as we are rushing forwards to meet goals and a busy schedule. When our brain and thoughts are in the future, it doesn’t just impact our head but impacts the whole body. Our default becomes a spine that rounds, shoulders that roll in, and a head that inches forward. It’s a perfect storm for tension, and it can feel surprisingly draining — not just physically, but mentally too. Constant discomfort takes energy. It’s hard to feel relaxed, creative, or focused when your neck is quietly protesting all day.

The Surprising Role of the Pelvis

Now here’s where it gets interesting — your neck pain might start much lower down.

Our spine is designed with natural curves. These are normal and healthy. They are not a mistake. They allow us to move. And when each is in relationship with the other and free to move. When your pelvis tucks under, your lower back flattens, your chest collapses a little, and your head naturally shifts forward to keep your eyes level with the horizon. It’s your body’s way of adapting to stay upright, but the result is a chain reaction that travels up the spine. Before you know it, your neck is carrying the compensation for what’s happening in your hips and pelvis.

A tucked pelvis is often the result of long hours sitting. The hip flexors tighten, the hamstrings shorten, and the natural curve in your lower back disappears. Without that gentle curve to support the spine, everything above needs to adjust. And the neck — being at the top of the structure — often ends up taking the strain.

Tight Ribs and a Grippy Diaphragm: The Hidden Players

There’s another piece to this puzzle that most people never think about — your ribcage and diaphragm.

A tucked pelvis when we sit means we are slouching. When we sit a lot in this way there is more compression on the diaphragm, our breathing tends to become shallow and confined to the chest. The ribs stop moving as freely, and the diaphragm — our main breathing muscle — becomes tight and restricted. When that happens, the upper body starts to stiffen, and the neck and shoulders receive less support and this means that even more load and effort gets added to an already overworked area.

It’s no wonder that by the end of the day, it feels like your neck and shoulders are locked in place.

How the Feldenkrais Method Can Help

Here’s the good news: it is possible to change this — and not through correcting yourself by bracing your posture or forcing yourself to “sit up straight.”

The Feldenkrais Method offers a gentle, intelligent way to re-educate your body and nervous system. Instead of treating your neck pain as something to “fix,” it invites you to explore how you move — how your head, spine, ribs, and pelvis all relate to each other. When you become more aware of these connections, you can begin to move with more ease and less strain.

In a Feldenkrais session, you might lie on the floor and explore small, comfortable movements — rolling your head, shifting your pelvis, or sensing how your ribs expand with your breath. It might sound simple, but these subtle explorations teach your brain new options for movement. The result is often a sense of lightness, freedom, and ease — like your body’s found its natural balance again.

Breaking the Cycle of Tension and Fatigue

What makes this approach so powerful is that it helps you break the cycle. Instead of reacting to pain with more effort (stretching harder, forcing posture, or tensing in resistance), you learn to do less — to move with awareness and curiosity.

When your nervous system feels safe and supported, it lets go of unnecessary tension. Your head begins to balance more effortlessly on top of your spine, your breathing deepens, and that sense of heaviness starts to lift. You might even notice you have more energy at the end of the day because you’re not using so much effort just to hold yourself up.

A Kinder Way to Feel Better

If you’ve been living with neck pain for a while, you know how draining it can be. It’s tiring to feel uncomfortable in your own body — to always be adjusting, stretching, or trying to find relief that doesn’t last.

But change doesn’t have to come from force. It can come from awareness, from curiosity, and from learning to move in new ways. That’s what the Feldenkrais Method offers — not just less pain, but more ease, more flexibility, and more choice in how you live and move.

So next time your neck starts to complain, take a breath, soften your gaze, and sense how the rest of you is supporting it. Sometimes, the key to a happier neck starts all the way down at your pelvis.

Ready to Feel the Difference?

If you’re curious about how the Feldenkrais Method could help you move more comfortably and rediscover a sense of ease in your body, why not give it a try? You don’t need to be flexible, fit, or pain-free to start — just open to exploring how you move. Even a single session can help you feel lighter, calmer, and more connected from head to toe.

You’re warmly invited to join a Feldenkrais class — either in person in Forest Row or online from the comfort of your home. It’s a gentle, welcoming space to slow down, reconnect with yourself, and discover how small movements can make a big difference. Your neck (and the rest of you) might just thank you for it.

If you’d like to move with more comfort and ease, the Feldenkrais Method can help you rediscover balance in your body. Get in touch to find out more.