Having a tight, restricted, neck is a problem that many people face. We blame stress, the way we sleep, our bed, all sorts of things. To understand why so many of us have issues with our necks we must consider the anatomy of it and all of the structures related to it. The neck is a complex structure, with muscles nerves and arteries running up and down, over and under other structures in a relatively small area. It is no wonder so many people come into my office with neck problems.
When one looks at a muscle or nerve chart they will see that many of the structures in the neck run long distances into other structures very far away, and many of these structures are linked to other structures farther away through connective tissue, joints and ligaments. The neck supports the head, both of which are supported by the whole body underneath. The movement of the whole body affects the neck, so in a Rolfing Series the more intensive neck work does not come until much later, as the whole body must be aligned before the neck can really be "fixed". This being said, the neck and its relationship to the head are so important that it is a good idea to do some neck work in every Rolfing session, in order to help make any other change in the body possible.
Look at some of the bigger exterior muscles of the neck, and the long span across the body they run. Also note how even where these muscles end, they related to and even interdigitate with other muscles via connective tissue and muscle fibers that are aligned.
The primary reason that the neck should be addressed in every Rolfing session is that it affects the orientation of the head, which in turn affects proprioception, the ability to accurately sense where our bodies and limbs are in space. When proprioception is off, we move in a less economical fashion, and balance is affected. When this occurs, the nervous system may draw our limbs in toward the mid line to protect us from banging into things, pulling the shoulders and even the head/neck farther into flexion. This flexion is a way of not only keeping one from banging into things, it is a primal instinct to protect the soft abdomen and the vital organs, so good luck trying to produce lasting change if the neck is locked up!
Stretching May not Help
When one experiences neck stiffness the first response is to either try to massage it out ourselves or stretch it, and any neck stretch will probably include the shoulders as well. It is important to realize that nerves, veins, and arteries run down from the neck, into the shoulders and down the arms. These structures are very important, vital even, and the nervous system will prioritize protecting them over our general feeling of comfort. When an artery is over stretched it will protect it by locking up the area before it is damaged. If you wonder why you have developed a locked up neck or a frozen shoulder it could be because there is too much strain frequently affecting these areas. It could even be from trying to aggressively stretch too often/ too much. Sometimes gentle and subtle stretches are the key. If the stretching you are doing is not helping then back off a bit, or even a lot.
Just as vital structures like nerves, veins, and arteries run from the neck down the shoulders and arms, so too does muscle and fascia (connective tissue) that form links in a chain of events that connect your hands, wrists, forearms, upper arms, shoulders and neck in one continuous event. When walking, the arms and shoulders must swing freely to allow the kinetic energy of walking and moving around to escape. If this does not occur, then the shock of every step, and the entire movement of the body goes straight up into the neck. Tension in the shoulders, even the forearms and hands can stop the dissipation of this energy from exiting the arms, and that energy will produce strain in the neck. Allowing the arms to swing freely and the shoulders to be relaxed can help avoid this unnecessary strain, and this is why we often do some arm work along with regular neck work, because we view the arms as actually being part of the neck.
Rolfing does not view the body with the same reductionist view point as modern medicine. Any problem in the body, is really a whole body problem. If someone comes in with a neck issue, we can work on the neck, but the neck is probably not the problem, the individual's posture, movement and relationship with gravity is the problem. Every issue is a whole body issue, as well as a whole body/nervous system and mind/body issue. As Ida Rolf was known to say, the psychology of a person affects the body, but as Rolfers we only work with what we can touch.