
I'm Chris Harper, and with me here is John, and we're here to demonstrate an application for neck pain. This when you have pain at the base and along the back of the neck. Some potential causes of this may be stress, overuse such as sitting at a desk or computer throughout the day, looking down while running, or repetetive motions. Some other causes may include car accidents, sudden changes of direction, or sleeping awkwardly. KT Tape helps treat this condition by assisting in posture, relaxing muscles, relieving pressure to reduce pain, and may increase circulation. So for this application, we're going to have John spin around so we can see the back of his neck. We're going to position him by stretching the skin on the back of the neck, so we're going to bring that chin down towards the sternum or the chest, as much as is comfortable. We're going to tear our first strip. I'm going to twist and tear the backing paper down near one end of the tape to create an anchor point. I'm being very careful not to touch the adhesive of the tape. Okay, to measure where this goes, I'm going to go a good three or four inches below the hairline of the neck, and go ahead and just let this fall. Being careful not to touch the adhesive, I'm applying this anchor. I'm going right over the muscles to the side of the spine. Okay, and to apply this I'm going to take that backing paper off, and leaving a little bit of paper on there so I can handle the tape without touching the adhesive. I'm going to stretch this nice and evenly with twenty five percent stretch. So if that's a hundred percent, I'm going to back that off fifty percent, and fifty percent again . I'm going to lay that down, except for the last little bit. I'm going to just let that end of the tape fall onto the skin with absolutely zero stretch. Okay, for the next piece just like the first one, I'm going to twist and tear the backing paper down near one end of the tape, and remove that. I'm going to measure as I did with the first one. So that ends up at about the same place as that first strip. I'm just on the muscles on the opposite side of the neck , and just like with the first one, I'm applying this with twenty five percent stretch. So stretching out a hundred percent back that off fifty, and back that off fifty percent again. That should end up at about twenty five percent stretch. I'm laying that down, and I'm now going to remove the backing paper with, absolutely zero stretch , as I lay that tail down. I'm going to give the whole application is good friction rub, and I've got one more piece. Just like the first two, I'm going to take a full strip. This time I'm going to twist and tear the paper in the middle of that piece, again being very careful not to touch the adhesive of the tape. I'm also going to apply a stretch to the middle of this piece, and how I do that is nice and evenly with my thumbs, I'm not trying to pull in the middle of the tape, but putting my thumbs flat. And if we have a point of pain in this area, I'm going to stretch this piece eighty percent, so if I go all the way out and back that off just a little bit. I'm going to go ahead and lay that piece down with eighty percent stretch. I'm going to lay that down just like with the first two. The ends of the tape I'm going to place on the skin with absolutely zero stretch. I'm taking that paper off and laying that down with absolutely zero stretch. I'm going to give the whole application a little bit of friction, that creates heat. That allows the adhesive to really stick to the skin well. Okay, that looks good, now we can come up out of that position, and you should have a little bit of wrinkling in the tape. That looks great. Some helpful tips before applying. Clean the skin very well, remove any oils or lotions you may have on. Be careful with taking clothing on or off as this may roll the tape. Try not to tape into the hairline, this may cause a little pulling of the hair if turning your head. Also, you can use beige KT Tape if you don't want the application to be that visible. Some complementary treatments may include rest, ice, relaxation, massage, physical therapy, or chiropractic care, or anti inflammatory medications such as ibuprofen. Please seek care if you have extreme pain or swelling, loss of range of motion, symptoms radiating into the extremities, or if any of these symptoms remain persistent. For more information see our website at www.KTTape.com