Long COVID neck pain and burning, often stuck in bed; somewhat better after pacing and LDN
- Condition
- Long COVID
- At worst
- Severe (mostly bedbound)
- Ill before improving or writing
- 3 years
- Last post
- Jun 2025
In their words
- Condition: Long COVID
I also have had disturbing new popping and cracking in my neck after covid
In context ↗ - At worst: Severe
I'm finding myself stuck in bed more and more often ... I can barely leave the house or move around in my house
In context ↗ - Now: Somewhat better
I have noticed the hot/burning feeling and popping/cracking noises have calmed a bunch down in the past few months
In context ↗ - Began after: COVID
popping and cracking in my neck after covid
Summary
A Reddit user with long COVID after a COVID infection described neck cracking, a hot burning feeling at the base of the skull and arms that tired and hurt quickly, and was stuck in bed more and more often by April 2025. A Quest 3 VR headset let them explore and socialise lying down and cut pain by up to 30%. After about three years the neck symptoms calmed; they credited starting pacing and six months of LDN as possible reasons.
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What they tried
What they credit
Also tried
Their words about each treatment
- Quest 3 vr headset · Helped
vr can reduce my pain by up to 30% when I'm wearing it
In context ↗ - something for nausea · Not said
I take something for nausea beforehand
In context ↗ - perscription inserts with blue light blockers · Helped
I use perscription inserts with blue light blockers that help.
In context ↗ - meditation · Helped
park myself there and meditate ... It also has a side effect of keeping my pain lower
In context ↗ - Icing the base of my skull · Helped
Icing the base of my skull seemed to help slightly.
In context ↗ - pacing · Helped
Have literally no clue what I'm doing differently other than the fact I started pacing
In context ↗ - LDN · Helped
But I've been on LDN 6 months now so that could also be making a difference.
In context ↗
Approaches: Pacing
Their path
They say too little about how ill they were at each step to draw it on the severity scale, so the steps are listed as they describe them. Dates are when they posted.
| When | What happened | Where they were | After |
|---|---|---|---|
| onset | illness began after COVIDI also have had disturbing new popping and cracking in my neck after covidIn context ↗ | Not stated | |
| 2025-04-25 | stuck in bed more and more, could barely leave the houseI'm finding myself stuck in bed more and more often ... I can barely leave the house or move around in my houseIn context ↗ | Severe | |
| 2025-06-27 | burning at the base of the skull and neck cracking calmed downthe hot/burning feeling and popping/cracking noises have calmed a bunch down in the past few monthsIn context ↗ | Not stated | Low-dose naltrexone |
Symptoms mentioned
Their words about their symptoms
- Pain & fibromyalgia
vr can reduce my pain by up to 30% when I'm wearing it
In context ↗ - Muscle weakness
my arms get tired and in pain too fast to do a lot of hobbies
In context ↗ - Neuropathy & tingling
the base of my skull feeling hot and like it's burning
In context ↗
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