Pain in neck, collar bone and shoulders when drinking alcohol??

Posted , 36 users are following.

For ages now I seem to get a horrible type of pain in my neck, collar bone and shoulders when drinking alcohol! It's not every time and sometimes if i'm drinking for example wine, one session I can be fine on it, the next time I drink wine it can cause the pain. It can vary between what I drink and how much. It's a horrible achy, gnawing pain and it's so uncomfortable and it won't go unless I either stop drinking for 20 mins or if I make myself sick it'll go instantly. 

It's so annoying does anyone know what this could be? 

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  • Posted

    I would look into autoimmune diseases, but depends if you have any other symptoms. Alcohol is inflammatory so it could just be that.

  • Edited

    I have the same exact pain. Actually experiencing it right now which is how i ended up on this thread. I only had 2 sips and it happened. This happens to me once in a blue moon and it goes away after about 15-20 mins. One day i can drink a lot and nothing happens and then other days i take a sip and my shoulders and back are on firee. This has happened for years but its rare that it happens. I remember it first happened about 9 years ago and my friends were making fun saying i was just drunk, but i hadn't drunk much. I was just in pain.

    Not sure of it depends on the type of drink but today, i had a couple sips of jack daniels and coke. Let me know if you find out anything.

  • Posted

    It's funny but I also have this thing happen. When I talked to my doctor at first he wasn't sure what I meant, but the more I described the symptoms, his hypothesis was this. We carry tension in our shoulders and neck (sometimes we don't even notice it). We sit wrong (desks/computers). If you're a woman, add on the bra straps pulling down on the shoulders. Alcohol consumption actually relaxes muscles, and once the tension starts to bleed out, the muscles that have been contracted (even a little) release and it's like a cramp that gets triggered before it's released. Drinking water before and after having a drink seems to help, and I made sure to get a pillow style massager and run it over my shoulders every day if I remember. It really really made a huge difference. I can have the occasional drink and I don't feel weird random shoulder/neck pain.

    • Posted

      wow this really makes a lot of sense .

      I was gonna city break last year, has been doing a lot of walking all day with a heavy bag in my shoulder which I kept switching sides due to it being heavy , I had an ache in my neck and shoulder all day took this . after I went and got showed it went but I then had a drink that night and felt a cramping pain . i of course thought the worst due to my anxiety , but this makes a lot of sense.

      thank you for adding this to this thread

    • Posted

      I have had right shoulder pain and discomfort into chest after drinking fruity drinks only i.e, strawberry daiquiri, wine cooler and tangerine margarita. Regular margaritas and white wine cause no problem. I rarely drink because of the discomfort, only lasts for about a half hour but not worth the discomfort. Was wondering if it was caused by sulfites in fruit additives?

    • Posted

      it may well be ! I have noticed that even recently certain drinks cause the pain, like fizzy fruity wine or pork stat martini, so maybe there is a link with the sugary fruit drinks too!

  • Posted

    this also happens to me!! it does not happen every time I drink. i have found that when i mix sugary fruity drinks its the worst. if i am going to drink (hardly ever do now due to this, i stick to straight up silver tequila or a dirty vodka martini) i've been out with friends at the bar and its happened and i had togo sit down the pain is so intense. its always so hard to explain to friends as no one has told me theyve had that happen. doctors also scratch their heads when i bring it up. no lumps that i know of, but like everyone else when googling it lymphoma comes up but i dont belive that to be the reason. blood work comes back good everytime also.

  • Posted

    this is either a liver issue or a stomach issue. its called referred pain. this happens to me when i drink wine coolers or twisted teas or anything sugary. its crazy. I usually burp as much as i can and it makes the pain go away faster.

  • Posted

    this is either a liver issue or a stomach issue. its called referred pain. this happens to me when i drink wine coolers or twisted teas or anything sugary. its crazy. I usually burp as much as i can and it makes the pain go away faster.

  • Posted

    Hi,

    dunno if anyone is still following this thread, but I've struggled with this for years, comes and goes but what I have found while experimenting with it is that it has to do with dehydration. You can easily be dehydrated without knowing it and that seems to be the culprit. When the pain starts or even when it gets intense, start sipping water. don't drink it too fast but after 2 or 3 glasses the pain subsides. Also if you had a fair amount of caffeine during the day that contributes. Alcohol also raises blood pressure which goes hand in hand with dehydration so combined makes for a not so pretty picture.

  • Posted

    Hi all, I have had the same symptoms since I was a teenager, I am now in my mid forties. the only thing I've ever been able to find that would make some sort of sense is an allergy to the alcohol sugars causing intense pain in shoulders neck I think it's an allergy to the salic acid in the alcohol sugars.

  • Posted

    Hi,

    Any updates about this issue as I have same issue for 1 year...I have pain after drinking in shoulder and neck.

  • Edited

    I had the same problem. Every time i drank alcohol my shoulder started to hurt a lot. I googled it and found an article written by doctors how it relates to lymphoma, knowing you can google anything and it will say you have cancer, i didn't think much of it but i did check with my doctor. She told me she never heard of it and its probably nothing. One year later and i am diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. It may be nothing, but its worth checking it out.

    • Posted

      wow I'm so sorry to hear you've been diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma.

      I have experienced this type of pain twice now, sharp, shooting, burning pain from the left of my neck, across my shoulders, left side collar bone and just bellow it and its sharper when I inhale.

      I plan on contacting my GP on Monday but given our current pandemic I wont be holding out hope that I will get seen.

      If you don't mind me asking, how did you get the doctor to test you, and did/do you have other symptoms?

    • Posted

      Sorry to hear that you were diagnoses but also probably a relief to figure out what it was. I am very curious to how you found out and what the process was for you, if you would care to share.

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