MWS,

It sounds like you may be having neck muscle spasms due to an upper neck injury. A chiro may help if the treatment is gentle. The more aggressive treatments are a risk in my opinion. It is important to be disciplined with neck and head position during rest and sleep. Lifting or straining moves such as when lifting or twisting need to be done with careful attention to spine and neck position. Try to start every twisting move from your shoulders. Quick head turns can be problematic.

Did you try icing your neck ?