Heat will help release a muscle spasm. Cold can make a muscle spasm worse. For many, cold is needed to reduce inflammation in a joint.

Heat on an inflamed joint is worse than cold on a sore or spasming muscle. The common issue is a spasming muscle due to inflammation in the cervical vertebra. It the inflammation is not reduced, the spasm will continue. Often, the spasming muscle is not where the inflamed joint is. So, ice the joint.

One of my optometrists told me to fill a tube sock with rice. This works very well both for heating and icing. I keep two in the freezer and a third in my room. If I need to apply heat, I microwave the one that I don't keep in the freezer (it's perfectly safe, and since the rice is dehydrated, you can microwave it again and again).

I find the cold tube socks to work much better than ice, for two reasons. First, they easily take any shape I need, so I can cover a lot of surface area evenly. Second, they aren't as cold as ice, so they don't make my skin overly cold--but they are cold enough to help ease inflammation and headaches. Also, whether hot or cold, rice-filled tube socks hold their temperature pretty well (though for the same reason, it takes awhile to get them cold in the freezer).

Thank you everyone! Should I alternate between ice/heat? or just ice? for how long?

will, read my post from two posts above. Ice on joints (neck), heat on spasming muscles.

ice, 15 on, 30 off, repeat as practical. The Vitamins sticky has a recipe for making crushable/moldable ice packs.

I have been doing neck massage with an ayurvedic oil(rhuma oil by an Indian Ayurveda company baidyanath). I noticed instant relief from my tinnitus. It has been 24 hours and its almost quiet. Never before have I noticed such relief .I did some icing on my neck now and it helped too.

I found that icing my neck and below my ears immediately brought noticable difference to my tinnitus. I have 2 questions

1. Can it be my neck that is injured ? When I hit my head, I instantly felt numbness in my limbs so is that a nerve damage or neck damage ? Any thoughts ?

2. I did 5 minutes light jogging and my symptoms returned. Is it possible that the jerks and jolts somehow irritated my neck and caused the symptoms ?

Yes and Yes.

It does not need to be nerve damage. It can just be nerve irritation and/or inflammation.

If you are going to jog, do it on your tiptoes. It will reduce the impact forces transmitted to your head.

I appreciate your input Mark. I went to the gym yesterday after about a year . Before my accident i used to do lots of cardio. I did 20 minutes of brisk walking on trendmill with a few seconds of slow jogging in between, did some light weight training and then the final 10 minute brisk walking on trendmill again. When i was back home, i felt foggy brain, loss of concentration and out of it feeling. I wonder if its just because i am a beginner now and have low stamina or its the concussion symptoms? otherwise i have recovered well to brisk walk for a fairly good amount of time without any symptoms . Its just the light jogging i feel somehow irritates my neck or some nerve or the head impacts.

If you did weights with your arms, this causes the neck muscles to tense up. Many find this to be problematic and a source of a return of symptoms.

You need to build your tolerance slowly or you can expect this roller coaster experience. A stationary bike would be much better than a treadmill. Maybe a rowing machine if you can keep your neck relaxed.

Did you check your pulse rate ? I bet you pushed it too much.

I have the same feeling. Feels like my brain is bouncing around. Then I get the same symptoms that you got.