oh my! i have been with out my normal routine of my soft tissue person for my neck for a week now (I am down in dallas, she is back home) ... oh my goodness my neck hurts so bad and I have no clue what to do about it... any suggestions for the short term?

Anybody around in the house that could do a bit of neck massage for you?
Did the soft tissue person do anything special that you could describe to a family member or friend?
Did soft tissue person ever mention trigger points or spasms?
top rib mobilization?
Gentle stretches, heat , ice ??
warm bath with Epsom salts?

When my neck or back gets tight /sore I get out my IF stim or ultrasound. If stim is my preferred treatment.
Bought mine off Amazon, affordable ($60- 80 for the ones I have) and they work well, had them both for over 2 yrs now.

Depending on the extent of your injury, you might want to avoid having a non-professional give it any sort of massage. My spinal injury is so tricky, even my RMT won't touch my neck.

The ice is an excellent idea.

What about your pillow? Did you bring one from home or are you using a different one? A pillow change could trigger symptoms. I use one of those special neck pillows. I find that helps.

If it's really bad, buy a stiff cervical collar from a pharmacy or medical supply store and use it to stabilize your neck. You might not want to wear one all the time, as it can lead to muscle atrophy, but, in a pinch, it might well ease the pain considerably.

I did the ice and some stretching... it has gotten a bit better but I am shocked at how bad it hurts... I am nervous for anyone else to touch my neck... I am also having a lot of reticular issues.. lots of numbness and twitching in my hands and arm...

I'm assuming you had x rays & MRI already, and no actual cervical spine issues showed?
Soft tissue pain can be very bothersome.

Unless your skin hurts when being touched or pressure alone hurts ?? then a non pro should be fine.
I wouldn't let them go digging in with elbows on you , but some gentle massage to get the blood flowing shouldn't hurt.

OH yes, and yes... I have some issues... I have stenosis, my c4-5, c5-6 and c6-7 all pressing against my spinal cord... that is all form this accident... from previous accidents I have some degeneration further up and some bone spurs...

I have been going to a chiro and my soft tissue person twice a week for 7 months.. this is my first week without them.. and I am miserable!

Oh , so it is more than just soft tissue pain most likely.

The chiro and soft tissue person didn't give you any self help ideas for when you can't see them?

But I don't think some gentle rubbing/massage would cause any problems, just don't let anyone get aggressive with it.

Honestly I would not let anyone other than a professional touch your neck, not even a soft massage.

I have awful neck problems so know how you feel, my pain also goes in to my left arm/fingers. Just small things can flare everything up.

I have a cervical collar but don't wear it unless I'm in terrible pain and the physiatrist said to only use it short term. It really helps.

Epsom baths are good, sometimes they help my neck, other times they don't but worth a try.

Special neck pillows are a life saver too, I can't use just a normal pillow.

Hope you get relief really soon, it hurts so much.

What do the neck pillows look like and where can I find one?

They are firm foam and contoured. They kind of look like a wave. I have a Tempur-pedic one that I bought at a local furniture store.

There are other brands out there. You should be able to get one at Walgreens, Sears, Walmart, etc...