Oodalolly!

I was falling asleep last night when it finally dawned on me why I have constant neck pain when I wake up in the morning. I can’t believe I haven’t thought of it before.

It’s because when I was a kid, I was afraid of vampires.

Seriously. 

I can’t sleep without my neck covered. I can pinpoint the exact day in my childhood I began this habit. I was trying to sleep, afraid of something I had seen on TV (I think… Are You Afraid of the Dark) that day about vampires. I pulled the covers up past my neck, and I was finally able to fall asleep.

The fear continued for a good couple months, and I guess that was enough to develop the habit. Since, I’ve needed my neck covered to sleep.

Which is fine, until summer, when it’s too hot for blankets, and (as I witnessed last night) my body resorts to pulling my shoulder up to my ear, covering my neck. I sleep on my right side. I pull my left shoulder to my ear to sleep. My left side of my neck/shoulder is what I constantly pull, what is constantly tense, and is constantly a bit lopsided. 

I took a breath, relaxed my shoulder last night, and it felt so wonderful that I fell asleep almost instantly. 

Granted, I slept with the lights on. I’m alone, and hey, vampires don’t like the light.