Neck Pain Chiropractor in Surprise, AZ
Your neck holds a twelve pound head up on seven small vertebrae, all day, every day. When something in there stops moving well the pain does not stay put. It spreads across the shoulders, up into the head, and sometimes down the arm. At Legg Chiropractic and Acupuncture in Surprise, Dr. Derek M. Legg, D.C., M.P.H. examines the neck first, finds what is actually driving the pattern, and treats it with chiropractic adjustments, acupuncture and dry needling in one visit. New self pay patients start at $49 for a first visit that includes the consultation, exam, X-rays if clinically necessary, and first treatment. Walk ins are welcome Monday through Thursday.
Why neck pain keeps coming back
Rest and heat quiet the ache and leave the cause alone. If a cervical joint has stopped moving, or a disc is pressing on a nerve root, or the muscles have been guarding so long they have forgotten how to let go, the pain returns the moment you go back to your normal day. Treating only the sore spot is the reason it keeps coming back, and it is why the examination comes before any treatment plan.
The two causes we treat together
Neck pain usually comes from two directions at once. There is joint, disc and nerve irritation in the cervical spine, and there are trigger points in the muscles across the neck and the top of the shoulders. The adjustment restores motion in the joints. Acupuncture and dry needling release the muscles that keep pulling those joints back out of position. Treating one and ignoring the other is the most common reason neck care stalls.
What kinds of neck pain do you treat?
Bulging and herniated cervical discs, muscle strain and trigger points, facet joint irritation, a pinched nerve sending pain into the arm and hand, tech neck from screens and forward head posture, neck pain that arrives with headaches or jaw tightness, and whiplash after a car accident. If your examination points somewhere outside chiropractic, we say so and refer.
What happens at the examination
Range of motion at each level of the neck, the joints that are not moving, the muscles that are guarding, posture, and a history that asks when it started and what makes it worse. Digital X-rays are taken when the history or the examination calls for them, not as a routine. If you want to know what a film actually shows before you see one, the guide to understanding your X-rays walks through it in plain words. Existing imaging is welcome, and we also offer an MRI review.
How the treatment plan works
The adjustment restores motion at the levels that are stuck. Acupuncture and dry needling release the muscles across the base of the skull and the top of the shoulders that keep feeding the pattern. Corrective exercise teaches those muscles to hold the change, and posture correction deals with the desk or the phone if that is what keeps reloading the neck. All of it happens in the same visit with the same doctor.
Is it safe to have my neck adjusted?
Neck adjustments are a routine part of chiropractic care and are performed only after an examination rules out anything that would make them inappropriate. Dr. Legg explains what he is doing before he does it, and adapts his technique for patients who are nervous or who have had prior neck surgery. If you would rather not have your neck adjusted at all, say so, and the plan is built without it.
How long before my neck changes?
Some people feel a difference in the first week. A neck that has been stiff for years takes longer. What matters is that it is re-checked rather than assumed: your range of motion and what you can do without pain are compared against where you started, and if nothing has moved the plan changes. A plan that is not working is a reason to change the plan. Individual results vary.
What does the first visit include?
For new self pay patients: examination, X-rays if they are needed, your first adjustment, and your first acupuncture and dry needling treatment, $49. Walk in Monday through Thursday or book online. The first visit page walks through the day itself, and you can book the $49 visit here. The $49 does not apply to Medicare, auto or personal injury, or workers compensation.
Do you take insurance for neck care?
We accept most major insurance plans and Medicare. Medicare covers chiropractic spinal adjustments only; acupuncture and dry needling by a chiropractor are self pay. We verify your benefits and go over any cost with you before your visit. More detail is on our Medicare page and our insurance page.
My neck started hurting after a car accident. Do you treat that?
Yes. Whiplash symptoms often start days after the crash rather than at the scene. We evaluate, treat and document auto accident injuries and work with personal injury cases, and we do the same for a work injury. Documentation matters as much as treatment in those cases, so it is done properly from the first visit.
When is neck pain not a case for this office?
Neck pain that follows a serious accident, or that arrives with weakness in the arms or legs, loss of coordination, a change in bladder or bowel control, fever, or a sudden severe headache unlike any you have had, belongs in urgent or emergency care, not here. That is not a diagnosis, it is the line where you should be seen somewhere else first. If anything in your history points that way, we will tell you at the examination.
Visit us
Legg Chiropractic and Acupuncture, 13757 W Bell Rd #101, Surprise, AZ 85374, inside Sheitelman Physical Medicine on West Bell Road. Call (623) 214-7600. Monday to Thursday, 9:00 AM to 5:30 PM, Arizona time. Dr. Derek M. Legg, D.C., M.P.H. earned his Doctor of Chiropractic at Logan University and a Master of Public Health, and you see the same doctor at every visit. Learn more about Dr. Legg, see every condition we treat, read about back pain, or read what to expect after your adjustment. Individual results vary. Reviewed by Dr. Derek M. Legg, D.C., M.P.H. Last reviewed September 2026.