<s>[INST] I have had severe pain in my upper back for about the past 5 days now. I can hardly move my neck in any direction. Its very difficult to lift my arms, or lift any weight, also hard to bend down at all. Almost everything makes it worse. I cant stand for more than 15-20 minutes without having to sit down, and I cant sit up right in a chair for more than 30 minutes before I have to move. Any movement makes it worse. It hurts my back just to even take a deep breathe. The only test I have had is an X-ray and it showed nothing, but there has to be something wrong because I can hardly change and bathe myself let alone do the daily demands. What should I do? [/INST] Hi, The symptoms that you are experiencing are caused due to cervical myelopathy. However, a thorough neurological examination is required. The cure for the weakness and stiffness depends on the causative factor. Here I would first suggest you to get an MRI scan of the cervical spine immediately after consulting with a physician. In case the MRI shows a protruding disc impinging on the nerves you would need immediate cervical discectomy and fusion. </s>