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Relief for Chronic Shoulder Pain


 

If you need relief for chronic shoulder pain, think about simply pushing
into the pain. I really don't know anybody that hasn't experienced pain in their shoulders. It happens when we sleep wrong, when we hold our heads or arms a certain way for prolonged periods of time, and when we lift things incorrectly.

Stress is also a major contributor, as we freeze our muscles when things get tense around us. This is especially true for the muscles on and surrounding the shoulders! Shoulder pain can also refer pain or radiate pain down the arms into the fingers. If your arm starts going numb for no apparent reason and you have pain in your shoulder, it may be a sign of a pinched nerve in your neck or a trigger point


Besides massage therapy, there are a few other things you can do to help alleviate pain the the shoulders.



If you wake up with shoulder pain, you can either apply ice or heat. If you feel like your shoulders are inflamed, then use ice. If you feel like they're just sore, then use heat. Apply either one for 15 minutes on, 15 minutes off, and repeat.

You can also try a contrast bath which is a name given for both ice and heat applications given consecutively. Do 15 minutes of heat, then 15 minutes of ice.

I recently learned how to make your own flexible (gel) ice pack by using a large ziploc freezer bag, rubbing alcohol and water. Mix 3 parts water to one part alcohol and freeze in the ziploc bag. It doesn't freeze all the way and is a great way to save money by making your own flexible ice pack! Beats the heck out of using frozen peas!

Ibuprofen is also an anti-inflammatory and can really help! For fast relief, take Advil (or its generic) in gel caps or Aleve (or its generic).

These are the things to start with. Beyond those things, here are a few more things you can do!

Frequent Pain? Then Do This:

- Lift your shoulders up towards your ears bilaterally. (On both sides)

- Push your shoulders up towards your ears as hard as you can! Hold this position to the count of twenty or as long as possible.

(Yes, it will hurt if your pain is chronic!)

- Then gently let go of the 'push'. Relax your shoulders and take long, cleansing, deep breaths. Repeat as necessary.

Most muscular pain starts with either an overly extended or fully contracted muscle or group of muscles.

Your muscles have memory. They remember that they have been overly contracted or overly extended.

After pushing into the pain, you have contracted them to their 'maximum'. This then sends your muscular system a signal or message to 'let go' and 'relax' and this is just what happens!

Is your pain better yet? Should be!

Shoulder Pain Tip

Use any door sill to do this.

- Use the edge of the door sill and align it between your shoulder blade and your spine.

- Push into the pain using the door sill. Move your shoulder a bit to find where the pain is the worst. Push into it as much as you can when you find it.

The muscles that are located beside and underneath the shoulder blade are called the Rhomboid muscles and they are consistently a great cause of pain and discomfort and have many trigger points.

Your rhomboids engage when you squeeze your shoulder blades together. To keep them moving freely and to prevent pain, do this simple stretch.

Rhomboid Stretch

Stand with your shoulders shrugged upwards and hold this position for 5 seconds. Now squeeze your shoulder blades together for five seconds.

Pull your shoulders backwards like you are trying to put your hands in your back pocket. Relax for a moment and then repeat the same procedure 10 times to help stretch the muscles.

View the video for these techniques below!

Aloe Heat

One of the best ways to alleviate shoulder pain is to use an aloe heat rub with Arnica oil in it. Aloe heat rubs are totally different from products like Ben Gay. (Although because most Aloe heat rubs contain eucalyptus, they may smell the same.) I learned about them years ago when I had my massage therapy practice and have been using them ever since. You can buy them as a cream or liquid.

Body Heat Vanilla Rub Liquid comes as a liquid and has both aloe and arnica in it.

Arnica oil alone, is also a wonderful product to use. Arnica has been used for medicinal purposes since the 1500's. Applied topically, arnica oil is used to soothe muscle aches, reduce inflammation, and heal wounds.

Arnica Cream for Sore Muscles & Injury Treatment is a cream but you can also buy Arnica Oil alone as an oil. Both are very effective and not expensive to buy. SuperBlue Pain Relief Cream has been touted to be one of the best sore muscle creams on the market. It contains both aloe and arnica too.

Self Evaluation for Shoulder Pain:

Chronic shoulder pain and Your Clavicle bones –

If you are in constant shoulder pain, or if the pain in your shoulders radiate, a good self diagnosis is to stand in front of the mirror, preferably topless, and look at your clavicle bones.

If they don't look the same or 'even', that is to say, if they are not in alignment then you should seek help from a massage therapist to get work done on your shoulders especially.

Both of your clavicle bones should be equal bilaterally.

They are not properly aligned if, for example, one clavicle is lower than the other one or one is bulging forward and one is not. If you don’t seek help then you are setting yourself up for further pain and injury.

When you look at yourself in the mirror, its a good time to look and evaluate your body. If you don't see what you like then maybe some changes ought to take place.

Any experienced massage therapist can work with you to help resolve this, especially a massage therapist who is experienced in either Deep Tissue Massage or 'Structural Integration' - more commonly referred to as 'Rolfing'.

You can also try Trigger Point therapy. If you have nagging shoulder pain, you most likely have several trigger points that are in need of releasing. You're shoulder harbors two main trigger points. If they are not released regularly, the toxins in them accumulate and you feel pain. Improper sleep patterns and positions, repetitive movements, and improper lifting habits, can exacerbate pain in your shoulder. When you have trigger point therapy, your therapist will work with you to relieve your pain.

Do these simple things and you will LOSE that nagging shoulder pain!

Shoulder Pain Techniques

Part One

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Part Two



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To go to the next Healthy Money Saving Tips page, here's the link: Easy Tips for Low Back Pain Relief

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