What is that sharp pain between my shoulder blades?
Mid-Back Pain | Thoracic Pain | Upper Cross Syndrome
co written by Aaron Kiegadie & Darcy Kennedy 
If you sit at a desk – you will probably be able to relate to that annoying pain between your shoulder blades and tightness through the Pecs/Chest. The funny thing is that most people put up with this pain without ever trying to rectify or eliminate it! That annoying knot and dull ache is your body crying for help! When looking at back pain – you need to understand it is simply the body telling us that something is wrong. Whether it is a muscular ache, joint dysfunction or something more sinister – pain is an information tool used by the body in order to tell us that something isn’t quite right. Here at Melbourne Muscular Therapies – we educate people to become more conscious of their bodies and to really listen to what our body is trying to tell us!
We pride ourselves on the relationship between practitioner and client. We truly connect with an individual and develop trust from the outset. We work together with you to discuss your goals and formulate treatment plans that coincide with your values. We believe that unless this trust and connection is developed – true healing cannot occur. The body has an innate ability to heal itself and our goal is to help every single client realise this potential.
How We Fix
UPPER BACK PAIN | MID THORACIC PAIN
Using our renowned massage technique ‘Solidified Connective Tissue Release’ (SCT Release), we deliver precise and deliberate treatment in order to release blockages and solidified tissue. Mid Back Pain generally presents with a sharp, pulling pain between the shoulders blades. This is usually as a result of overstretched, weak, and elongated muscles throughout the thoracic spine (mid-back), caused by tight, over-active pec minor, pec major, upper traps and lev scap. This is classic ‘upper-cross syndrome’ as a result of excessive sitting, over-use of phone, driving etc. Using our effective massage techniques, we will go to the source of your pain. Right onto that twinge that you feel between the neck, shoulders, and upper back. Not only do we release the painful points, we also address the cause of the pain – being the tightness and over-activity within the chest and anterior shoulders. Quite often, releasing the chest can significantly increase range of motion and even eliminate the pain at the back itself. Re-gaining mobility and restoring posture is how we formulate our treatment sessions – we cannot stress how important it is to have conscious control over your posture. If we are conscious of the way we stand, walk, sit, and run – we can significantly decrease dysfunction and pain within the body. We endeavour to put you in the right direction to not only live a pain free life, but also to move better than ever.
How to eliminate that sharp, niggly back pain!
How to release tension in the pecs/shoulders to restore posture
Corrective Exercise | Restoring Posture | Functional Movement – UPPER BACK PAIN | MID THORACIC PAIN
In this day and age, everyone is looking for that ‘quick fix’. When it comes to your body, this approach rarely works. In some cases, pain is so deeply engrained within the body that someone must change their entire life in order to fully address the issue. Posture plays a large role in how pain and dysfunction arises. Poor posture leads to short, over-active muscles, which in turn leads to weak, elongated muscles. “A tight muscle will pull a joint into a dysfunctional position, a weak muscle will allow this to happen”. This is where the cycle starts, and it only gets worse if the issue is left unaddressed.
Think about the way you stand, the way you sit, the way you walk. By adjusting the way you do these common activities, you can significantly minimise the amount of pain and dysfunction you hold. We focus our corrective exercises on re-training how to hold neutral posture and a neutral spine. If we can correct postural asymmetries, we can begin to unwind years of poor habits and painful dysfunction. Our highly trained practitioners at MMT have a great understanding on how to re-align posture using corrective exercise. Our goal is to increase mobility and decrease pain through a series of muscular activation exercises. Once we activate the deep cervical neck flexors, rhomboids, and serratus structures, we can begin to increase stability, which allows us to progress to strengthening exercises.
