Our shoulder muscle is a very special muscle that connects our back and chest as well as our arms. There is no bony connections and joint cavity restrictions between the shoulders and the rest of our body. The shoulders play a vital role in the movement of the entire body.
Shoulder pain is a very common problem. In fact, according to some estimates, 67 percent of people experience shoulder discomfort in their lifetime. There are a number of factors that can be potential causes of shoulder pain, including tendonitis (the most common cause), frozen shoulder, rotator cuff tears, bursitis, osteoarthritis, and dislocations/subluxations. If you are the one who suffers from shoulder pain, this article tells you some good methods to help you ease your shoulder pain.
First of all, you need to know the causes of shoulder pain, and here are some common causes.
1. Sitting at a desk for long hours with incorrect posture
When you work for a long time, the shoulder joint cannot move. Besides, it’s getting worse when you sit with incorrect posture, which will lead to long-term joint stagnation and make your shoulder pain. The shoulders and upper arms should be parallel to the body, as perpendicular to the ground as possible, and relaxed. Sitting for too long, remember to stand up in time to relax and take a break.
2. Excessive strain on the shoulder
If you often lift heavy objects in your life, the heavy objects will cause the shoulder joints to exert too much force, resulting in shoulder muscle strain, which will cause pain. And you may suffer from frozen shoulder later.
3. Other shoulder diseases
- Rotator cuff injury. Rotator cuff injury is an acute and chronic disease of the shoulder muscles, especially the muscles on the post, caused by bone spurs, degeneration or trauma of the shoulder joint.
- Frozen shoulder. Frozen shoulder is a widespread aseptic inflammation caused by damage to the surrounding soft tissue of the shoulder joint, which is related to inactivity and stiffness of the shoulder. You will feel pain in the whole range of the shoulder, the pain area is large but it is difficult to point out the clear pain location.
When we realized the cause of shoulder pain, we can look for ways to relieve it.
1. Correct bad body posture.
As we mentioned above, for people who often work at a desk and have less shoulder activity, they should pay attention to adjusting their posture to avoid chronic strain and accumulated injuries caused by long-term bad posture.
2. Exercises to strengthen shoulder muscles
For people with shoulder pain, they should take exercises to strengthen shoulder joints and muscles, such as doing gymnastics or using some devices to do stretching exercises. But pay attention to the amount of exercise, so as not to aggravate the shoulder joint and its surrounding soft tissue injury.
3. Keep your shoulder warm
When cold hits our body, it constricts muscle tissue and small blood vessels. Long-term muscle contraction can produce more metabolites, such as the accumulation of lactic acid and pain-causing substances, causing muscle tissue to be stimulated and spasm to occur. Therefore, if you suffer from shoulder pain, keeping warm (especially the shoulders) in daily life is very important to protect your shoulder and ease your shoulder pain.
4. Do not sleep on your side and lower the height of your pillow.
Sleeping on your side puts more pressure on your shoulders, so you should try to sleep on your back instead of your side. Also, don't use a pillow that's too high, and keeping the spine in a normal curvature will also help reduce the pressure on your shoulders, which will ease your shoulder pain.
After reading the above introduction, you should now have a more comprehensive understanding of alleviating shoulder pain. Of course, if your shoulder pain is very severe, or there are serious lesions, you should see your doctor in time.
Our shoulders are a key part of our body that we use more in our daily work. If you have shoulder pain, you should find the cause in time.
