Massage points for shoulder pain

Shoulder pain is a common ailment in today’s world of desk top living. Hunching over a computer, jiggling a mouse and clicking away for life! This all leads to repetitive stress strains in the shoulder girdle.

Of course other than desk strain there is a whole host of injuries that our shoulders are subject to: too much upper body work out, lifting heavy objects, or carrying a heavy bag for prolonged periods to name a few.

The shoulders form a continuous functional chain with the neck. Mostly due to the fact that many of the muscles that connect to the shoulder girdle are also muscles of the neck. Therefore shoulder strain and injuries can lead to neck pain as well.

For now we will take a basic look at some common areas for shoulder strain. Each area relates to special regions of tension that lead to pain. Each circled area also relates to acupuncture points as well. (see low back massage points for more tips)

Posterior points

These points focus on relieving tension in the rotator cuff and its attachments. The rotator cuff is prone to a great deal of stress and tension. They are relatively small muscles that hold on to the back of the arm. They are constantly overworked because they have to compensate for the larger muscle groups in the front of the arms (anterior deltoids and pecs) as wellas deal with the human tendency of hunching forward. When the rotator cuff becomes strained it can stiffen up and cause a serious amount of pain and stiffness.

A) Focuses on the Infraspinatous and teres minor. These muscles are tender on everybody but particularly tender with most forms of shoulder pain. it relates to the acupuncture point Si 11.

B) focuses on the upper region of the triceps and the teres major. though these are not considered part of the rotator cuff they are often seriously sore with shoudler pain. This point relates to the acupuncture point Si 10

(The second picture is a view of the deeper layer of muscles)

Anterior Points

These points focus on releasing tension in the front of the shoulder and chest. These areas are some of the most commonly used muscles in the upper body. Any action that requires our arm to be in front of us will require the use of the anterior deltoid and the pectoralis muscles. When they become strained they can lead to aggravating pain and stiffness in the shoulder

C) focuses on the deltoids and the attachments of the biceps tendon and pectoralis tendon Its a sensitive area so ease your way into the massage. It relates to the acupuncture points of Jian Qian, and Pc2.

D) Focuses on the Pectoralis muscles, specifically the pectoralis minor (see deep picture). It relates to the acupuncture points Lu 1, 2, Spleen 18 – 20 and Pc 1.