Dr. Sean's Natural BodyWorks Blog: shoulder pain

Showing posts with label shoulder pain. Show all posts

Dry needling for muscle spasms. with video

Dry needling is a technique in acupuncture that goes after muscle spasms. Muscle spasms that are chronic can become the ‘new normal’ when it comes to the nervous system.

Dry Needling is a great way to loosen the muscles because of chronic tension.

A quick example video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C34rlHt27lI

Step 1: Find the muscle spasms, directly with palpation (through touch).
Step 2: Clean the area…
Step 3: insert needle and find the twitch…
We use a little thicker needle than the normal acupuncture needle. Usually needles for acupuncture are about .22 mm diameter. That is really small. Dry Needling needles can be around .30 mm diameter. Although it does not seem like much it can really make a huge difference.
The needle is placed in the core of the muscle spasm. Muscles have very specific patterns that are pretty consistent for the average person. Some people can have very unusual presentations of spasms and trigger points because of multiple injuries, old over lapping injuries, and scar tissue.
In the lower back, for example, the psoas is a common muscle that can recruit the piriformis and the quadratus lumborum. Getting the MAIN muscle is more important. Once you get the muscle ‘pinned’ you will see or feel a little twitch. We have to really watch now because other muscles around that have been helpers will twitch. Those are important to go after in later visits.
How long does it take? Depends on a few factors; first, the age or chronicity of the spasm, the associated points involved, the other muscles that help it and the general health of the patient. Some patients will need more just because their constitution is poor for some other reason (chronic disease, old injuries, scar tissue, or surgeries).
You should see a difference almost immediately, but there will be soreness the next couple days and you may have some bruising. You may also have a small bump where the needle went in, this is called a hematoma, and is harmless.

Associate points: These are points along the traditional meridian that will help the muscle relax over the longer term and help be a little more holistic in the treatment regime.

Dr. Sean at Natural BodyWorks in Parker Colorado is a holistic healer, chiropractor, acupuncturist and dry needle practitioner. He produces these videos to help patients and friends live better more comfortable lives. A little levity and education go a long way in his opinion. All information is original, and opinion of Dr. Sean Thompson for educational purposes only. Any background music or visuals are incidental and not copyrighted. Comments and questions are welcomed, and will be responded to as soon as possible. Dr. Sean runs The Natural BodyWorks in Parker Colorado, has been practicing for over 20 years and is available daily at his office. Thanks!

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Here is the text for the Gall Bladder cleanse, you can also see it on my blog https://drseanthompson.wordpress.com/...

The information in these videos are for education only, there is no intent to diagnose, treat or render an opinion. Any incidental diagrams, drawings, music, video, or other recording are used under the copyright fair use for education and or satire. Use your own brain, go see a qualified provider if there is any question…

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Rotator cuff pain and shoulder injury, surgery may not help.

Rotator Cuff Pain and Shoulder Injury

You can't sleep at night on one side because your shoulder hurts, you start carrying things differently to avoid discomfort, you need help to reach for things on high shelves. These could all be signs of rotator cuff problems. The rotator cuff is a series of muscles that help to rotate the shoulder joint. There are four main muscles; the Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres minor and Subscapularis.

Currently some doctors are guiding patients away from surgery for rotator cuff because it is largely ineffective. Here is a recent article.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/health/shoulder-impingement-surgery-rotator-cuff-bmj-guideline-doctor-a8766116.html

The shoulder is a very dynamic joint, able to move in all directions and with that comes rather lacking stability if the muscles are weakened. The shoulder is held onto the body by really only one joint, the acromioclavicluar joint (A.C.) as we refer to it sometimes. The upper arm bone (humerus) attaches to the shoulder blade (scapula) at a place we call the glenohumeral joint. (G.H. joint for short. There are many problems that can occur in this very complex and flexible structure.
There are a few issues that come up commonly with the shoulder; labrum tears, (the GH joint), AC separations, rotator cuff injuries, strains, sprains, and even dislocations... not to mention fractures.
The rotator cuff comprises four muscles we like to call the "SITS" muscles. Just a fancy acronym for the names (Supraspnatus, Infraspinatus, Teres, and Subscapularis) Now, for you anatomy buffs out there you have noticed I put 'teres' rather than more specific Teres minor... well, I have good reason for that ... I will get into that later.
So what can you do?

The first thing we have to do is determine if the injury is acute or chronic. An acute injury is generally new, less than a week say. A chronic one is obviously more than a week old. Muscles and the connective tissues act differently in each stage of an injury. For example, acute swelling can be controlled by a simple cold pack and reduce the amount of activity you are doing with your arms. A chronic injury to muscle and ligament will have scar tissue, adhesions, changes in the fibers of muscle, which will cause weakness and pain.

The first thing that I check is the alignment of the shoulder; how the shoulder joint is set in place, how the shoulder blade rides on the back etc. With that we can get a good idea of which muscles are to blame for the trouble. Next we need to test each muscle for its relative strength. No, you don't have to lift weights or anything, I just want to see that the muscle is working. if it is not holding up to its job, we have to look at the possibility of nerve problems in the shoulder girdle or neck. The neck is a common start of shoulder problems because of the nerves and attached muscles to the shoulder.
Once we have discovered what the problem is related to, we can decide on the most appropriate treatment.
Some techniques that I have found to work on these types of injures. Many therapists and doctors may try one or two here.

1. Gentle manipulations and adjustments to help realign the joint so that the muscles can relax and do the job they were intended to do.
2. Cross fiber massage helps to reduce adhesions and scar tissue giving each muscle better range and healing ability.
3. Triggerpoint therapy helps reduce toxins in over tight muscles and allows fresh blood in to clean and nourish the area. (This is generally part of medical massage)
4. Electrical stimulation Therapy helps improve blood flow, reduce pain, and relax muscle.
Cautions:
Differential diagnosis, means to consider and look into the different possibilities of cause. Could it be a heart condition that is referring to the left shoulder? Could it be a gall bladder if it is the right shoulder referring? These are important to consider, anyone that is working on you should know enough to check. The treatment that is best is sometimes something entirely different.
To make an appointment or just to ask questions, call me or email me, the info is on my website: