Arms over head aggravate neck/shoulder problem

Hi Natalie

I can only imagine that you are STILL in the same pain you were in when you posted 3 weeks ago.

The only way to resolve this problem is not to continually cause it every time you do yoga. Sounds flippant but it’s absolutely the answer.

Every time you put your arms over your head you are probably doing your best to follow the directions. You are also worsening the problem. Meanwhile it’s also highly possible that your teachers are telling you to ‘listen to your body’.

Your body is currently telling you to bend your arms. Next time you go to class, raise your arms over your head, and only lengthen and straighten them as far as they will go WITH YOUR SHOULDERS RELAXED and NO PAIN in your neck. Your palms may not be together, it doesn’t really matter. Your arms will be either bent just a tiny bit or they’ll be bent quite a lot.

Your only issue is that IF your teachers notice, they may say “Natalie, straighten (or lock) your arms” (Or “squeeze your head with your arms” etc). Please just listen to your body, keep the arms over your head in a way that will maintain your relaxed shoulder position. The very INSTANT that your chin starts to drop is another sign that your arms are too straight.

You must allow this to resolve and then I promise you (and just about guarantee you) that you will one day be able to straighten your arms and squeeze your head with no pain, but ONLY if you start now by allowing some flexibility into your own approach.

You may need to try being out of your teachers’ radars in a seldom seen part of the room!

Please tell me how you go

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Thanks for being patient, I am back from my teacher training program now, and catching up with all my forum posts!

Hi Claudia

The first thing I need to ask you is how is your stance generally. Are you countering a longstanding rounded upper back at all.

One thing at a time!

Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂

Hi Claudia,

I am one of graduates from Gabrielle’s teacher training. I too have shoulders that round forward (from my years at the computer). Throughout my entire teacher training both Gabrielle and my dear friend Andrea reminded me to keep bringing my shoulders down and back. Not just in class either: everywhere all the time! 😛 I speak from experience that it is not easy to break the habit and I did feel very sore between my shoulder blades at times. From years of rounding we’ve strengthened the muscles that should be stretching and stretched the muscles that should be keeping those shoulders down. A very helpful pose for me has been Heart Chakra Pose. It’s a yin pose and you can hold it anywhere from 3-5 minutes.

I was also in a car accident last May and have found that massage can be really helpful with those whiplash symptoms. Are you able to try massage in addition to your yoga?

Looking forward to hearing from you,

Sara

Hi Claudia,

My accident was just 2 weeks before teacher training and I stuck with the yoga however was very careful not to push through it. One day I had severe pain and spent an entire class laying on my mat in savasana. It’s very different taking a class with injury, rather than pushing to my edge I kept my focus on gentle stretching. It wasn’t easy and when I did start to push the envelope there were a few times I felt I had set myself back. I was starting to feel better when I got home continued with my Bikram practice and even started some vinyasa. I felt the injury in my right shoulder persisting and often it would span my ribs. My doctor actually recommended massage and thankfully one of my students is a phenomenal masseuse. The reason I had mentioned it, is because for me it wasn’t until my 6th massage (weekly sessions) that I really began to feel my body heal. As you described I was feeling great at the time but then triggering my injury with practice. The way she explained it to me is that it took us 6 sessions to “peel back the layers” (using an onion as an analogy) that were masking my injury and now she is really getting into the deep tissue that has been causing my pain. After my last session with her I notice a huge improvement in my mobility. There is still some tightness in my neck and low back but overall my body is feeling MUCH better. Keep in mind not all massages are the same and I really do believe this women is so gifted that I call her a healer. It make take some shopping around to find the right one for you. Our muscles are so deeply layered and the body is constantly trying to self correct which can lead the pain to show in other areas.

Similarly to you I was also working on correcting my posture while working through my injury. I’m not sure Gabrielle’s take on the situation; for me the pain in my shoulder serves as a reminder to keep my shoulder’s down and back. No sense in healing my car accident injury but holding onto my poor posture 😉 So I have been working through them both and treating them as one. My posture has improved and my body is healing.

I hope this was helpful. Please keep me updated!

Wishing you all the best,

Sara