Having pain in the upper trap (i.e. that muscle between your neck and shoulder) is a very common concern among individuals from 16-96. But why and what is to blame?
P O S T U R E
Is the #1 reason I hear to blame for upper trap pain but that is not always the case. Sure sitting all slouched working on a computer, reading, living life might not be helping but that in and of itself is not the only reason. A broader perspective must be taken to learn the cause and then solution to this problem.
If not posture then what?
Well, it could be related to either a neck or shoulder issue. It is common for neck issues to refer pain into this region. Similarly, developing compensatory reaching patterns of the shoulder as a result of some pain could also cause pain into the upper trap region. To know for sure, a thorough examination of both body regions is important. This should include a systematic motion, mobility, and strength testing at a minimum.
What can be done to relieve the pain?
The answer to this will be provided by the examination conducted. However, there are common themes of relieving pain here. To begin with mindfulness of posture (i.e. sit up periodically at computer or get up to walk and change position at least 1x/hr). Breaking up sustained posture is one important way to ease upper trap pain. A second them promoted is strengthening the upper back. This strengthening is often believed to “restore” postural balance to the system.
A third common belief is that these muscles need to be stretched. You probably can picture that co-worker or yourself tipping the head from side to side and maybe even pulling on it, hoping to reduce the tension. However, that tension keeps coming back. So while stretching is not necessarily bad, it likely isn’t the only piece. If it was the solution – it would have solved the problem already – thus more must be done instead of doing the same thing day in and day out hoping for a better result.
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