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Shoulders

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I’ve had shoulder pain and misalignment on my left shoulder for so long it’s become part of me. Recently I had a major breakthrough and I’m slowly trying to integrate this new found movement and lack of irritation. Shoulders are extremely complex structures and due to the use of our arms the shoulder joint has more mobility than the other joints in our body. Long term this means we can develop more problems with them if we’re not careful.

The shoulders connect to the shoulder blades and then to the musculature and structure of the upper back and cervical spine. One completely affects the other and working on your shoulder joint can affect the shoulder blade, thoracic spine etc. Alignment is all.

Downward facing dog allows you to explore all of those structures but 1/2 downward dog allows more movement through the arms, more range of motion exploration and takes less strength to hold. This particular pose allows you to open the rib cage, pull the shoulder blades back and lets you experience some freedom from frozen shut and stuck on the rib cage shoulder blades.

Thai massage upper back

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I spend more time working on upper back problems than anything else. The junction between the upper back and cervical spine is one of the most dysfunctional areas of the body and the stresses and strain of driving and working at computers will keep me busy with clients for years to come. Fortunately these issues are easy to address once you know what you’re working on.

The paraspinal musculature that runs along the spine is often over stretched like a bow string or tight as it’s pulled along the lamina groove. Pressing into these muscles feels good to clients and slowly helps restore normal undulation and movement to the serpentine structure of the normal human spine. Backbending and scapula retraction also make a huge difference long term.

Rememer to take it easy on your thumbs as you work on someone. Rome wasn’t built in a day nor were good spines. Honor your own body and joints. Use muscle and body weight and don’t overtax the joints in the small structures of your hands. Leverage and adequate use of body weight are what allows Thai massage to be so effective. Move and bring the client along with you.

Try this on friends and family, they’ll thank you.

Thai massage twist

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I spend large amounts of time performing bodywork no one has ever had before. The longer I work, the more I see it and the more I realize I’m honoring traditions others don’t even know exist. Thai massage may be new to Austin, Texas but it’s 2500 years old. When I perform seated massage people say, “I didn’t know you could massage someone who was sitting.” I then realize, well, I’m doing things differently and from a different cultural context.

Shoulder blades are often stuck on the torso. They become frozen in place, limiting mobility and movement and along with it your angel wings are clipped. Open the shoulder blades, allow them to fall back opening the heart and you can fly away my friends.

This simple twist helps open the scapulae, sounds professional doesn’t it? I even used the plural. 😛 You also get movement to the spine itself to allow flow, undulation and deeper spiraling movement.

Avoid twisting anyone with herniated discs or spine surgeries. It’s not a good idea and you can hurt someone if you’re being forceful. Go slow, communicate with the person you’re working on and help someone feel good today. Opening movement in the spine makes someone feel free, open and receptive. It also goes a long way to helping with recurring back pain and tight muscles along the spine.