LEVATOR SCAPULA MANUAL STRETCH
Neck pain can be devastating to deal with be it from whiplash, a fall, poor posture, or any other trauma. Rarely does neck pain only encompass the neck, but also the shoulder and upper back. It is not uncommon to have pain deep in the shoulder blade or on the inside top of the shoulder blade that is coming from the neck. Physical therapy is often one of the stops along the road of recovery. Traditional physical therapy is not always able to deal with the complexity of neck pain because just doing the exercises in physical therapy can’t take care of the whole problem. What is often needed is the skill of a manual therapist performing osteopathic manipulation and myofascial release. This is because the muscles and joints of the neck, upper back, and shoulder blades need to be released with manual therapy before exercises with help. The sequence of my manual therapy treatment starts at the lower thoracic spine working up to the upper thoracic spine. Then working on the levator scapula muscles and scalenes of the neck with myofascial release techniques. Finally the cervical spine gets treated out with manipulation. The ribs may also need to be treated. This does not have to be the treatment sequence but this is the pattern I follow. After the manual therapy, a few simple exercises should be given for neck flexibility and to improve posture. Treatments involving manual therapy, and then followed up by simple exercises is a much more effective way to get rid of pain. If you want your pain resolved NOW, then give me a call or book an appointment at wrightphysiotherapy.com. Thank you!