The shoulder blades (scapulae) function to provide a stable foundation through which energy can be transferred from the legs and trunk to the arm and hand. This linkage is called the kinematic chain.
If you sit at a desk for hours every day, work bent over a lot or spend too much of your free time in front of a lap top, one or both of your shoulder blades often ride up and stay stuck in that position as shown in this picture.
Then the muscles that hold your shoulder blades down can become weaker and you end up with what’s called forward drawn posture. This can predispose you to neck pain, headaches and shoulder pain.
Restoring a stable scapular base is essential to rehabilitating the shoulder and neck and returning to functional activities such as sports without ending up in pain.
You can see in these pictures the various ways that the shoulder blades (scapulae) can become fixed out of position.
All of these positions can lead to pain in the shoulders; neck or mid back and you can be affected on just one side or both. If a scapula does not move correctly, over time you can develop tendon wear, muscle tightness, bursitis, ligamentous problems or capsular problems in the shoulder that are very difficult to resolve.
Do ask us for a scapular assessment so that we can prescribe you some simple exercises, which done regularly can help to improve scapular movement and position and save you from pain in the future.