As you begin to read this article mentally check out
your shoulders. Are one or both elevated toward your
ears? If so, release them. Push the outside tops of
the shoulder blades down and back while moving the
bottom tips in and towards each other. This movement
will facilitate an opening in the chest. Find that
opening. This is the best position for the scapula
bones (aka shoulder blades). And it makes a
difference.
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Perhaps the most important factor, with far reaching
consequences, is the effect that the scapula
placement has on the brachial plexus. The brachial
plexus is a network of nerves starting at the upper
vertebrae and going thru to the hand on each side of
the body. These nerves run from the spine, through
the plexus, down into the arm as well as up into the
neck and head. When the shoulders are habitually
elevated, the scapula puts pressure on the brachial
plexus, leading to tension in the spine and possible
nerve impingement. As the brachial plexus is an
epicenter of the neurological communication to the
head, neck and arms, this is a recipe for disaster
for those areas. This is how it works:
When it comes to the scapula bone a little movement
in one direction creates a lot of movement in the
other direction. So, when we elevate the tops of
shoulders even a little bit, the bone will also move
towards the midline. That's the nature of the
scapula. And when the scapula bones move toward the
midline they compress the brachial plexus nerves.
The issue is that nerves, ligaments, vertebrae and
vertebral disks don't respond well to constant
compression. The nerves tend to get hypertonic,
which means they get over-reactive and the muscles
tend to get hyper-contractive or over-contracted. So
now you have tense muscles and nerves alongside
vulnerable vertebrae and disk all within the small
area between the neck and shoulder blades where 100%
of the nerve enervation for the shoulder, arm and
hand resides.
Headaches, neck tension, radiating pain down the
arm, and anything related to the elbow, hand,
fingers, wrist and all carpal tunnel symptoms find a
path to their discomforts thru the brachial plexus,
and thus, thru the scapula bones.
I have been working with patients for 30 years and
over the past decade I've seen a significant rise in
cases with brachial plexus impingement. It is my
belief that the root cause of this increase is our
growing use of computers, cell phones and other hand
held electronic devices. You see, one of the
byproducts of using all the technology is that it
encourages us to elevate our shoulders. Without
realizing it, we are taking this hard bone and
pushing it in toward the spinal cord all the time.
This elevated scapula bone is affecting young people
at a concerning rate. At Dorfman Kinesiology we see
many Jr. High and High School students who come to
us with symptoms indicative of compression in the
brachial plexus. Headaches and neck tension are
common. And most of these students experience a lot
of stress. Stress is a byproduct of the tension on
the nerves. It can create a negative feedback loop
with more tension creating more stress, which
creates more tension.
Luckily we have the solution: Keep your shoulders
down. Notice when they rise up and pull them down
again. This body awareness is key to resolving
brachial plexus tension. You are an active
participant in your own health care. This is
something that can only be resolved with you
involvement and care.
Self-massage and stretching are other key pieces of
any strategy to alleviate brachial plexus issues. In
my next article I will detail specific ways to use
these self-care techniques to address the brachial
plexus. In the meantime, maintain your awareness,
keep your shoulders down and you will begin to feel
better forever.
