Author Topic: Sharp pain between shoulder blades  (Read 12792 times)

Dkyachtphoto

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #30 on: May 04, 2016, 06:38:06 PM »
I went to a Physical Therapist today for shoulder pain. I mentioned I had the pain between my shoulder blades. She gave me an exercise to do. Lay on your stomach, Stretch your arm over your head as far as possible , as if you are reaching for something then lift it as high as you can at the same time. Hold for 10 seconds. Alternate arms. 10 sets of 10. Do the same with arm straight out to the side.
Just want to be clear,  when you say "lift it"  did you mean your head? That's great I appreciate it.

Dave


SuppaTime

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #31 on: May 04, 2016, 10:23:13 PM »
I went to a Physical Therapist today for shoulder pain. I mentioned I had the pain between my shoulder blades. She gave me an exercise to do. Lay on your stomach, Stretch your arm over your head as far as possible , as if you are reaching for something then lift it as high as you can at the same time. Hold for 10 seconds. Alternate arms. 10 sets of 10. Do the same with arm straight out to the side.

The exercise I got from my PT was the same except lie on my back and keep my hips and should blades pinned to the ground. I also did an exercise that involved pulling against resistance towards me. Imagine a bench press where you are pulling the bar down towards you rather than pushing away. But the key is to use your back muscles to crunch your shoulder blades together while you are doing this.
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white water

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #32 on: May 05, 2016, 04:56:05 AM »
Keep forehead on the ground, lift arm and reach far. She told me also, to pinch your shoulder blades together while keeping you elbows tight to your side while trying to touch the back of your hand to your shoulder with a resistance band connecting hands.
« Last Edit: May 05, 2016, 05:00:04 AM by white water »
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1tuberider

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #33 on: May 05, 2016, 07:14:02 AM »
Are your fingers numb when doing some activities? If not then this probably won't fix it,
but it may be worth a try.

I felt like I was being beat with a baseball bat in the same area you describe. When I rode
motorcycle my fingers numbed.

A chiropractor treated me. He used manipulation, traction, and ice. It worked, but while
doing traction the pain was greater. Doc explained that I had a nerve impingement,
and when the traction lifted the spine off the nerve, the nerve got relief and would first swell
before going back to normal.

How did this happen? I have a desk job with a computer. I sat in the chair 13 hours a day during
my busy season. Bad posture could have been the culprit. Everything I did just pissed the spot off
and would case great pain.

This was 5 years ago or more. I still have an occasional issue when I paddle, but it is short lived now.
Traction devices are cheap. Ice is almost free. You might try something similar. Ask your doc or
go see a chiropractor if this will cause any problems before you try it. For me it was the solution
to a pain problem.

Hope you find a solution and can get back to pain free activity. By the way,
I have no knowledge of medicine. The professionals helped me. They can help you also.

My chiropractor is a god send. He relieved me of my lower back issues that was my greatest pain. Three
bulging disks. He fixed my knee when it goes out. I have a torn meniscus. He also saved me from
going under the knife, because that is where the doctors  were going. He helped my torn ham string heal
faster also.  I some times refer to him as a witch doctor because so far he has helped me with so many
different problems. Regular doctors were talking about surgery which I want no part of.

I have also had pt. It helped with posture and strength. But my lasting relief came from my
witch doc by seeing him on a regular basis. I no longer need the regular basis treatment, just a tune up
every so often.

 

supthecreek

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #34 on: May 05, 2016, 08:35:03 AM »
At the risk of being a pain in the ass....
Lots of detailed discussion about how to overcome the pain..... not enough, about the cause of the pain IMO

It sounds like the pain did not exist till you paddled.
Maybe it's time to ask yourself some questions.

What kind of paddle do you use?
How long is it?
How stiff is it?
How big is the blade?
How heavy is your board?
How wide is your board?
Do you have the right equipment for the kind of paddling you do?
Are you pushing yourself too hard?

Perhaps some simple modification to your routine, the paddle or the board may eliminate the pain.
Just a thought.

Dkyachtphoto

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #35 on: May 05, 2016, 09:16:26 AM »
At the risk of being a pain in the ass....
Lots of detailed discussion about how to overcome the pain..... not enough, about the cause of the pain IMO

It sounds like the pain did not exist till you paddled.
Maybe it's time to ask yourself some questions.

What kind of paddle do you use?
How long is it?
How stiff is it?
How big is the blade?
How heavy is your board?
How wide is your board?
Do you have the right equipment for the kind of paddling you do?
Are you pushing yourself too hard?

Perhaps some simple modification to your routine, the paddle or the board may eliminate the pain.
Just a thought.
Funny you mention that....  I have a 14' x 34" board that weighs 45 pounds. I can't remember the specs on my paddle but I know it was a bigger wider paddle compared to others I was looking at. My wife's board is 12' x 31" and weighs 32 pounds. Her paddle was on the smaller side of what I was looking at. Tomorrow morning I'm going to take her board and paddle out for a bit and see how long it takes to set off my pain.

I spoke with the massage lady again and she recommended a few exercises using my universal gym. She stressed that the elbows up level with your shoulder exercises would benefit me the best. I'll let you guys know how much better my wife's board and paddle are.

Dave


SuppaTime

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #36 on: May 05, 2016, 01:10:05 PM »
I was out SUSing this morning and could feel the spot between my shoulder blades tweaking a bit. I changed my paddling motion so that I was not pulling the paddle so far back and keeping it more out in front of me but not over-reaching; basically, shorter dabs. I also made sure my shoulders were not rolled forward but locked back. I am not an expert at all in proper paddling but the above made my back quit tweaking.
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eastbound

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #37 on: May 05, 2016, 01:59:41 PM »
attach a string to a lacrosse ball with electrical tape. dangle the ball behind your back and lean against a wall. now lean into the lacrosse ball and aggressively (take yourself to the edge of intolerable pain) work the entire area around the point of pain. take care to stay clear of bone and spine. i have had pain under left shoulder blade isnce age 20, when i attempted to pull a rolled carpet up a circular stairway. completely spasmed the left side of my back. the left shoulder blade area has haunted me since then. aggro massage or self massage helps me immensely. feels good too--to work the shit out of that annoying little SOB pain spot.
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deepmud

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #38 on: May 06, 2016, 11:56:58 AM »
My wife has the exact same pain, same spot. She complains about it feeling like someone sticking a knife under her left shoulder blade.

She's had it for several years. Tried everything, asked every doc, had every test. Got nowhere. Even tried acupuncture. Nothing works.
Yup that's the pain...... Quite horrible.

Dave

My wife has neck problems - it started in with a sharp, severe pain under her shoulder blade - she described it like a knife - my attempts at massage the spot never seemed to help. As it progressed (years) , it began to also involve pain in her forearm and thumb with first 2 fingers.

It was her neck - she has degenerative discs and bone, both. The pain finally got to be localized in her neck - severe, constant-drugs-like-percocet-can't-touch-it-NOBODY-is-sleeping pain, and she got a laminectomy (basically "clearanced" the path of the nerve out the back of the neck)  - this provided immediate relief. Unfortunately, things continued to degenerate and she has also had to have a neck-fusion of c5,c6,c7 a couple years later ( I believe it was c5-c6 causing the finger numbness - not sure where the should-blade pain originates).

 - so - all that is to mention you might have your neck checked out for your shoulder blade pain, not that your options are only surgical :D I think you have an big advantage being active and paddling.

Dkyachtphoto

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #39 on: May 15, 2016, 08:10:15 AM »
Sorry been busy,  I went out this morning on my wife's 12'x32" HD and had 0 pain in my back. I used her paddle also. I didn't go to far,  only a few miles but far enough to yo see the difference. So next is either my board with her paddle or her board with my paddle. I noticed not only is her paddle blade smaller than mine the shift is shorter also.

Much better work out on her board also. On mine it's just sooo stable I guess I'm not balancing as much. I did decide I like the 12'x32" much better vs my 14'x34". I see a change coming soon regardless of what I figure out. Her board felt like a sports car compared to mine. I was really surprised how huge a difference a few feet make!  Or would it be the width that makes the difference?

Dave


Billekrub

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #40 on: May 30, 2016, 11:07:46 PM »
It  is possible that by posting a video of yourself in action you would get great feedback on your form.  And the self analysis would be the most valuable of all.

Dkyachtphoto

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Re: Sharp pain between shoulder blades
« Reply #41 on: May 31, 2016, 08:30:28 AM »
It  is possible that by posting a video of yourself in action you would get great feedback on your form.  And the self analysis would be the most valuable of all.
I might try to do that next time I'm out. I was able to use my wife's paddle several times recently and it makes a huge difference. I've been paying more attention to my form and technique but no matter what I do with my paddle it always ends up hurting.

Dave


 


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