We have all been there…as kids sitting in our chairs or walking down the hall we hear that voice, “That loving caring voice” that with one phrase made us tilt our heads back and roll our eyes.
“Sit up straight.”
“Stand up straight.”
“Fix your posture.”
Unfortunately, we should have been listening because when it comes to being pain free, posture may be the single most important thing we can pay attention to through the day. When most people think about posture, they think of the back; and yes keeping a neutral spine is probably the holy grail of maintaining a pain free back. However, most of us don’t think of poor posture causing arm pain.
There are three areas to look at when we consider posture as it relates to arm pain:
- Head Position – Forward Head Posture
- Scapula Position
- Anterior Tilt – Scapular Winging
- Protracted Scapula – Shoulder Rounding
- Depressed Scapula
- Clavicle Position – Flat Clavicle
Simply put, most of these positions compromise the brachial plexus (nerve bundle) that leaves the neck and runs underneath the clavicle and coracoid process, then proceeds through the axilla and down the arm. When the brachial plexus becomes trapped by any of the soft tissue or bone around the anterior shoulder and neck, referred pain can show up almost any where in the arms, even in the hands.
In follow-up articles will discuss how each of these positions effects the arm mechanics and also give at home remedies to use to address them.
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