The cause of stiff shoulders when you wake up is more to do with your muscles than your sleeping position.
The stiffness and pain in your shoulders and neck when you wake up in the morning is because your muscles are not flexible and you are sleeping without being able to change into the position required for sleep.
When you sit down, your muscles adjust to the length needed to sit. Similarly, when you sleep, muscles throughout your body work to adjust their length so that you can assume the right posture for sleeping. However, if you get into bed without being able to adjust them, you will experience pain and discomfort.
The stiffness and pain in your shoulders and neck when you wake up in the morning is because your muscles are not flexible and you are sleeping without being able to change into the position required for sleep.
The illustration on the right shows how the gap between the shoulder and the mattress can be created. The space between the right shoulder and the floor is significantly larger.
When you sit down, your muscles adjust to the length needed to sit. Similarly, when you sleep, muscles throughout your body work to adjust their length so that you can assume the right posture for sleeping. However, if you get into bed without being able to adjust them, you will experience pain and discomfort.
If you fall asleep without adjusting your posture, you will not be able to rest your body weight on the pillow or bed, and tension will continue. If you feel fatigue in your shoulders or neck, there may be a gap between your shoulders and the bed, which is caused by your usual posture.
Flexible muscles work to help you assume a sleeping posture that is different from the posture you normally assume when standing or sitting.
Many people experience shoulder and neck pain when they wake up in the morning, or experience neck discomfort when they lie down, and are unsure how to sleep.
You may have tried sleeping on your side or stomach, changing your pillow or mattress, stretching before bed, or taking a warm bath.
The reason why I still haven't felt any better is because I haven't been able to change my body to be as flexible as it was when I was a child. If I could change my posture flexibly even while I was sleeping, I wouldn't experience any pain. To resolve stiff shoulders and neck when sleeping, it's necessary to know the type of distortion in your body and stretch the muscles that are causing the distortion.
- I tried changing the bed and pillows but it didn't help.
- I tried stretching before bed
- I regularly exercise, such as running or yoga.
- Have received treatment such as a massage
The key to solving this problem is to understand your body's habits.
The illustration shows an examination in progress, and since the hands are not at the same height, it is possible to infer that there may be a problem with the movement of the shoulder blades.
There is no one who has no distortions in their body. For example, the height of the shoulders or the length of the legs may differ from one to the other. This is because each person has their own habits in how they use their body.
This is because humans always rationally choose how to use their bodies and how to move them easily. Muscles that are no longer used because they are difficult to move will become weaker and this will manifest as distortion.
To find distortions, we use examinations. The presence of distortion does not necessarily mean that pain will occur. However, in many cases, the pain will disappear if the distortion is corrected.
Therefore, when you are experiencing discomfort such as stiff shoulders, the key to solving the problem is to identify the distortion and then understand the habits you have in using your body.
Treatment record
Let's take a look at the records to see what steps can be taken to improve persistent shoulder and neck stiffness.
- Symptoms: Dull pain in the neck and shoulders during work and sleep. Fatigue remains even after waking up in the morning.
- Age: 40s
- Work: Mainly computer work
- What I've tried: Chiropractic, acupuncture, changing pillows and mattresses, running, stretching
If we were to put the events up to now in chronological order, it would look something like this:
- Diagnosed as being caused by skeletal distortion
- It was explained that prolonged sitting posture was the cause of the distortion.
- Start stretching and running
- It has improved with exercise and stretching, but it is still unstable.
- I tried changing the bedding but it didn't improve.
- I don't know anymore what the cause is
In addition to trying various treatment methods, he also tried various other methods, such as incorporating exercise.
Various tests will be performed to find the cause. Various parts of the body have a limited range of movement. For example, if you can tilt your head so that your face is parallel to the ceiling when you look up, it can be determined that there is no problem with neck movement.
If you are unable to move as you should, or if it is difficult to move up and down or side to side, this can be identified as the cause of the pain.
Test results
Problems with the test results included the length of the toes and the position of the shoulder blades.
When comparing the length of the big toes on both feet, the big toe on the left foot is longer.
The big toe becomes longer because the arch of the foot (the depression in the sole of the foot) is low. The main cause is that the thigh and buttock muscles are used differently on the left and right sides of the body.
In this way, problems around the waist, which is the center of the body, will manifest themselves in the extremities.
Although the patient complains of neck and shoulder pain, I don't touch their neck or shoulders from the start. There are two reasons for this.
① Inflammation worsens and the number of visits to the hospital increases
When you massage your shoulders, it definitely improves blood circulation, which feels good for a moment. However, the muscles causing pain are inflamed, so pressing on them will only make the inflammation worse. This will result in constant pain, and during the treatment, it will be impossible to tell whether your symptoms are improving or not.
This makes it impossible to tell on the spot whether the symptoms have improved, so we end up saying, "That's all for today. Let's see how it goes for a while," which results in the patient having to come to the clinic more often. This is not desirable as it increases the burden on the customer.
② There is no cause in the area where the pain is occurring
For example, if you have shoulder pain, the cause is often far away, in the lower back or legs. Massaging your shoulders may feel good, but it won't fundamentally improve the condition.
Also, the muscles that are causing pain may not be relaxed, and the more treatment you receive, the worse the pain will become.
For these two reasons, even if the patient complains of pain in their neck or shoulders, we do not touch their neck or shoulders from the start.
Treatment details
We will introduce the treatments that are unique to chiropractic.
When most people's spines are viewed from behind, they often have a curve resembling the letter C or S. If the curve is severe, it is diagnosed as scoliosis. Anyone can have mild scoliosis and it does not cause any problems in daily life.
However, scoliosis is a manifestation of the habit of using your body. In other words, it is the result of repeatedly using your body incorrectly. If you can use your body in a way that eliminates scoliosis, the impact on your neck and shoulders will be reduced and the pain will go away.
The illustration shows exercises to straighten the spine. By exercising with the right amount of resistance, you can turn on muscles that are normally dormant and retrain them to function as they should.
We will try the movements that were painful during the examination before the treatment. The patient will confirm that there are no problems with any of the movements. The discomfort from the neck to shoulders when sleeping on her back has also disappeared, so there should be no problems waking up in the morning.
I told him that I wouldn't be able to confirm whether his symptoms were really improving until he had been sleeping for a few days, so if he still had trouble waking up, I would like to come back and see him again.
Since sleep is something we do every day, we receive many inquiries about it. How can we sleep well and wake up refreshed?
We recommend sleeping on your back, as this is the easiest position for breathing.
When you lie on your side or stomach, the framework surrounding your lungs (the rib cage) cannot move properly, which causes shallow breathing.
Unlike the heart and intestines, the lungs cannot move by themselves. They expand and contract when the rib cage moves. The bones surrounding the chest, such as the ribs, each have joints, so they can move the rib cage in the same way as moving your hands and fingers. It is these bone movements that allow us to breathe.
Since you'll be tossing and turning in your sleep, it's difficult to always maintain the ideal posture, but lying on your back when you get into bed is recommended. If you have flexible muscles that can smoothly adjust to different positions when you turn over in your sleep, you'll be able to wake up feeling refreshed in the morning.
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This is because you are sleeping with your body stiff.
The posture you assume when you are active during the day is different from the posture you assume when you sleep. When you get into bed, your muscles move to help you assume a sleeping position. However, if your muscles cannot move freely, you may fall asleep without preparing your sleeping position.
For example, if you sit for a long time, certain muscles become less mobile and are unable to stretch or contract freely. Stretching is said to be good for stiff shoulders because it helps restore flexibility to the muscles.
When you fall asleep with your muscles moving awkwardly, like a robot, even the unevenness of the pillow or bed that your body was able to adapt to when you first bought it no longer suits you. When this happens, no matter how many times you change your pillow or bed, your neck hurts so much that you feel like there's nowhere to put your head or neck.
However, this is only possible if your bed is not too soft and your pillow is not too high.
Steps to solve the problem holistically
The way we use our bodies, learned from childhood through play, sports, accidents, childbirth and other events, has shaped the physical condition we have today.
If you are experiencing pain, it is simply your body's way of telling you that there is a problem with the way you have been using your body up until now.
The first step to solving the problem is to stop the pain. After identifying the cause through an examination and then performing treatment, the pain will be reduced. Only after the pain has been alleviated will you be ready to learn how to use your body correctly.
The second step is to learn how to use your body correctly. This will change your body and brain so that you don't go back to your old state.
Since physical pain is often caused by lifestyle habits, stretching and exercise are necessary. Just like brushing your teeth, consistent practice is important.
If you want to solve your pain, you need to stop the pain first, then stretching and exercise can come afterwards.