Shoulder pain and Functional Osteopathy

Are you suffering from shoulder pain?

Have you found, like many, it is difficult to find a solution through traditional physical therapy including chiropractic, traditional osteopathy and physiotherapy?

In my early years of osteopathic practice, I must admit, I also struggled with  many of my clients shoulder issues. No amount of exercises, manipulation or massage gave any truly long lasting relief.

Part of the problem is partly related to the fact that the shoulder joint is naturally very unstable and so the smallest of imbalances can cause a whole lot of trouble. The shoulder joint is stabilized by over 11 different muscles which essentially means 11 different opportunities for a problem to occur. What helped me more than anything to help me unravel this conundrum was Functional Medicine. One of the underlying principles of FM is that health is found by a balance between 3 factors your structure, your chemistry and your emotions. So for example, if you have a muscle weakness in your shoulder then it may be due to a spinal misalignment (Structure), nutritional deficiency (Chemistry) or emotional trauma (Emotions). Each of the muscles in the shoulder are also associated with different organs or glands in your body. One of the most common shoulder muscles weaknesses is the Teres Minor which is associated with your Thyroid gland. So if your thyroid is under active then this will weaken your Teres Minor and so cause an imbalance in your shoulder.

Your thyroid can become under active because of a number of reasons, the most common being:

• Nutritional Deficiencies, including Iodine and Iron.
• Gluten Sensitivity which leads to Thyroid Autoimmune disease.
• Soya which contains goitrogens that effect the thyroid.
• Fluoride and Chlorine, which reduce Iodine uptake.

My most recent client with a shoulder problem had a both a Teres Minor and a Deltoid weakness. Her Teres minor was weak due to an Iodine deficiency, common for people in Ottawa who have fluorinated tap water. Her Deltoid, which is related to her lungs, was weak due to a CoQ10 deficiency. CoQ10 is important for muscle function among other things and it's absorption is most commonly effected by medications. The client in question took a Actonel, a medication prescribed for people with osteoporosis. CoQ10 is also effected by cholesterol medication such as Lipitor and Crestor. By simply supplementing the clients diet with Iodine and CoQ10 her shoulder resolved within 4 weeks.

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