Shoulder discomfort

[rainydiary]

Hello community,

For a number of years I've experienced discomfort in one of my shoulders.  I recently discovered the term "body armoring" and think it describes this experience.  I am not sure if there is one or ongoing instances where I held tension in this area yet it is the one area that my picks up on and notices (even if other areas of my body are tense).

Yoga, mindfulness, and massage often help.  Yet there are times where they don't and I start to obsess over what might be going on.  Earlier this year I did some inner child work and noted that as I worked through this, the location of the tension shifted in my shoulder.  I am wondering right now if the tension is resurfacing because I have restarted exploring my past.   

I'm wondering if others have found things that help them navigate releasing persistent body tension. 

[Snookiebookie2]

Hi Rainydiary,

Thanks for posting this.

I experience body armouring too, and the pain can be unbelievable.

I'd be interested in what others have to say as it may be of benefit to me too.

[owl25]

Hi rainydiary, I think my body is in a permanent state of tension, and it is rare that I am fully relaxed. I don't have it to the point though of it being really painful. It does wax and wane sometimes, and I think some areas of dull aching are tied to certain events from the past.

Interestingly enough I once had a therapy session where I connected to feelings from when I was a lot younger, and they were associated with a certain dull painful ache in one particular location in my back. As I experienced some of the emotions. the pain moved from one location to another.  Now I sometimes will still feel the tension/ache in the new location, depending on whether I am connecting with the feelings that go with that. It sounds a bit like what you've described as well.

I think getting regular massages would be helpful to reduce the tension, but feels like in a way it would just be temporary and the tension would come back. I think working through the emotions and releasing them eventually will lead to lessening of body tension.

[rainydiary]

Thank you for these thoughts - It's helpful to know others experience similar tensions.

I am starting to think it is like an alarm or message.  The massages definitely don't resolve it and it changes across a day when I am experiencing it. 

I think figuring out which emotion(s) are there may be helpful.  I also wonder how accepting that I hold tension (as it isn't just my shoulder, that is just the area that I notice the most) would impact my experience. 

[Gromit]

I brace and arm myself too, so glad my masseur is able to work again now.

I sometimes have baths with Epsom Salts in, that is supposed to help relax muscles and a good source of magnesium too.

Yoga made me more aware but I don't always realise I am holding tension or know what to do about it when I realise. I even tried some TRE once, but I found that made me tense up even more. You hold poses to create tension then release by shaking.

Moving sometimes helps.

[Blueberry]

I also wonder how accepting that I hold tension (as it isn't just my shoulder, that is just the area that I notice the most) would impact my experience.

I imagine this might be helpful. Idk how it is for you, but when I don't accept something, I tend to fight against it. Needless to say, fighting against tension in my own body is not particularly useful. In fact it just tends to increase the tension.

My whole body used to be wracked with pain. Hasn't been that bad for a long time. Recently my shoulder flared up again a little. I know it was to do with what I had been working on in T. So having said that, figuring out what emotions are tied up there could very well help too. 

[rainydiary]

I am noticing it is related to emotions as well as my menstrual cycle.  I think it was my inner child mostly and since I've done healing  it hasn't been as bad.  It flared up last week when my period started but also I think because I was facing some difficult things.