"My upper back feels like cement"
Following last week’s email, one of my clients told me she never gets lower back pain, but feels like her entire upper back is completely seized up.
This made me want to address the second issue I see most often with my clients, and a huge misconception you absolutely need to debunk.
The stress that builds up in your shoulders
Stress isn’t just in your head. It’s a physical and physiological phenomenon.
When you spend your day managing ridiculous requests, unrealistic deadlines, and colleagues who aren’t always competent, while also having to think about dinner and pick up the kids from nursery, stress builds up.
This translates into mental pressure, but also a chain reaction of physical and physiological responses. Cortisol floods your veins, your heart rate races, your digestive system derails, and your muscles tense up to prepare for either fight or flight.
Your breathing also becomes shallower, which limits your ribcage movement and increases the effort your neck and shoulder muscles have to make to hold up your head.
And that’s how, day after day, tension builds up throughout your entire upper back area.
It’s not just about stretching!
To soothe all of this, you need a comprehensive approach:
- Regular movement throughout the day to "break" the build-up caused by too much stillness
- Mindful moments where you consciously relax your jaw, neck, and shoulder muscles, and deepen your breathing
- Therapeutic yoga sessions to mobilise these muscles, release tension, and also strengthen them.
And here’s the misconception to debunk: muscle weakness also manifests as a sensation of tension! So focusing solely on stretching isn’t enough.
These yoga sessions are also meant to help you decompress, take time for yourself, give yourself an hour to breathe, recharge, and not constantly be putting out fires left, right, and centre.
My Body & Mind Reset method combines all of this: therapeutic massage to relieve tension, stretching to restore length to these tight muscles, strengthening to make them more resilient, and mindfulness to melt away stress and soothe your nervous system.
If reading this email makes you think “that’s exactly my situation” and you’re fed up with having concrete blocks instead of shoulders, then don’t wait any longer.
I have one last spot this month, as I limit my practice to ensure everyone receives the personalised attention they deserve.
Om, peace 🧡
Clem
PS: If you have any questions, you can reply to this email or write to me on WhatsApp. Even if you're not ready to sign up to work with me, I'm always happy to help!