?? i went to an IM doc as well as a chiropractor and they both said that stretching will make it worse, but stretching can prevent spasms as well as being physically conditioned. stretching helps for things like a charley horse which is very short lived. stretching definitely helps that. is that what your trainer meant?

__________________
the cave mouth shines
by pure force of will
i look down on the world
from the top of this lonesome hill
and you can run, and run some more
from here all the way to singapore
but i will carry you home in my teeth
-mountain goats

yes, ultrasound. forgot about that. just after the heat and before the massage. damn that jelly stuff was cold. i dont know if that helped or not given it was between the heat and massage and i know both of those helped tremendously.

__________________
to the winch, wench.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dotty wokker and laugh about it all you want. you wont be laughing when my friends dos the fuck out of your hard drive.

stretch and strengthen. i do a combination.

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[ o ]==#

Yesterday was history
Tomorrow is a mystery
Today is a gift - that's why it's called the present
- Babatunde Olatunji (and Kung Fu Panda)

I apologize for not reading through the entire thread right now but I did a word search and it looks like the following suggestions haven't been mentioned:

-make sure you're drinking enough water
-use tennis balls to help massage the area. put them on the floor and then lay down on them where you need the massage. you might try putting a couple of them in a long sock too, I can't remember who told me that or why but they swore by it.

Muscle spasms/cramps can be caused by a lack of potassium in the diet, seems unlikely since its only in one place, but its worth a try.

when i had really bad upperback/shoulder spasms that kept me from doing anything other than sitting straight upright or standing and i ended up back in the ER after they got the pain down w. meds my mother (who previously had a slipped disk) actually did something helpful
she balled up one of those heavy knit cotton sort of blankets, i'm not sure exactly what you call them, and stuck it under that part of my back -it was kind of hard and lumpy and it somehow allowed me to lay back without the spasm happening
otherwise everytime i would lay back the muscle would just start going crazy once it was time to relax and lay on the bed which just seemed to be too smooth and soft of a surface if that makes any sense
so you could try that
i was surprised something so simple was quite helpful

i hated the muscle relaxant they gave me once
it made me feel achy all over like i had the flu

__________________
should i choose a noble occupation
if i did i'd only show up late and sick
and they would stare at me with hatred
plus my only natural talent's wasted

this is directly related to an injury. plus i love bananas and have been drinking tons of milk for the past year because of the injury. so lack of potassium isnt it. thanks tho.

the tennis balls thing... i tried that last time i made a thread and someone suggested it. didnt really work. its hard to get in where im knotting up or whatever. when i have someone rub my back for me, they actually need to dig in behind a plate of bone (i think its bone, the shoulder blade? clavicle i think?) to get the spot where its stemming from. my pt used the phrase trigger point lots, if that helps pinpoint something.

__________________
to the winch, wench.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dotty wokker and laugh about it all you want. you wont be laughing when my friends dos the fuck out of your hard drive.

yes yes! that area bugs me too and might have triggered this spasm according to the chiropractor! that muscle gets tense when you/your body is stressed out or depressed. if its not this particular one, then ive listed links which others. here is a map of lots of trigger points. just click on the picture icon



The Pain Clinic - Muscle Pain - Head, Neck, Shoulder, Arm

Rhomboid Trigger Points

Shoulder Pain, Arm Pain, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Thoracic Outlet Syndrome

Pain Therapy For Trigger Point & Muscle Knot Relief

maybe these links will help?

__________________
the cave mouth shines
by pure force of will
i look down on the world
from the top of this lonesome hill
and you can run, and run some more
from here all the way to singapore
but i will carry you home in my teeth
-mountain goats

YES! thats exactly the spot. exactly. even the spots where it feels good to rub out (haha, pervy me).

__________________
to the winch, wench.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dotty wokker and laugh about it all you want. you wont be laughing when my friends dos the fuck out of your hard drive.

there is a rhom stretch you can do. and try adn find rhom strengthening exercises so it isnt as prone to knotting up as well get into some yoga to release tension and stuff. i just signed up for yoga and i start next tuesday

__________________
the cave mouth shines
by pure force of will
i look down on the world
from the top of this lonesome hill
and you can run, and run some more
from here all the way to singapore
but i will carry you home in my teeth
-mountain goats

k, this stretch i do constantly because they taught us that one in karate when i was a kid and its always felt good. i can actually touch the opposite side of my shoulder blade with my arm. both sides. thats about as far as i can go tho, just because my front gets in the way. if that makes sense.

im making myself one of these.
that looks like it feels really really good.

__________________
to the winch, wench.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dotty wokker and laugh about it all you want. you wont be laughing when my friends dos the fuck out of your hard drive.

i do the ones they showed me in pt.
and i saw some diff stretches in those links, so ill start those. thank you SO SO much.

__________________
to the winch, wench.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dotty wokker and laugh about it all you want. you wont be laughing when my friends dos the fuck out of your hard drive.

thats exactly where my spasm was too, weird

__________________
should i choose a noble occupation
if i did i'd only show up late and sick
and they would stare at me with hatred
plus my only natural talent's wasted

Just subscribing to see if any of this stuff works for my fucked back.

__________________

check back and let us know. so far i had bro push in at the highest point that drawing shows... it worked. temp but it worked. it felt so so good and hurt at the same time. just like in therapy.

__________________
to the winch, wench.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dotty wokker and laugh about it all you want. you wont be laughing when my friends dos the fuck out of your hard drive.

You could also try an alternative treatment by bathing in warm water with some bath salts after the PT. It's very relaxing and promotes healing. The warm water and aromatherapy bath salts is a good remedy for muscle aches.