By Dan Vidal
A very physically active client came in to the office recently complaining of stiffness at the base of his neck and upper back. He also mentioned that he suffered from anxiety and sleep disturbances. During his initial visit, I could see exactly what he meant – he kept forgetting where he put his keys, phone and wallet, and had trouble focusing on our conversation.
Immediately I noticed that he had an extremely flattened curve in his upper back and neck, and a reverse curve in his low back. Basically, his entire spine was stuck in a position that is the opposite of what it was designed for!
I also noticed that his ribs were flared. It was as if he was constantly stuck taking a breath in, without being able to fully let it out. This is very typical of people suffering from anxiety, especially if they also happen to be hardcore fitness enthusiasts like himself.
I explained to him that his flat upper back was a compensation for the reverse curve in his low back. I also explained that a flat upper back can be just as harmful over time as a collapsed rounded one, and that having the strength and mobility to move between both positions freely was really the juicy nugget that we were after.
Not surprisingly, when I treated him, I found the little muscles that straighten the spine and elevate the ribs (the levatores costorum ?) very tight, along with the deep muscles in the front of his neck (the longus coli). I released these, mobilized his ribs, and worked with him on allowing them move naturally with the breath. I also worked with him on bending forward at those rigid portions of the upper back.
He felt much better after the first session, but by the fourth session it was like night and day. The neck stiffness was gone and his anxiety and sleep had improved significantly.
“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me,” he said. “I can really feel the cumulative effects.”
I smiled. “That’s just the beginning. You’re just beginning to unlock your body’s potential!”
Can’t wait to see what we accomplish during his next session.