08/13/2026
If you’ve ever caught yourself with your shoulders practically touching your ears, you’re definitely not alone. I see this all the time during massage, and most people don’t even realize how much tension they’re carrying until they finally relax.
Stress is one of the biggest reasons. Add in long hours at a desk, looking down at a phone, driving, working with your arms in front of you, or even sleeping in an awkward position, and those muscles around your neck and shoulders can spend hours doing more work than they should.
When your shoulders stay elevated, the upper trapezius and levator scapulae are often working overtime. Other muscles around the shoulder blade may become lengthened, inhibited, or simply aren’t doing their share of the work. That can eventually lead to neck pain, headaches, shoulder discomfort, and that constant feeling of being “tight.”
This is why I don’t just spend an hour digging into someone’s upper traps and call it a day.
When I work on someone with this type of tension, I look at the entire upper body. I’ll work the neck, shoulders, upper back, around the shoulder blades, and the chest when appropriate. I’ll also incorporate movement and gentle scapular work to help the muscles relax and allow the shoulders to move more naturally.
One thing I’ve learned as a massage therapist is that the spot that hurts isn’t always the whole problem. Sometimes that painful muscle is simply the one that’s been doing too much work for too long.
If you spend your day hunched over a computer, looking down at a phone, driving, working with your hands, or just carrying a lot of stress in your shoulders, your upper body may need more attention than you realize.
That’s why I believe good massage isn’t just about finding the sore spot. It’s about figuring out what is contributing to it and treating the body accordingly.
And yes, sometimes the best thing I can tell a client is: “Relax your shoulders. They’re not going anywhere.”
