Repetitive Strain.
The whole body is made of cells. Muscles cells are constructed as fibres that lengthen and shorten, held inside a bag of connective tissue that gives the muscle shape and form, attaching onto bones as tendons.
A muscle pulls on a tendon, which moves the bone, for example, bending a leg.
For muscles to function properly the fibres need to glide smoothly alongside one another lubricated by blood and body fluids such as lymph, our immune system fluid.
Every cell of the body requires a good supply of nutrient rich blood for growth, repair and to carry away the waste generated from energy production or tissue damage.
As muscle relaxes fresh blood floods into it and as they contract the blood is squeezed out taking with it any impurities and by-products of chemical processes, imagine a sponge underwater, squeeze and let go...
If a muscle works too vigorously or in a repetitive way oxygen can be used quicker than the body can deliver it, the waste product-lactic acid- is produced and not removed efficiently causing a build up, soreness, discomfort and pain.
If this vigorous/repetitive/sedentary activity continues for a prolonged period and muscles are held contracted/tightened then damage is caused to the fibres, they stop functioning and stick together. The flow of blood and lymph is impeded.
Over time the muscle structure changes, hard lumps or nodules can be felt under the skin, most notably in the shoulders and upper back but it can occur everywhere, us therapists call these 'adhesions' but they can also alias as 'scar tissue' or 'fibrous tissue'.
Muscle tension can build up so slowly that we don’t even notice it until we feel the discomfort/stiffness/aches/pains or soreness.
My analogy.
Humour me here but I find this an easy illustration of how dysfunction can creep up on us;
Imagine a huge soft bath sheet, every thread represent a muscle fibre and the towel is the muscle.
There is a tiny 5p size wet spot in the corner, this is not going to effect your drying experience.
Over time, that spot increases in size to 20p. 50p, a saucer, plate, even to a ¼ of the towel being wet, still you manage to dry yourself.
As that patch continues to grow you now have to slightly twist and turn to get the best from the towel but you manage.
½ the towel is wet now, this is a pain, takes a bit longer but with some adept cunning you still get dry.
¾ of the towel is wet, that’s it, enough, you are fed up now!
We manage, we feel a pain or some soreness but fill our heads with life and get on with it, generally feeling better as the day progresses, twinges reminding us things are not right but hey, who has the time to stop!
Then the pain gets worse.
Pain, what is it? Mostly it is our body sending us a warning.
It is scary and can be alarming, most of us don't know what to do with ourselves when a pain occurs, a different pain, something that we just know is more than usual. Mostly this can be a neck 'crick' or should pain like stabbing, headaches that won't go, hip pain that runs down the leg, numbness/tingling etc.
Of course we can have an accident/injury and the result is pain, the correct care at the time totally dictates the outcome of recovery and the longterm outlook, "I sprained my ankle years ago, it has never been right.." the times I have heard something similar said. This makes me mad, we should recover and return to health, everything comes back later!
We take pills, the doctor says take pills, we suppress, we can get on and do, until it pops back somewhere else!
We also hold onto pain, close in around it, nurse it for fear it will get worse instead of trying to shake it off. Treatment can help to relax the issue enough for you to help yourself by letting go.
I am always surprised that you are surprised when a problem area, like the neck or shoulders causes pain, hours of poor posture, prolonged use of computers, nursing babies...