Shoulder Impingement: The Silent Scream of the Modern Upper Body

By Paulius Jurasius – JANMI Soft Tissue Therapy, Marylebone

Dear Modern Human, Let's Talk Shoulders...

If you’re reading this with your shoulders slightly shrugged, your chest collapsed, and your head jutting forward like a turtle in traffic—this one’s for you.

I’m Paulius, your resident nature-loving shoulder rescuer here at JANMI Soft Tissue Therapy in Marylebone, and today I’m going to talk about something that’s both tragic and hilarious:

Modern humans have forgotten how to use their shoulders.

Yes, that beautifully mobile, ball-and-socket miracle has become the site of chronic inflammation, nerve compression, and sharp pain with every overhead reach… all because we decided emails and ergonomic chairs are more important than trees and climbing.

Welcome to the world of shoulder impingement—a quiet killer of athletic dreams, morning stretches, and confidence in movement.

So… What Exactly Is Shoulder Impingement?

Let’s simplify. Imagine a small space at the top of your shoulder joint—the subacromial space. It’s home to key structures: your supraspinatus tendon, subacromial bursa, and part of your rotator cuff. Now imagine what happens when this space becomes too tight.

Spoiler alert: those structures get squished.

Over time, this leads to pain, inflammation, weakness, and in more advanced cases, even tendon tears or frozen shoulder.

You’ll notice it when:

Reaching overhead hurts.
Taking off a jacket feels like combat.
You wake up sore after sleeping on one side.
You think it’s getting better… until it’s not.

And still, most people wait. Wait for it to get worse. Or try to “exercise it out” with heavy weights and rotator cuff TikTok routines.

The Modern World Made It Worse

Let’s not sugarcoat it—modern life is a biomechanical tragedy for your shoulder.

Here’s why:

Forward Head Posture
Thank smartphones, laptops, and "I’ll just check one more email" syndrome.
Rounded Shoulders
Your pec minor is tight. Your rhomboids are asleep. Your scapula’s winging out like a broken door hinge.
Lack of Overhead Movement
Our ancestors were climbers. We, on the other hand, get excited if we reach a cupboard.
Too Much Pushing, Not Enough Pulling
Bench press? Yes. Pull-ups? No. Welcome to muscular imbalance 101.
Emotional Load = Physical Load
Your shoulders carry stress—literally. Cortisol, anxiety, and trauma all glue tension into your traps, levators, and lats.

Now Let’s Time-Travel Back...

Imagine early humans: shoulders hanging wide, backs straight, upper limbs built for throwing, hunting, hanging.

No impingement. No postural collapse. No rotator cuff fraying from Netflix binging.

Our musculoskeletal system evolved through nature, and it’s now being degraded by boardrooms, buses, and bad desk chairs.

We’ve swapped function for comfort—and our shoulders are the first to protest.

How JANMI Approaches Shoulder Impingement:

At JANMI Clinic in Marylebone, we don't just treat symptoms. We treat the whole chain. And more importantly-we restore the primal design your shoulder was born with. Our unique approach is something you won't find anywhere else.

Here’s the JANMI Integrated Protocol in action:

1. Postural & Kinetic Chain Assessment

We don’t just poke the sore bit. We analyse your neck, thoracic spine, scapular rhythm, and hip-pelvis mechanics—because your shoulder pain might be starting from your feet.

2. Trigger Point Therapy

Ah yes, the angry little knots. The ones hiding in your infraspinatus, teres minor, levator scapulae, and pec minor.

With precise finger techniques, I deactivate them one by one—like flipping off switches in a short-circuited system.

3. Myofascial Release

Your fascia has memory. It remembers the trauma of years spent slouching, overtraining, or emotionally guarding.

We use slow, sustained pressure, deep directional glides, and stretch integration to rehydrate, realign, and reset your myofascial chains.

4. Sports Massage Techniques

Targeted strokes to recondition fatigued muscle tissues, improve blood flow, and prepare the shoulder for functional strength again.

Not a spa rubdown. Think: clinical precision, athlete-level results.

5. Movement Re-Education

You don’t leave with “rest and hope.” You leave with a custom plan of strength-building and stretch-based exercises to retrain your body, using nature’s intelligence.

Scapula stabilisers? Activated. Thoracic mobility? Unlocked. Rotator cuff? Restored.

Why Myofascial & Trigger Point Therapy Works So Well

Shoulder impingement isn’t a joint problem—it’s a tissue problem.

And tissues hold tension patterns. You can stretch all day, but unless you release the knots, restore fascial glide, and reawaken dormant stabilisers, the pain will return.

Trigger point therapy turns off the fire alarms.

Myofascial release clears the smoke.

Sports massage builds fireproof structure.

But Paulius, Isn’t That Just Massage?

Ah, dear reader… no. It’s JANMI.

Massage is temporary relief.

JANMI Integrated Therapy is a structural reset.

And for more stubborn cases? You’ll want the JANMI Premium Pack. This premium service is designed for those who need intensive, clinical-level care and is priced accordingly.

Real People. Real Results.

In this section, we'll share testimonials and success stories from our clients who have experienced significant improvements in their shoulder health and overall quality of life after undergoing JANMI therapy.Here are a few stories from the JANMI table:

A yoga teacher from Marylebone – Couldn’t hold Downward Dog without pain. Two sessions later: “My shoulder feels free again.”

A saxophonist from Soho – Lost 30% shoulder range. We did nerve gliding, serratus activation, and scapular resets. “I can play without pain again.”

A banker from Mayfair – Trapped in meetings, tension headaches, and frozen shoulder. After five sessions: “I sleep without pain. I feel stronger.”

If We Don’t Fix This…

Shoulder impingement won’t go away with hope and heat packs.

Left unchecked, it leads to:

Rotator cuff tears
Frozen shoulder
Cervical nerve entrapment
Constant reliance on painkillers

And guess what? In 20 years, we’ll see more shoulder surgeries than ever before unless we change our relationship with movement now.

Final Thoughts From Me to You

Dear reader, if you’ve reached this far, you already know something needs to shift.

Your shoulder isn’t just a joint. It’s your story. Your stress. Your struggle to reach for something more.

Let me help you reset it.

Book a JANMI Integrated Session or, for deeper chronic cases, the JANMI Premium Pack in our Marylebone clinic.

You deserve to move better.

You deserve to feel stronger.

You deserve to reset.

Warmest wishes,

Paulius Jurasius

Founder of JANMI Method

Marylebone, London