5 Causes of Shoulder Pain a Chiropractor Can Fix
If shoulder pain has been quietly running the show—limiting overhead presses at the gym, making it hard to grab a dish from the cabinet, or waking you up when you roll onto your side—you’re not alone.
In Clairemont and greater San Diego, we see this every week: active adults, desk pros, parents lifting kids, surfers paddling out, weekend softball heroes… and the common thread is a shoulder that’s been overworked, under-supported, or compensating for something else upstream.
The good news? Most shoulder problems are mechanical, reversible, and highly responsive to a clear plan that restores motion where you’ve lost it and gives you practical ways to stay strong and comfortable. For a quick overview of how chiropractic care addresses the most common issues, start with our shoulder pain page.
Below are five of the most common causes we assess at Stein Chiropractic, how they tend to show up, and what a smart, step-by-step plan looks like to get you back to what you love.
1) Rotator Cuff Strain: The Mechanics at Play
Your rotator cuff is a team of four small muscles that stabilize your shoulder and fine-tune movement. When they’re overloaded—often by repetitive reaching, throwing, paddling, swimming, or poorly controlled lifting—they complain. Micro-irritation builds, strength fades at the edges of your range, and everyday tasks start to feel older than they should.
How it shows up
A dull ache on the outside of the shoulder that sometimes travels halfway down the arm
Weakness or a “dead arm” feeling with anything overhead
Pain reaching behind your back (seatbelt, jacket sleeve)
Why it lingers
When the cuff is doing all the stabilizing, the supporting cast—scapular stabilizers and mid-back mobility—may not be pulling their weight. Add long workdays, stress, or sleep debt, and recovery can’t keep up with demand.
What helps in our clinic
Gentle joint work for the neck, mid-back, and shoulder so the cuff isn’t fighting stiff links in the chain
Targeted soft-tissue work for tender hot-spots (common in supraspinatus/infraspinatus)
Simple, progressive guidance to reintroduce strength at the edges of your range—without flaring pain
Practical training tweaks so you can keep moving while things calm down
If you’re rehabbing between matches, WODs, or long paddles, see how we support active recoveries on our sports injury chiropractor (Clairemont) page.
2) Shoulder Impingement: Why This Happens
“Impingement” describes a crowding problem: tendon or bursa gets pinched under the acromion during elevation. That crowding usually traces back to a few culprits—poor humeral head control, a shoulder blade that isn’t rotating or tilting on time, and a mid-back that’s too stiff to let the scapula glide.
Signs you’ll notice
A painful arc between roughly 60°–120° of lifting the arm to the side
Sharp jabs on the front/top of the shoulder with quick reaches
Night pain when sleeping on that side
Common triggers
Repetitive overhead work (stocking, painting, overhead presses)
Rounded shoulders and forward head posture that change scapular mechanics
Tight pecs or stiff thoracic spine limiting upward rotation
Our approach
Mobilize the thoracic spine and ribs to free the shoulder blade
Ease posterior cuff tension so the ball of the joint tracks where it should
Teach straightforward scapular activation drills you can do without equipment
Help you return to overhead gradually, so comfort and control come back together
Because the shoulder is part of a full kinetic chain, we often include focused joint care beyond the ball-and-socket. Read more about that on Extremity Chiropractic Care.
3) Frozen Shoulder: How It Develops
Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis) is when the capsule literally tightens over time. Many people move through phases: painful “freezing,” very stiff “frozen,” and gradual “thawing.” It’s more common between 40–65, and it can follow immobilization, metabolic factors, or just a run of bad luck.
Daily challenges
Deep, relentless ache—especially at night
Hard stops at end range (external rotation and abduction often hit a wall)
Losing independence with dressing, reaching, or hair care
Care priorities
Gentle joint mobilization to restore capsular motion without provoking a flare
Short-lever, pain-tolerant movement to maintain confidence in daily use
Keeping the neck, mid-back, and opposite shoulder happy while the affected side catches up
A lot of people delay care because they think they need a referral or weeks of scheduling first. If you prefer simple access, remember we’re a walk-in chiropractor in San Diego—you can be evaluated and start a plan without the wait.
4) Posture & Desk Habits: The Hidden Culprit
Hours of laptop hunching, phone scrolling, and shallow chest-only breathing tilt the shoulder blade forward and down. That subtly changes how the shoulder tracks—hello impingement, biceps irritation, and cuff overwork.
Clairemont’s tech and healthcare communities feel this: short breaks slip, positions get sloppier by 3 p.m., and by evening the front of the shoulder is grumpy.
Try this quick self-check
Do your shoulders sit forward with your palms rotated behind you?
Is your head forward of your chest when you type?
Do you feel tight at the front of the shoulder and base of the neck by day’s end?
Fixes that actually stick
Open the front side (pec minor releases, easy thoracic extensions over a roller)
Use short, frequent resets (30–60 seconds, many times per day) instead of one marathon stretch at night
Build endurance in the upper-back stabilizers with simple suggestions you can do at home
Nudge your setup: raise the screen, keep elbows under shoulders, bring the keyboard to you
If work is part of the problem, our guide for desk and tech workers walks through ergonomic upgrades and movement snacks that are actually doable on a busy schedule.
5) Referred Pain: When the Shoulder Isn’t the Source
Not every “shoulder” problem lives in the shoulder. Irritated cervical joints, sensitive nerve roots, or rib restrictions often refer pain to the deltoid or shoulder blade. That’s why treatments aimed only at the ball-and-socket can miss the mark.
Clues it’s referred
Neck stiffness or headaches along with shoulder ache
Tingling past the elbow or into the hand
Pain changes more with neck motion than shoulder motion
What helps
Dialed-in adjustments and mobilizations for the cervical and thoracic spine
Breathing mechanics that expand the rib cage so the scapula rests and moves better
Guidance on gradually rebuilding shoulder tolerance without overloading the spine
If you’re not sure whether your shoulder pain is actually a shoulder problem or part of a bigger pattern, this overview of what a chiropractor can and can’t fix helps clarify where chiropractic is the right fit—and when it’s not.
At-Home Screens: Is Your Shoulder Ready to Load?
These quick checks help you understand where you’re starting. If any are sharply painful, skip them and get evaluated.
Reach behind-back: Can you comfortably reach the back pocket area? If one side is way worse, capsular stiffness may be part of it.
Wall slide: Back against a wall, slide arms up without your low back popping off. If it does, thoracic stiffness is limiting scapular motion.
External-rotation check: Press your forearm gently into a doorframe. Tender but tolerable is normal; sharp, lingering pain suggests the cuff is irritated.
Two-minute posture reset: Tall neck, soft ribs, shoulder blades gently down and around. Breathe into your sides. Re-test an overhead reach—if it’s better, posture is part of the driver.
What to Expect at Stein Chiropractic (A Different Approach)
Every shoulder is unique, so our process isn’t a script—it’s a framework that adapts to you.
Start with clarity
We pinpoint whether the real driver is cuff overload, poor scapular timing, capsular tightness, or a referral from the neck or ribs. That way you’re not guessing, googling, and hoping—you have a working diagnosis and a plan that fits your day-to-day life.
Make you comfortable fast
We use gentle adjustments, soft-tissue work, and pain-tolerant movement suggestions to calm things down without sidelining your whole life. Most people can keep doing a version of what they love while symptoms settle—no months-long timeout from being active or showing up for your family.
Support daily function
As mobility returns, we help you move more comfortably in the activities that matter—like reaching overhead, lifting groceries, carrying kids, or simply getting a good night’s sleep. The focus is always on keeping you confident and safe as your shoulder gets stronger.
Address lifestyle factors
If your posture at work, sleeping position, or everyday habits are adding extra stress to the joint, we’ll point out simple adjustments that make life easier on your shoulder. Small changes repeated consistently can take pressure off and speed progress.
Keep you moving
San Diego lives outside—paddling, running, lifting, hiking. Our job is to help you stay in the game while you heal. For a performance-minded perspective on how we think about active care, read our blog on chiropractic care for athletes.
Proof that matters
Want a sense of outcomes? Take a look at real-world patterns from people like you in our Success Stories.
Training While You Heal (Without Overdoing It)
Stopping everything is rarely the answer. It stalls momentum and can make pain feel bigger. Instead, we help you work around the cranky bits while things calm down.
Principles we emphasize
Choose ranges and angles that don’t provoke a pinch—let comfort lead early
Use tempo and lighter loads to keep quality high while irritation fades
In the early days, pulling often feels better than pushing; build the backside first
Keep your legs and conditioning going so you still feel like yourself
We’ll keep recommendations simple and sustainable—nothing that requires special gear or a 90-minute routine. The goal is steady progress that fits your life, not perfection.
What If You’ve Tried Rest, Stretching, or “Just Being Careful”?
If you’ve already cut weight, taken time off, and stretched more than you care to admit, you’re not broken—you’re just under-prepared in a few specific places. Most shoulders improve when you restore motion + control + capacity—in that order.
We’ll zero in on the specific factors—like joint stiffness, posture, or overuse—that are keeping your shoulder irritated, so you start feeling relief quickly and build confidence as you improve.
A typical recovery arc (varies by person)
Weeks 1–2: Calm symptoms, restore basic motion, add pain-tolerant activity
Weeks 3–6: Re-introduce more reach and light strength with good control
Weeks 6–12: Build durability for real-life demands so it stays better
Red Flags (When to Seek Urgent Evaluation)
Most shoulder pain is mechanical and responds well to conservative care, but get prompt medical evaluation if you notice:
Sudden severe pain after trauma with inability to lift the arm
Obvious deformity, significant numbness, or marked weakness
Fever or feeling unwell with a hot, swollen joint
We collaborate well with local imaging and medical providers when it’s appropriate and will point you the right way if we see something that warrants it.
Ready for a Shoulder That Works Again?
Whether it’s a stubborn cuff strain, a frozen shoulder that’s stolen your reach, or a neck-driven ache that won’t quit, you don’t have to guess your way through it. We’ll identify the driver, restore motion, and give you clear, doable guidance so surfing, pressing, swimming, and sleep start feeling normal again.
Have questions about your specific situation? Send us a quick note through our Contact page and we’ll point you in the right direction. If you’re ready to start, your $50 first visit is straightforward and walk-in friendly: Stein Chiropractic New Patient.
P.S. If shoulder pain keeps flaring whenever the spine is irritated, the shoulder might be compensating for something upstream—our post on back flare-ups above connects the dots, and care in our clinic is built to address those links, not just chase the ache.