Dramatic improvements to chest pain from massage!!!

[POTSius]

I wanted to share that I have had great improvement with two longstanding and debilitating chest pain symptoms via self massage!

the symptoms were:
1. a bad pain in the center of my chest
2. a fluttering sort of sensation in my chest

I massage the muscles between the ribs (which I did not even know existed! they are used for breathing) and also right at the junction of the ribs and the sternum (center of chest). I massage these areas only for maybe 30 seconds at a time, but like a dozen times a day. I hypothesize the key here is repetition.

I search for sore regions and massage them. After a week or two the soreness usually goes away (the pain/fluttering improved even sooner).

Interestingly, I used to think the first pain was heart palpitations. It sort of felt like that. I guess the lesson is it can be hard to distinguish where pain is coming from.

I think the fluttering must have been muscle spasms? And massaging the muscles somehow helped with that?

If anyone has any questions, I am happy to answer and hope this helps somebody. I can't imagine I am the only person where the above helps.

I have no expertise with massage so if you try this please be careful, not sure what sorts of risks are involved here. But it has been too helpful to not share.
 

Edit:

For the technique, I use the middle part of my thumb, right at the joint and do small circles with light to medium pressure

[Pistol]

@POTSius - thanks so much for sharing that this helped you! I hope it continues to work!!!!! 😊

[POTSius]

18 hours ago, Pistol said:

@POTSius - thanks so much for sharing that this helped you! I hope it continues to work!!!!! 😊

Thanks @Pistol

I am extra happy as it did not involve adding yet another med!

[dancer65]

You may find that it is your pectoral major muscle that inserts onto the sternum is tight hence while massage helps . Both the pectoral muscles can be trigger points that cause chest pain there is a condition called False Cardialgia . You should stretch out the muscles gently after massaging . Placing both hands on your bum and pulling shoulder blades together at the back gently is a good stretch and opens up the chest . Can be done either seated or standing just check your standing or sitting strsight . 
 It’s great the massage is helping you ! 

[Pistol]

@dancer65 - thanks for that exercise tip! I tried it right away and it really helps!!!! 😘

[POTSius]

@dancer65

Thanks for the advice, I looked up False Cardialgia and it sounded like an interesting idea. As I noted above, it really did feel like the pain was heart palpitations.

I tried the stretch and I found a lot of soreness in whatever muscles pull the shoulder blades together, maybe that is what I need to work on next. I will have to try further for the pecs, as I could not get a stretch feeling there doing this.

[dancer65]

Pistol glad it helped !

potsius , if you are young and not tight in that area you may not feel the stretch that much , however it is a maintaince stretch for most people meaning it helps to retain a normal range of movement , for those who can feel a pulling it is then a developmental stretch which should with practice become a maintaince stretch . I hope that makes sense ! 
Just a thought as you  responding to masssge if you put a tennis ball between your shoulders whist standing against a wall and move up and down it would massage the trapezius muscle as impossible to do that area yourself with hands !!!! 
good stretch for trapezius is the cat stretch ,. Kneeling on all fours suck in belly and curl whole of back towards the ceiling. 
for upper trapezius whilst sitting tilt the head to one side so the ear is going to the shoulder, by adding the hand on the ear it will deepen the stretch ( same arm as the way you tilting the head 

Still sitting turn head a quarter turn them put chin towards chest , should stretch upper neck adding hand on head should add more weight to deepen stretch 

Happy massaging 😀

 

[POTSius]

@dancer65

Thanks for all the advice. I am young so I think that must be it. Good to know it is something that might tighten later.

Can definitely feel that last stretch for the neck!

[dancer65]

😀👍