Dealing With Dislocated Ribs by Anna Bruno | Apr 22, 2019 | Fitness, Internationalisation, United States, Whitewater | 15 comments Owie! I bent down to untie my shoes for a yoga class in Columbus, Georgia, stood up and suddenly, couldn’t breathe. I had a sharp, stabbing pain under my left shoulder blade and my entire left side felt like it was on fire and simultaneously frozen. I couldn’t stand, sit, twist, or breathe without pain. I lasted all of an hour of telling myself that I would be fine before giving in and calling a chiropractor, explaining that I thought I had dislocated a rib and that yes, I had done this before. Kayaking can be hard on our bodies, whether playboating, river running, or running waterfalls. But it doesn’t have to be a big impact that can cause problems. The first time I dislocated a rib I was squirt boating on the Ottawa, and all it took was twisting to the right. That time, I didn’t know what I was dealing with, and it took me several days to realize that I hadn’t tweaked a muscle in my back or had a big knot behind/between my shoulder blades. The second time, my back was stiff and sore from long days in the car, but I was impatient to get on the water at Glenwood Springs, reasoning that I could just take one warm-up ride. I did, and one spin was all it took before I called the chiro. I’ve struggled with rib pain- some minor, some major, like this last incident, which kept me off the water for a week- for several years. I’ve seen many other kayakers struggle with similar issues and thought I would share some of what I have learned. Triggers: While everyone is different, when my back muscles- specifically my traps and rhomboids inflame, they aggravate my costo-vertebral joint and the little muscles that attach my ribs to my spine, pulling my rib(s) out of place to create the exquisitely painful situation mentioned above. This can happen from overuse, like trying the same trick on the same side over and over and over again, from having poor technique that rounds my back, exposing the little muscles in between my ribs and my spine, or even from having poor posture as a result of being sat in the car or at the computer all day. Or apparently, from tying my shoes after ten days of kayaking and going to the gym with not enough rest or stretching. Root Cause? Visiting the chiropractor in Columbus, GA, they took X-rays, and I learned that a significant contributing factor to my “chronic” rib problems actually originates in my neck. C4 and your C5 vertebrae, it turns out, can pinch on a nerve that runs down your arm, with a tiny little branch that runs down right to my problem spot in the middle of my back, causing those muscles to aggravate and pull my ribs out of place. A big reason for this? Repetitive whiplash-like trauma (i.e., kayaking and mountain biking), age, and a little luck, I guess. So how to deal with it? Though eventually your body may relax and let your ribs go back into place on its own, if you are like me and a WIMP, you may want to deal with it more immediately. Keep in mind that I am not a doctor, but if you suspect a rib may be out of place, I highly encourage finding a knowledgeable chiropractor that can help reduce the errant rib to provide (almost instantaneous, if sometimes temporary) relief. But what if you aren’t around a chiro? And what can I (you) do to help prevent this from happening again? After chatting with the chiro, living with dislocated ribs, and excessive googling, I found a few of the following resources. (Again, disclaimer. I am not a doctor.) Short Term First, NSAIDs- anti-inflammatory drugs can help lessen inflammation and pain. I found that the combination of Tylenol and ibuprofen (Advil) worked best for me. Ice/Heat can both help. I like to use the 8-hr heat packs that stick on your back, available for purchase at most drugstores and Wal-marts. I also encourage using a Voltaren Cream, Arnica Gel, or CBD oil for topical relief. Massage: My new best friend is my Thera Cane, which helps me hit trigger points in my back to help the muscles release. Rolling on a foam roller, or a tennis ball or small massage ball while moving your shoulder can also target the sore spot in question. Or you can pay one of those fancy massage artists to help you. Rest: It may take time (way more than you want) for your muscles to calm down and allow the aggravated joint to heal. Longer term, you may, like me, need to work on posture and technique to prevent triggering the muscles from being angry. I bought a computer stand to help while at work, and am trying not to walk and be on my phone at the same time. I have also used KT tape for postural cues to keep my back muscles in a better position. I have been working on refining my cartwheel and split wheel technique, tricks I know for a fact tend to aggravate my ribs. I (apparently) also need to work on my neck- stretching, strengthening, and using traction to create return more curve to the spine and create more space between the disks, so they stop pinching on the nerve in question. One of the best resources I have found for explaining and targeting rib dislocation problems is Dr. Alex Ritz’s Instagram account. He has a bunch of great videos with some additional PT exercises. I haven’t tried his exercises yet, but I will soon! Massive Thanks to my main chiro man, Dr. Steve Olsen (Cobden, Ontario) and Dr. Mike and Dr. Brodwyn in Columbus, GA, for fitting me into their busy practice and helping me work through the last week. Happy paddling! 15 Comments Jim Murtha on July 5, 2019 at 8:13 am Anna I have had problems with dislocated ribs since I was around your age. Started with an extended kayaking vacation. It took me many years to figure things out and a chiropractor helped at first. My sports Med family physician helped a lot too. Some good news it actually gets better with age. I am 65 now. You can mostly self treat when it happens. Lay on flat surface with arm hanging down. While you rotate your arm to the front straight out and then back down and to the back toward your butt have a friend press with the palm of their hand firmly but not roughly on the affected rib. Keep swinging your arm and shoulder front to down to back and the rib will gently go back. The other thing to help is get and use a Theracane. There are some Chinese knockoffs but I buy the ones made in Denver . You can gently massage the affected rib back in with the Theracane. Finally I do a lot of crunches every other day. They seem to be the best exercise for the muscles around my ribs. I also do Superman and variations of deadbug exercises. They may also help. I will be up and staying at Cindy Jamieson cabin the last week of July with friends so if you are running Keeners maybe we can exchange tips. Reply Jim Murtha on July 5, 2019 at 8:24 am Oops rereading I see you already referenced the Theracane. One more point I rarely have problems if I consistently do the crunches. And again it does get better with age. By the way no need to publish my response. Reply Diana House on October 31, 2022 at 9:54 am I have popped my rib out, it is very uncomfortable, I’m looking for ways to help myself heal and ideas that could make my life easier, this article helps because I was afraid to use icy hot on my ribs because the Dr said that popped ribs were increasing chances of pnuemonia so I was scared to use it, now I feel like I can thankyou Reply Jamie on March 1, 2024 at 4:47 am Hi Agnes I have poped a rib out 4 weeks ago now and it’s just a lump sticking out of my rib cage. I’m still in pain. How long did it take for yours to get better? Reply Agnes on March 9, 2020 at 10:36 am Rib injuries are PAINFUL, I do suffer from occasional slipping rib syndrome my self. Reply Hersh on November 20, 2023 at 1:46 pm How much time it takes for your slipping rib to go back in place ? do you bed rest ? Reply MARGARET on May 23, 2021 at 7:26 am is walking not good for painful manipulated rib joints This burning pain affects my neck and heavy sore leg impossible to live Would swimming be good or walk in water poon Reply Tom on November 12, 2021 at 6:14 am I suffered since high school now 28 and had early onset dementia. The severe type of a cervical root cause. I’ve seen not only my neck, specifically my Craniocervical Syndrome which is more a disease. Like in the article I learned looking why my ribs are slipping so much, I learned the lower nerves can irritate, which I have. I will share what I learned. The Atlas (C1) and Axis (C2) Are critical to every component of life virtually any system. The head becomes mal aligned. Quite literally “not on straight” and if the neck / head / shoulders /accidents/ any impact has weakened by loosening the Craniocervical junction, you will either go back in regularly or need an atlas orthonigal who actually cured my dementia by reversing what I saw as video in image my own base of skull plugging through the bottom like a cork in a wine bottle. Hydrocephalus. MS patients have been helped. My jaw apparently also affects cervical nerves. If you are wondering why nobody says this in a doctor’s office it’s because they either won’t accept or believe it to be true but it’s $150 to check if you can benefit from treatment that barely involves anything no head spinning, and starts allowing spinal fluid to flow and proper balance and it will change how healthy you and your back are and no pun intended I’m living proof. The Rosa Clinic. Dr Scott Rosa. 230 Rock Hill Dr Rock Hill, NY Reply Corey on July 3, 2021 at 11:06 am I was a contractor and fell off of a house about 7 years ago and landed face first and both feet wiped around and kicked me in the back of the head. I was knocked out for a second and wound up with a broken nose, broken elbow, 4 broken ribs ( 2 bottom ribs on both sides each one was broke in 2 places) a dislocated shoulder, a blown out knee, and a few blown out disks at my neck middle of my back and lower back. It was brutal and life changing I still have pain every day but over the last year I’ve had my ribs pop out of place it’s happened 4 times now. I’m in to day number 2 of my lower left I think bottom and it’s bad. I’m not a wimp but this is rough. I don’t have insurance and don’t go to the doctors. Does anyone know any stretches that will Target this area and help it go back into place. I’m afraid of chiropractors because of my experience from when I fell was bad. Please I also have a bronchial infection right now luckily I’m at the end of it but when I cough it’s like a hot knife digging around. Please any relief that will make it go back in a certain spot I can push anything Reply Jeff W. on October 7, 2021 at 9:30 am I’m currently dealing with issues like this. I need to see my ortho doc to be sure about this but I’ve had two open heart surgeries in the past making rib injuries a higher likelihood for me. My latest flare up was this past Sunday after healing from my previous flare up in August. I think it’s this because as I was taking a boof stroke I felt almost like on a count 1, 2, 3 which were what I think were ribs realigning on my vertebrae based on where I felt the pops. Now my symptoms match what you describe and I am treating with NSAIDs and tylenol at the moment using Icy Hot Patches to get through the work day. I’m becoming a celebrity at my local PT office too, lol. I need to see a doc to be certain but my gut is pointing me this way since my situation matches yours very closely. Reply Anna Br on October 23, 2021 at 11:19 am Jeff, that sounds terrible! Good luck. A good acupuncturist can also help work miracles… Reply Sami A. on March 13, 2022 at 8:04 am Thanks so much for your informative, detailed and light blog about this issue. Four weeks ago I felt pain which I also thought was too much strain on the shoulder blades from an intense workout. Reaching down to pick things up aggravated it immensely. A few days later the pain came around the side and started throbbing on the right side under my right lung. Ouch! Difficulty breathing, coughing = extreme pain, sneezing would be immensely scary. I still thought it was a muscle injury. I then started taking tramadol, but ended up in a very bad state. After two doctor and hospital visits, I decided to go to a chiropractor. 5 minutes in, she identified it was a dislocated rib head, massaged the area, popped it in place (painful but worth it). Within minutes no extreme pain breathing, more ability to move arm. I’ve had chronic neck pain for 15 years, so it was interesting you mentioned where this could originate from. I’m still recovering slowly (in week 4 now), will look up Dr. Ritz instagram to improve posture, deal with neck issues, and improve technique at gym. I hope you and all the readers are better and get well soon! Reply Glenda on February 5, 2024 at 9:53 am I moved a rib out waking up a kindergarten student to get on the bus 53 years ago. An old chiropractor helped. But now it slides out on the right side. Just latte the one on the left goes out. Just had open heart surgery. My back is a MESS. More pain from it than my surgery Reply Anna on June 4, 2022 at 3:19 am thanks so much for the info, iv had many problems with my ribs. It first started with just pain so I got it checked out and had it conformed, then I heard clicking which just caused much more pain. so I eventually had surgery to put a plate in. Reply Anna Langen on June 26, 2022 at 10:36 pm Anna, you’re story sounds much like mine. What kind of plate did you have put in? Reply Submit a Comment Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Email * Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ
Jim Murtha on July 5, 2019 at 8:13 am Anna I have had problems with dislocated ribs since I was around your age. Started with an extended kayaking vacation. It took me many years to figure things out and a chiropractor helped at first. My sports Med family physician helped a lot too. Some good news it actually gets better with age. I am 65 now. You can mostly self treat when it happens. Lay on flat surface with arm hanging down. While you rotate your arm to the front straight out and then back down and to the back toward your butt have a friend press with the palm of their hand firmly but not roughly on the affected rib. Keep swinging your arm and shoulder front to down to back and the rib will gently go back. The other thing to help is get and use a Theracane. There are some Chinese knockoffs but I buy the ones made in Denver . You can gently massage the affected rib back in with the Theracane. Finally I do a lot of crunches every other day. They seem to be the best exercise for the muscles around my ribs. I also do Superman and variations of deadbug exercises. They may also help. I will be up and staying at Cindy Jamieson cabin the last week of July with friends so if you are running Keeners maybe we can exchange tips. Reply
Jim Murtha on July 5, 2019 at 8:24 am Oops rereading I see you already referenced the Theracane. One more point I rarely have problems if I consistently do the crunches. And again it does get better with age. By the way no need to publish my response. Reply
Diana House on October 31, 2022 at 9:54 am I have popped my rib out, it is very uncomfortable, I’m looking for ways to help myself heal and ideas that could make my life easier, this article helps because I was afraid to use icy hot on my ribs because the Dr said that popped ribs were increasing chances of pnuemonia so I was scared to use it, now I feel like I can thankyou Reply
Jamie on March 1, 2024 at 4:47 am Hi Agnes I have poped a rib out 4 weeks ago now and it’s just a lump sticking out of my rib cage. I’m still in pain. How long did it take for yours to get better? Reply
Agnes on March 9, 2020 at 10:36 am Rib injuries are PAINFUL, I do suffer from occasional slipping rib syndrome my self. Reply
Hersh on November 20, 2023 at 1:46 pm How much time it takes for your slipping rib to go back in place ? do you bed rest ? Reply
MARGARET on May 23, 2021 at 7:26 am is walking not good for painful manipulated rib joints This burning pain affects my neck and heavy sore leg impossible to live Would swimming be good or walk in water poon Reply
Tom on November 12, 2021 at 6:14 am I suffered since high school now 28 and had early onset dementia. The severe type of a cervical root cause. I’ve seen not only my neck, specifically my Craniocervical Syndrome which is more a disease. Like in the article I learned looking why my ribs are slipping so much, I learned the lower nerves can irritate, which I have. I will share what I learned. The Atlas (C1) and Axis (C2) Are critical to every component of life virtually any system. The head becomes mal aligned. Quite literally “not on straight” and if the neck / head / shoulders /accidents/ any impact has weakened by loosening the Craniocervical junction, you will either go back in regularly or need an atlas orthonigal who actually cured my dementia by reversing what I saw as video in image my own base of skull plugging through the bottom like a cork in a wine bottle. Hydrocephalus. MS patients have been helped. My jaw apparently also affects cervical nerves. If you are wondering why nobody says this in a doctor’s office it’s because they either won’t accept or believe it to be true but it’s $150 to check if you can benefit from treatment that barely involves anything no head spinning, and starts allowing spinal fluid to flow and proper balance and it will change how healthy you and your back are and no pun intended I’m living proof. The Rosa Clinic. Dr Scott Rosa. 230 Rock Hill Dr Rock Hill, NY Reply
Corey on July 3, 2021 at 11:06 am I was a contractor and fell off of a house about 7 years ago and landed face first and both feet wiped around and kicked me in the back of the head. I was knocked out for a second and wound up with a broken nose, broken elbow, 4 broken ribs ( 2 bottom ribs on both sides each one was broke in 2 places) a dislocated shoulder, a blown out knee, and a few blown out disks at my neck middle of my back and lower back. It was brutal and life changing I still have pain every day but over the last year I’ve had my ribs pop out of place it’s happened 4 times now. I’m in to day number 2 of my lower left I think bottom and it’s bad. I’m not a wimp but this is rough. I don’t have insurance and don’t go to the doctors. Does anyone know any stretches that will Target this area and help it go back into place. I’m afraid of chiropractors because of my experience from when I fell was bad. Please I also have a bronchial infection right now luckily I’m at the end of it but when I cough it’s like a hot knife digging around. Please any relief that will make it go back in a certain spot I can push anything Reply
Jeff W. on October 7, 2021 at 9:30 am I’m currently dealing with issues like this. I need to see my ortho doc to be sure about this but I’ve had two open heart surgeries in the past making rib injuries a higher likelihood for me. My latest flare up was this past Sunday after healing from my previous flare up in August. I think it’s this because as I was taking a boof stroke I felt almost like on a count 1, 2, 3 which were what I think were ribs realigning on my vertebrae based on where I felt the pops. Now my symptoms match what you describe and I am treating with NSAIDs and tylenol at the moment using Icy Hot Patches to get through the work day. I’m becoming a celebrity at my local PT office too, lol. I need to see a doc to be certain but my gut is pointing me this way since my situation matches yours very closely. Reply
Anna Br on October 23, 2021 at 11:19 am Jeff, that sounds terrible! Good luck. A good acupuncturist can also help work miracles… Reply
Sami A. on March 13, 2022 at 8:04 am Thanks so much for your informative, detailed and light blog about this issue. Four weeks ago I felt pain which I also thought was too much strain on the shoulder blades from an intense workout. Reaching down to pick things up aggravated it immensely. A few days later the pain came around the side and started throbbing on the right side under my right lung. Ouch! Difficulty breathing, coughing = extreme pain, sneezing would be immensely scary. I still thought it was a muscle injury. I then started taking tramadol, but ended up in a very bad state. After two doctor and hospital visits, I decided to go to a chiropractor. 5 minutes in, she identified it was a dislocated rib head, massaged the area, popped it in place (painful but worth it). Within minutes no extreme pain breathing, more ability to move arm. I’ve had chronic neck pain for 15 years, so it was interesting you mentioned where this could originate from. I’m still recovering slowly (in week 4 now), will look up Dr. Ritz instagram to improve posture, deal with neck issues, and improve technique at gym. I hope you and all the readers are better and get well soon! Reply
Glenda on February 5, 2024 at 9:53 am I moved a rib out waking up a kindergarten student to get on the bus 53 years ago. An old chiropractor helped. But now it slides out on the right side. Just latte the one on the left goes out. Just had open heart surgery. My back is a MESS. More pain from it than my surgery Reply
Anna on June 4, 2022 at 3:19 am thanks so much for the info, iv had many problems with my ribs. It first started with just pain so I got it checked out and had it conformed, then I heard clicking which just caused much more pain. so I eventually had surgery to put a plate in. Reply
Anna Langen on June 26, 2022 at 10:36 pm Anna, you’re story sounds much like mine. What kind of plate did you have put in? Reply
