Virtual ConnectTherapy™ & the Neck, Shoulder & Co-Ring Shoulder Drivers
Understand the connections between the neck, shoulder, and thorax for better outcomes. Reason through the full upper quadrant Driver Profile — so you know what’s driving your patient’s symptoms, what to treat first, and which exercises make the fastest, most lasting change.
Registration Tuition
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Is your patient’s neck pain really coming from the neck — or is it a victim of something else?
The neck and shoulder are among the most commonly presenting regions in practice — and among the most misunderstood. Neck pain may be a victim of a Thoracic Ring Driver. Shoulder pain may switch sides because the true Driver hasn’t been found. Without a whole-body, Driver-based framework, it’s easy to keep treating the symptom instead of the cause.
Regional assessment
Assessing and treating the neck and shoulder as isolated regions — local tests, generic postural cues to “sit up straight” or “pull your shoulder blades back,” and exercises that don’t change depending on what’s actually driving the symptoms.
The upper quadrant Driver Profile
Reasoning across the whole body to find the Driver — whether the neck is a Primary Driver or a victim, whether the shoulder is a Driver, and whether a Co-Ring Shoulder Driver or a Ring-Shoulder CoDriver relationship with the Thoracic Rings is at play — so you treat the cause, not the symptom.
When neck pain isn’t from the neck
Neck symptoms can be a Primary Driver — or a victim of a Thoracic or Shoulder Driver. Determining which changes what you treat first, and stops you from chasing the symptom.
Why shoulder pain changes sides
Shoulder pain that switches sides is a clue, not a mystery. It points to the true Driver Profile — and reading it correctly tells you where the problem is really coming from.
The often-missed CoDriver
A CoDriver relationship between the Thoracic Rings and the shoulder is common and easily missed. Recognizing it is the difference between temporary relief and lasting results.
What you’ll work through
Over 10 hours of self-paced theory, diagnostics, and treatment reasoning — building directly on ConnectTherapy™ & the Thorax to take your upper quadrant clinical reasoning to the next level.
Is the neck the Driver — or the victim?
Learn to determine whether your patient’s neck symptoms are the true source or a consequence of a Driver elsewhere in the upper quadrant.
- Driver vs. victim: determine whether neck symptoms are a Primary Driver or a victim of a Thoracic or Shoulder Driver.
- Forward head posture: address it at its true source — not with cues to “sit up straight.”
- Whole-body reasoning: connect the cervical spine to the Thoracic Rings and the rest of the body within the ConnectTherapy™ framework.
- The upper quadrant Driver Profile: build the reasoning that tells you what to treat first, and why.
The shoulder & Co-Ring Shoulder Drivers
Understand why shoulder pain behaves the way it does, and recognize the common CoDriver relationship between the Thoracic Rings and the shoulder.
- The switching shoulder: identify why shoulder pain switches sides — and what that reveals about the Driver Profile.
- Rethinking shoulder assessment: the pitfalls of common techniques, and more reliable hands-on approaches.
- Rounded shoulders: address them at their true source — not with cues to “pull your shoulder blades back.”
- The CoDriver scenario: recognize the common, often-missed Ring-Shoulder CoDriver relationship.
Functional Movement & Vector Analysis
Perform detailed, hands-on analysis of the cervical spine and glenohumeral joint, and apply Vector Analysis to confirm the Driver.
- Cervical FMA: detailed Functional Movement Analysis of the cervical spine (C0–C7) within the ConnectTherapy™ framework.
- Glenohumeral FMA: functional analysis of the glenohumeral joint to reveal its role in the Driver Profile.
- Vector Analysis: apply Vector Analysis skills for Neck Drivers, Shoulder Drivers, and Co-Ring Shoulder Drivers.
- Rule in / rule out: confirm the Driver with clinical reasoning — no more trial and error.
Treatment & progression by Driver type
Plan and progress treatment differently depending on your patient’s Driver Profile — and know when to look beyond the upper quadrant.
- Driver-specific progression: progress exercises differently for a Neck Driver, a Thoracic Ring Driver, or a Ring-Shoulder CoDriver.
- Whole-person treatment: reason through the full upper quadrant Driver Profile to make the fastest, most lasting change.
- Look further down the chain: recognize when the Foot/Ankle complex may be contributing to upper quadrant symptoms.
- Your Series journey: continue toward the ConnectTherapy™ Series Graduate designation.
Dr. Linda-Joy Lee
PhD, BScPT, FCAMPT
Dr. LJ Lee
LJ is a physiotherapy graduate and Wesbrook Scholar (1996) from the University of British Columbia, Canada. Her passion for movement, rooted in a competitive figure skating background, led her to pursue advanced training, becoming a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Manipulative Physiotherapy (FCAMPT) in 1999 and certifying in Intramuscular Stimulation (CGIMS) in 2001. Her clinical interest in how the thorax drives whole-body dysfunction and pain eventually led her to complete a PhD at the University of Queensland in 2013.
Over her career, LJ developed highly influential clinical frameworks based on finding the “primary driver” of a patient’s pain. She created the Thoracic Ring Approach™ to address motor control of the thorax, and her assessment framework, Meaningful Task Analysis (2008), became a core feature of both the Integrated Systems Model for Pain and Disability (2010) and ConnectTherapy™ (2014). These models allow clinicians to determine when a pain-free but dysfunctional region is the actual cause of pain elsewhere in the body.
An active researcher and educator, LJ is an Associate Editor for the British Journal of Sports Medicine and holds academic roles with McMaster University and the University of Melbourne. She mentors a team at her clinic, Synergy Physiotherapy + Pilates in North Vancouver, Canada. Inspired by the body’s capacity to heal, LJ loves creating supportive learning environments where clinicians can challenge their clinical reasoning and see movement in a more connected way.
Secure Your Seat
12 months full access · Continue your ConnectTherapy™ Series journey
How enrollment works
Registration takes only a few minutes, and you get access to the videos and supporting online resources for 12 months from your registration date.
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Prerequisite required
This course builds directly on ConnectTherapy™ & the Thorax. You’ll need to have completed both the Virtual and In-Person components of that course before enrolling — your prior completion is verified on the registration form.