Are Your Ears Fresh Gyoza… or Frozen?🥟

A gentle self-assessment for neck, shoulder tension, and headaches

If you have kids, try this for a moment.

Touch their ears.
They’re soft. Squishy. Warm.
You can gently fold them like fresh gyoza dough.

Now check your own ears.

Do they move easily?
Or do they feel thick, stiff, or a bit “stuck”?

This simple comparison can tell you a lot about what’s happening in your body.

Many people go straight to stretching their neck or massaging their shoulders when they have headaches or stiffness.

But the ears are closely connected to:

• the neck

• the jaw

• the upper shoulder area

• and the fascial system that wraps everything together

When ear tissue loses softness and mobility, it’s often a sign that the surrounding fascia is under tension.

Think of your ear like gyoza dough.

Fresh gyoza ears:

• Soft

• Warm

• Easy to gently fold

• Skin moves easily

Dry or frozen gyoza ears:

• Thick or hard

• Less movement

• Feels “stuck” when touched

• Sometimes sensitive or uncomfortable

You can also try a shumai check:
Can your ear softly round and change shape, like a shrimp shumai?

There’s no “right” answer — just notice.

Also check:
👉 Is the right ear different from the left?
(It often is.)

Your ears are like dry clay.

If you pull hard, you don’t soften it — you tear it.

So when you touch your ears:

• Use very small movements

• Think 2–3 millimeters of skin movement

• Slow, gentle, almost lazy

If it feels “good,” that’s usually a sign you’re on the right track.

When the ears and surrounding fascia soften:

• the neck often follows

• shoulder tension can reduce

• headaches may ease without aggressive work

Sometimes relief doesn’t start where the pain is.

Before stretching your neck.
Before working on your shoulders.
Before pushing harder.

Check your ears.

Are they fresh gyoza… or frozen?

Small, gentle awareness can change more than force ever will.