Frozen Shoulder - I Hate It!

Yeah, so this is a rant and bit of a whine, but I occasionally need it.

So, about 3 years ago, I developed frozen shoulder in my left shoulder. It's associated with nerve issues in the neck to some degree and since I have had neck surgery on that side because the nerve canal that comes out of my spine were too narrow and then I developed a bone spur in the same area that tends to irritate the roots of the nerve, it makes sense.

Of course, it hurt like crazy in the joint itself and I lost about 2/3 of my normal range of shoulder motion. And it took my about a year and half to regain my normal range of motion.

And ... lucky me. I won the lottery. It seems that 1 in 5 people who develop it on one side go on to get it on the other, and that's what I've spent this summer doing, getting my right shoulder frozen up! Woody-frickin'-hoo.

Now these two frozen shoulders have been the same and totally different at the same time. I've lost quite a bit of range of motion with both, but on the left, it was the joint itself that was put-you-on-the-floor painful. So long as I didn't bump it or try to torque or extend it, I could almost forget I had any problem with it. It was only when I brushed it against something or extended by reach against what it would allow that I was in trouble. But this one ... Oh no, this one is putting pressure on the nerves down the front of my arm, so I constantly feel it across my chest, down my arm, through my elbow (unique and horrible), and into my wrist and hand. I dogs me when I work, when I drive, I can't swing it to walk ... I get constant spasms in the muscles all around it.

So I finally had to take action because I just couldn't fight it on my own anymore. I couldn't sleep, and it was interfering too much with the necessary things of life.

So here I am ... One cortisone shot, one x-ray and prescription for physical therapy later.

I am discovering that physical therapy is all about how high my personal pain tolerance is because the only way to make this any better is to stretch the hell out of it. So I get to stretch it to the limits of my endurance at home 3 or so times every day, and three times per week, I spend about 30 to 40 minutes letting the therapist yank it around in all kinds of happy fun time ways that push me to my limits because I have to let them go as far as I can take it or else I won't get any better. And the lovely side effect of it all is that short-term, I am sorer so it doesn't feel better at all even if it is moving further which is the point.



So yeah, it's making me grouchy. It's no fun to know that you're two steps away from taking your kid's head off just because you're tired and really, really sore - like a bear with a bad tooth, but it's the only way to get better in any reasonable frame of time. It's no fun to know you're going to hurt and hurt and hurt for the next four to six weeks because that's the only way to recover sooner rather than later. And it's hard to go to therapy knowing you're going for a solid half hour of pain every time. It's hard to do home exercises when you know you're doing it to yourself three times a day.

Yeah, sometimes life sucks.

a reply to: ketsuko


Sorry, Ketsuko.

a reply to: ketsuko

That really sucks. I'm so sorry. No words of advice or wisdom. (I've got none)

Just my sympathy.

I'm sorry hon.

The only advise I can give, is just to warn your son. Tell him, if you do snap, you don't mean to. Pain makes people edgy, and that it isn't personal.

Maybe if he is forward, he won't take it so hard. Kids are pretty great that way, and If I remember correctly, he should be at an age to understand?

I hope the therapy helps some.

a reply to: ketsuko

I'm sorry you are suffering.
My hope is that the physical therapy though torture will help you regain your movement.
And hopefully it wont take too long either.
Good Luck.

I feel your pain, I suffered the same way. First one shoulder then later the other. The pain is crazy, I understand what you mean by knocking it. In the end I had to literally beg my GP to get a cortisone injection, the relief came quite quickly afterwards. The other shoulder I managed to deal with by getting physio before it got worse.

That was about 8 years ago, more recently I'm feeling my left shoulder tweaking. I'm desperately working on keeping it moving in order to avoid any repeat.

Yeah it takes ages to full recovery but you will get there.

Like I said ... I just needed to complain a bit. It's a hard truth to know that the thing that makes you better is to make yourself hurt on purpose. I guess I get to put the high pain tolerance to the test now.

a reply to: ketsuko

Hi, my Dad has the same thing, well he has it in both shoulders. Originally we thought it was an injury messing about with his Grandson but over time realised it wasn't and eventually was diagnosed with it. He is in pain almost all the time, it is so bad that he hasn't been able to scratch his back without the aid of a back scratcher for years now.

I started to develop a frozen shoulder recently so I searched from some solutions other than cortisone and crap like that. Is not a disability yet but I know I will get there eventually.
Tried professional massage and reflexology (pressing points until your eyes pop) but didn't help.
You may want to check this link here

I tried the chinese stretching method like this one youtube the part where you stretch your hands over the edge of the bed.
It hurts like hell, I mean I couldn't believe how much it hurts and at first I couldn't do it more than 30 sec but to my surprise it immediately reduced the pain about 50% and brought back some mobility of the shoulder.
I wish I could be more constant and do it daily, but even so doing it every 2-3 days it helped me a lot. Right now I'm at about 20% of the original pain and stiffness.
Hope you find relief, is an annoying and painful thing to live with.

I haven't had what you have, I have had many back issues and problems with nerves being pinched in my left arm and the sciatic nerve in my right leg being a problem. I had cortizone shots for the leg, I always overdid things and had to see the chiropractor many times and had to take muscle relaxers many times.

Yours sounds much worse, your problems suck. I do not think you need me to tell you that though.

The physical therapy sucks, I always went to one therapy and never returned, I asked questions then used the answers to learn how to give myself therapy. That therapy sucks, it usually ruins your whole day, I had guys working for me, I wasn't going to be getting all sore and have the guys sitting around since I had to take the truck for the therapy. I would just pop into the chiropractor when I needed my back fixed. All the doctors did was give me pain pills and assign someone to make me sore.

Totally understand, Ket. My hubby had bursitis last year, and afterward, it granted him lingering joint pain & reduced range of motion in the shoulder. He's still doing his therapeutic stretches today, though they don't seem to be abating anything anymore.
He's well aware that perhaps next year he's going to have to look into surgery for it. He's one stubborn bastard, however, and knowing him, he's going to put it off until he flat can't use his arm anymore. The man will not take a day off work unless he's half dead, so pushing him to schedule surgery is going to be a real interesting exercise in futility until he actually does it on his own.

a reply to: ketsuko

I'm amazed at how many people have suffered from this. I've experienced it in both shoulders that lasted around 18 months each time, but fortunately, physical therapy did help without me having to get cortisone injections. I have full range of motion in both arms again without pain, but it still bothers me when I sleep on my side too long. I can't stand to sleep on my back. Luckily, my sleep number bed has helped a lot in this area. The softer I make the bed, the less pressure it puts on my arms and shoulders while I sleep.

a reply to: Nyiah

Yeah, I wouldn't be as bad off if I hadn't been as stubborn about it. I sort of went into denial about it because the first one was so bad. I kept thinking, "OK, this is as bad as we're getting. I can do this ..." And then it would get worse a few days or so later.

This one just spasmed all those chest and arm muscles and irritated the nerves though. Otherwise, I might still be fighting it on my own.

So your husband doesn't own the market on stubborn.

a reply to: rickymouse

In this case, it does do something. The therapist can move me in ways I can't move myself and push me further than I'd be able to push. All I have to do is lay there and endure as much as I can. It's just not pleasant at all.

But it is working. It was the same therapist this morning and last Friday, and he said there was slightly more motion there this morning than on Friday (not hard since there was basically zero in some planes of motion).

originally posted by: ketsuko
Like I said ... I just needed to complain a bit. It's a hard truth to know that the thing that makes you better is to make yourself hurt on purpose. I guess I get to put the high pain tolerance to the test now.

The Lord works in mysteriou$ ways, eh?

a reply to: olaru12

Eh, stretching to increase flexibility always involves pushing to the point of pain and then going a bit further, but that sort of pain is a different type.

With this, you're talking about breaking down the scarring and adhesions that have formed in the joint capsule. So the principle is the same, but the pain is on a whole other level from simple flexibility work.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: olaru12

Eh, stretching to increase flexibility always involves pushing to the point of pain and then going a bit further, but that sort of pain is a different type.

With this, you're talking about breaking down the scarring and adhesions that have formed in the joint capsule. So the principle is the same, but the pain is on a whole other level from simple flexibility work.

6. 1 Peter 4:13 Instead, be very glad—for these trials make you partners with Christ in his suffering, so that you will have the wonderful joy of seeing his glory when it is revealed to all the world.

Ouch. Here's hoping the pain and immobility ebbs. Swimming is standard phys therapy.

Well, the real reason for posting besides a well wish is: now you can give people a real "cold shoulder."

Someone I know had a calcium spur/growth in the shoulder that greatly limited the movement until she fell and broke it ... I'm not advocating falling though.

On a side note, getting old(er) sucks, but not as much as not getting old.

a reply to: ketsuko

been there buddy... it sucks royal ass!!

and to top it off I've had it a few times in both shoulders

On the plus side, last time it happened after a dislocation and it helps keep the damn thing in place

So yeah I feel for ya brother...

a reply to: ketsuko

I feel your pain. I went through the same symptoms and issues. I had multiple cortisone shots with only temporary relief. The pain was excruciating between the shots, and exercise/therapy was impossible due to the pain. I found 2 doctors at Cleveland Clinic that solved my frozen shoulder problem.

One Dr used a sonogram machine to track where he inserted a very large needle into my shoulder nerve, effectively blocking all pain and totally relaxing my shoulder muscles. The Second Dr grabbed my arm and pulled it up in one sweeping motion over my head. You could hear the scar tissue ripping, it sounded like a large strip of Velcro being ripped apart. A nurse and both Drs were shocked at how loud it was.

It resolved the frozen shoulder almost immediately. A few weeks of rehab to restore the atrophied shoulder muscles, and i was as good as new. I went 2 years with that pain. The chronic pain you are experiencing is scar tissue in the shoulder. It can be alleviated over a long period of time using exercise therapy, but the pain is intolerable. Find a good orthopedic Dr and get him to perform the procedure i described and end your suffering. its been over 10 years and it never recurred. Good luck