Pain In Both Shoulders (front) For a Year - 27 Y/o M Posted: 01-18-07 21:14pm
This all started about a year ago, with no
prior injuries, when I simply leaned
forward, extended my arm and picked up a
glass off of the coffee table. I had an
incredible stabbing pain in my right
shoulder. For almost a month I couldn't
extend the arm and lift up or out or I
would scream in pain. Then the pain
became duller but also developed
symetrically in the left shoulder as well.
The pain is in the "front" of the
shoulders, but feels "inside". If you
press a thumb in about 2 inches up from
the arm-pit, the pain feels inside
there.
I went to my Dr. And an orthopedic.
Neither had great answers except stretches
and phsyical therapy. I did that for
about 12 weeks and it barely helped, if at
all. I did get xrays and nothing major
showed up except the ortho said I had a
shoulder shape prone to some pain issues
that strenthening should heal (but the
therapy did nothing much).
The pain does vary in intensity from day
to day. I'm writing since the past 3 days
have gotten so bad again it's hard to
shift and steer my car. Things like
pushups or lifting something with the arm
extended out or to the side are painful.
No stretching or working out (aerobic or
lifting) seem to really help (or hurt it
more in the long run, for that matter).
Rolling the shoulders forward is
uncomfortable.
I am just fed up with this, and at 27 and
having had no injury to my shoulders (and
the fact that the pain is symetrical in
both!) I am really worried and frankly am
scared to think what i'll feel like at 77!
Let me know if I can provide any more
details. Thanks!
|
imaginary
Experienced User , Rather EHEALTHy
Joined: 17 Jan 2007 Posts: 50 Location: ,
Posted: 02-01-07 06:05am
There are some cases in which we cant find
any cause for the pain.
We can hope that it would go soon.
Good luck. :d
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jazzface78
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 08 Feb 2007 Posts: 1 Location: New York
Posted: 02-08-07 16:34pm
I too am experiencing the same symptons it
appears that you are experiencing. The
pain feels as if it originates inside the
front of my shoulders (next to and
effecting my pectorials). When I lay
down the pain spreads down my arms
effecting my biceps and triceps. It does
not feel like it is an injury to my
muscles or bones, per se, but they are
definitely affected. I've never had any
injury to my shoulders before this, or at
least none that was of any consequence.
It all started a year ago when I was in
hawaii on vacation. I was sleeping on a
cot that was too small for me (don't ask)
and I would wake up in the middle of the
night with excrutiating pains in my
shoulders and arms. During the day the
pains would subside. After I got home
from hawaii, the pains eventually went
away. Then, about 2 months ago, a pain
returned in one of my shoulders (not the
same pain as hawaii). I thought it had
something to do with my workouts.
Anyway, I rested for a month, it seemed to
get better, then all of a sudden it got
worse again. Now it appears to have
spread across my shoulder blades into both
shoulders, causing me to think of my
previous pains from hawaii.
I am currently rehabing the shoulders but
they don't seem to be showing signs of
improvement.
Does anybody have any idea what this could
be? Im thinking some kind of nerve
damage, but im no doctor.
|
activechick
New User, Becoming EHEALTHy
Joined: 02 Feb 2007 Posts: 17 Location: Oregon
Frozen Shoulder Posted: 02-09-07 12:13pm
Hi there. It sounds like you both might
have "adhesive capsilitis" or frozen
shoulder. It's a crazy thing, and (based
on my cruising around the internet) not
many people are talking about it, but a
great many folks suffer from it.
I talked to a research doc/surgeon at ball
state memorial hospital in muncie,
indiana, and this is what he told me about
frozen shoulder:
it's a condition that usually occurs after
minimal trauma, and is very often linked
to some sort of emotional trauma that
happened within the past year. The
latest thinking on frozen shoulder
syndrome is that it acts as an auto-immune
disorder, which is where the body attacks
itself. The body attacks the shoulder
capsule, causing inflammation, and laying
down a huge amount of scar tissue in a
very short time. (his direct quote was,
"it occurs very rapidly--it's just
amazing.")
the patient looses almost all range of
motion, and is in a great deal of pain.
During the first 3-4 months, there's
almost nothing you can do about it--the
body wants to continue to lay down scar
tissue until it burns itself out of that
first phase. Another awful thing about
this syndrome is that it usually goes from
one shoulder right over to the other.
Traditional therapies have been amazingly
ineffectual. The "ultimate" answer is
surgery, which this surgeon describes as
"pretty brutal." essentially, the surgery
for frozen shoulder is to just rip the
muscles apart forcibly or cut the shoulder
capsule, leaving behind a severely
compromised shoulder system.
He told me about a newer therapy called
"astym" which is augmented, soft-tissue
manipulation combined with stretching and
strengthening. (check out astym.Com)
astym is designed to break down scar
tissue to encourage the body's natural
healing mechanism. It helps to get rid
of all that excessive scar tissue created
by the syndrome, and can ease a lot of
suffering.
Here's the totally weird thing about
frozen shoulder: after two years or so, it
resolves itself most of the time.
Apparently, the body will start to
gradually re-absorb the excess scar
tissue, and eventually the shoulder will
be released from its prison of scar.
Weird, but true.
Frankly, i'd rather not wait two years.
I'd go see a physical therapist and ask
about astym.
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