Post Punk Kitchen Forum

i wore pigtails all winter! i can raise my left arm high enough to get my hair up now, but i have to be careful. it's starting to strain my good shoulder. once you get it one side, it's pretty common for the other side to freeze, too. i'm trying to avoid that.

xo
kittee

almost a year later and the good shoulder is trying very very very hard to freeze. this should be called the bisque-y shoulder syndrome.

I had mild frozen shoulder after having arthroscopy done on the shoulder post car-accident. It was so frustrating, and it was only mild...so I can't even begin to imagine how it is for you, sorry to hear this. Mine was mostly frozen in certain ranges of motion (ie I could lift my arm above my head but absolutely could not reach behind my back for instance). My surgeon offered to do a manual mobilization under anesthesia but I really wanted to avoid that route. I did get a cortisone injection once (ouch!) but I am not sure what benefit that really had. The main thing that really helped me was going to PT and having my therapist do some really awful mobilization of the shoulder that helped to release the fibrosis. It was incredibly terrible during the time but helped so much. I told her that I felt like my shoulder was literally going to break in half during it because there was such a lack of mobility and she was forcing it (gently, but still) to move. If you can find a PT that is really dedicated to manual therapy (not just exercises), it might be really beneficial. I also take a turmeric/boswelia/other anti-inflammatory herb supplement from Pure Encapsulations called Phyto-4. Yoga really helped as well, specifically the standing bow and pigeon postures, as they helped to release the pectoral muscles that were contributing to the lack of movement in my shoulder.

Best of luck with this, Kittee, I understand your frustration. Mine took nearly a year to get back to normal-ish and I still have days that I am scared it's starting again. Apparently being a lean woman is a big risk factor, but they don't really know why. Anyway, hope you get relief soon!

Look for 'the frozen shoulder workbook' on Amazon. It has lots of detailed self massage techniques to help....I reccomend it all the time!
Signed,
Late to the party massage therapist

My right shoulder is frozen solid, and it hurts. All the time. I am so sad. If I had gotten in some sort of bike accident and ripped all the shiitake out in both shoulders, I would be all healed up by now X 48488484.

Kittee I have no advice but it sounds painful and I hope it heals quickly! Our bodies should be as mindful of us as we are of them :)

Just wondering how everyone's frozen shoulders are doing. I was diagnosed with the frozen shoulder/tennis elbow combo on my left side and it hurts so much. I am taking strong anti-inflammatories that kill my stomach with acid, swish the acid up in my throat and make me cough a lot.

I am also doing physical therapy with some exercise but mostly massage and with the PT gently but mercilessly trying to bend me in ways I don't want to. It's so weird because where I go to do therapy it's always packed with people with ice on their legs and yet they do not limp...they jump around, do stuff, and seem to be fine. I am the one with tendonitis which does not sound like much compared to maybe the broken bones other people suffered, and I am the one who seems to suffer the most. Of course I know everyone there is suffering, so I must be the wuss whriting in pain on the little bed when they push my arm back...

Tonight was awful, and I am so tired of the pain. It will be quiet and then suddenly it feels as if someone is sawing my arm off at the shoulder...urgh..

Edited because I didn't realize how old the original post was!

sorry to hear you're in pain, angelina! my right shoulder is still frozen, although it stopped hurting non-stop in october maybe? i feel like it's maaaaaaybe starting to loosen up a little, like enough i can just barely close the hatchback without standing on tiptoes and arching my back, but still frozen.

i have been doing zero PT for it, since the PT on first shoulder did nothing. but as soon as this releases, i plan to do some shoulder strength training with dumbells and maybe a session with a personal trainer.

xo
kittee

Thank you, Kittee. It's good to know that it will end someday. At least the pain! I actually saw I had bruises on my shoulder this morning from last night's therapy. It has been helping me, it's just made more complicated by my tennis elbow. I think I am going to cave in and get a cortisone shot in the elbow (ugh...that is going to hurt so much).

When this is over, I want to strengthen my shoulders too. Maybe if the muscles are in better shape, the whole thing will work better.

I'm sorry you are still having pain, my shoulder is so so wack, it isn't frozen but it has all this scar tissue and it's hard to move. It hurts every single day and gets worse as the day goes on. I wish I could go to massage therapy all the time because that helps so much.

I have been doing yoga DVDs every day and they really really help too. When I come home and do one after work it doesn't hurt the rest of the night. Maybe they would at least help gain mobility after in unfreezes and strengthen it so it doesn't happen again. If anyone is interested, here are the ones that I have found helpful
Yoga Link: Shoulder Shape-Up with Jill Miller - this one has a lot of moves that I can't do (my range of motion is riciculously bad) but it has a couple that have been lifesavers that I do every day now. Highly recomend
Yoga Tune Up: QuickFix Rx - Upper Body Series -this one has much simpler moves but I still feel a lot better doing. Both of them also have tennis ball massage which is pretty awesome for self massage.
Jill has a lot of stretches on her you tube channel.
Viniyoga Therapy for the Upper Back, Neck & Shoulders with Gary Kraftsow (2009) this one is more about gaining mobility through doing vinyasas (moving in and out of the pose with the breath) it's very gentle.
Yoga for Stress Relief- This one has two shoulder practices one that is passive and one that is active, but not like power yoga active! More like simple backbends like cobra
Element: Yoga for Stress Relief & Flexibility- This one isn't specifically for the shoulder but I've found the flexibility one very helpful for stretching it out.

That is one of the things I miss the most...yoga. I know I can't take a class because I can't even do a downward dog, but I am definitely going to check out your recommendations.

oh yeah, there is definitely not anything that hard in any of these! No load baring poses. I wish I could do yoga class too!

I don't know if anyone said this already but there is a frozen shoulder workbook on amazon.com, you will need something called a therapy cane to go with it so you might as well buy them together but the book is really good.

http://www.amazon.com/Frozen-Shoulder-W ... r+workbook

My shoulder seems to be coming around!

Mine is still hurting...it's so hard to do therapy for it because I also have tennis elbow on the same side, and when they try to move my shoulder, my elbow screams out. Sometimes my hand and fingers will shake and twitch for a while after a therapy session.

Seeing the doctor again in a week.