Righto, so I found out around Xmas that I'm the proud owner of not one, but two, fucked up rotator cuffs. It's been getting worse in the past year or two, but I've had loose shoulder joints since I was elevenish and showed off to my friends how I could make it look like i had a bullet hole in it (ah, eleven year olds). I don't really have decreased range of motion except for right when i try to raise my arm straight up by my head, and that's the right one. (Apparently my left one looks a little more off, but I obviously don't use it all that much since I'm right handed) They make really fucked up grating noises that are way different from the noises I make when I pop joints, and usually it feels like I have a bubble of air in my right shoulder that I can't quite pop. Anyway, so they've been getting worse (I am a janitor, I clean a lot of glass at work, the rotation and angle plays havoc with my shoulders), and I was wondering if anyone else has this issue, and, if so, what they do for it. (I have asked my dad, who has similar joint issues at age fifty something, and all I've got from him is "if you hadn't been such an idiot when you were a kid" [paraphrased], so I have given that up as a lost cause) So...does ice work? I don't really get muscle swelling, mostly it's just deep in the shoulder. I've tried advil, but it doesn't really help. (I was taking something like 8 advil a day for a week in the summer, and it wasn't doing anything, so I figured I should quit.) Do positions or exercises help at all? I keep thinking that if I beef up my shoulder muscles, I'll be able to keep them in socket more often when I carry my laundry, but...exercises are repetitive, and I want to avoid pain as much as humanly possible. Any advice is appreciated, though.
Not sure if this is the same thing, but my dad injured a rotator cuff in a skiing accident a while back, such that raising his arm above his head was painful. He saw a physical therapist, who suggested some resistance band exercises for him. If that sounds useful, I can try to track down what exactly he was doing... It was basically just 'gently strengthen things, by stretching and exercising lightly, to the point of mild discomfort but NOT pain, because pain means you're injuring things again'. Apparently that did work pretty well for him, but it's a slow injury to recover from.
You can try taking supplements such as glucosamine. Or take up yoga, or Pilates as they help the supporting muscles.
@albedo I would have to find a resistance band, but I think I know a few people with that. Those directions would be great, especially since I probably need constant reminders that i need to stop when it starts hurting. @Aurora glucosamine, huh? I will have to track that down. I know my mom takes fish oil for her joint fuckery, but it always smells bad. Bleh. The yoga may have to wait until I join Americorps, since they have actual areas and times set out for that on their main campus, but I'll have to make sure I do that.
I'll bug my dad when I see him on Sunday. :) Anything reasonably stretchy would probably work, though; I think they just use resistance bands because they're easier on your joints than weights, but they give the same kind of resistance.
Yeah, I can see that. I imagine if I was really stuck, I could dig up my old boxing hand wraps or lift folded up blankets here.
First, check with a doctor, if possible. Second, the thing I got for horrible problems with damaged muscles/tendons (I wrecked my hand badly enough that I basically couldn't lift anything bigger than a couple inches diameter because everything hurt when extended) was (1) naproxen sodium or the like, but be careful and READ THE FUCKING WARNINGS because it can fuck you up and may be unsafe, DO NOT TAKE IT IF IT IS NOT SAFE WITH OTHER MEDS, (2) cycles of heating pad -> ice pack. Like, I watched a movie a day for six months so I could do a heating pad for 45 minutes and then an icepack for 15, because I couldn't hold still that long otherwise.
Oh, update, btw My issues are apparently more subluxation than constant tearing, which basically means that my joints are already loose enough that when I pick up heavy shit, usually they go "well, fuck this" and partially dislocate Luckily, they are elastic and therefore go back when I let go of the heavy thing and/or flex Apparently the reason they were hurting recently is that lately, they aren't as elastic, so I basically wander around for a day or so with my shoulder all funky until it magically goes back every once in a while. It's not all that visible, and it's not dramatic enough that it has muscle pain, but I am pretty sure every once in a while it hits a nerve because I get twinges. Mostly it is frustrating and also the reason why I currently can't sleep, since I'm pretty sure they don't make otc drugs for "this doesn't really hurt rn, it just feels wrong and makes me want to punch things". #I can't wait till the cyber men get here and we are all upgraded into our new and more perfect metal shells
I've got a disorder that means frequent subluxations and dislocations, so you've got hella sympathies from me
