Frozen Shoulder Advice

I have a shoulder that gets locked up and it can really mess with working out. It will literally make breathing hurt. I've found once a month deep tissue massage therapy and heat really work best. If it absolutely won't loosen I sometimes have to take a muscle relaxed and rest it for a day after. Mine is really bad from repetitive motion. It also helps if I sleep in my bed in the same position... no falling asleep on the couch! Hope this helps.

I've had very little use of my right arm for the past three years. I finally got x rays and was found that I have a huge amount of calcium deposits around the rotator cuff. I got a cortisone shot and for the first time in years I haven't been in constant plain.

You could give this a try.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppToA1N0CgE

I know this must sound funny, but I think I had a frozen shoulder for a couple of yrs. How I nearly fixed it was.
Lying down
I would put my arm in the position that it hurt and for as long as I could bear it within reason.
Then manouvre myself out of the position.

I am no physio - but I eventually got the idea naturally as I couldnt stand the pain and I couldnt put both my hands under my head - elbows out - well only one side without thought or difficulty. I firt noticed that I couldnt serve a tennis ball and was adapting my throw up because the arm wouldnt go in the correct position and was just painful.

My shoulder is near enough right and I regularly put my head on my hands to make sure its ok, but it is not the same as my right side.

I do this sort of thing with my hips as they are sometimes painful and wont bend properly - but you dont hear of a frozen hip!

Good luck, as I know it is really painful and can make you cry out in pain.

I went to a Chiro, b/c my shoulder was incredibly sore. He said that the muscle was "locked" in the position. I saw him several times for adjustment. I put heat on it, b/c it felt better to do that than ice. The WORST was trying to sleep. I'm a side sleeper, but I toss and turn a lot. I had to put a "husband" pillow against my back to prevent me from flipping over to my bad shoulder. This did help from sleeping on my shoulder.

Eventually, it go better over time.

And I woke up with my left shoulder acting like a complete *kitten* waffle, and on my dominant side at that. I can barely lift my arm about my shoulder height. I have been stretching it this am and am hopeful it is secondary to yesterday's workout which included chest and tri's. Who knows. Going to lay off of weight training until Monday and just simplistic cardio in some fashion. And I go to the forums to search 'frozen shoulder', not really having a clue what a frozen shoulder is. Such is life...

I started having problems with my left shoulder 10+ years ago. It was originally diagnosed as bursitis and I was given a cortisone shot and sent to physical therapy, both of which helped to a degree. Over the years I tried not to let it keep me from doing anything and worked out regularly, keeping my limitations in mind. When the pain got too bad I'd go back for another shot and round of therapy.

I went back again last June and found that I had a 90-95% tear in a rotator cuff tendon. According to my doc, tears cannot be repaired with therapy and only surgery will fix it. I think small tears can probably be prevented from worsening with therapy but once the tendon tears enough that it starts to retract from the bone, therapy will only help so much.

Anyway, I had surgery last July and after 9 weeks of total immobility (other than PT twice a day) and A LOT of therapy, I can finally do stuff without pain. I was released to start building strength in Dec, but therapist said it would take a year to get to full strength and range of motion. I still take it easy since I'm only 7 months post-surgery, but I started a regular exercise routine in Dec and strength and motion are steadily improving ... I still have pain but now it's just normal soreness from being weak in that area.

Sorry for the long story but I guess the point I wanted to make is to take shoulder issues seriously. You can look up PT stretches online and those should help. It is also important to strengthen the surrounding area, slowly and carefully if you're already having problems. Start with light weights. Movement is your friend as it helps to keep scar tissue from building. Shoulder problems are very common but the shoulder is also the most difficult joint to heal bc of the complexity and the many ways in which it moves.

Good luck!

Just adding to good comments already posted... and from the point of view of a therapist (me!). In general, heat is good prior to stretching or exercises as it increases the blood flow to the area. Ice is good after exercise or after activities that irritate the area (keyboarding). The cold helps contract the blood vessels and decrease swelling and cramping. If you can tolerate the cold long enough, the cold sensation interferes with the transmission of the pain sensations as well. Cold before sleeping is better than heat before sleeping. Just not as pleasant! Please get it looked at, and best wishes as you move forward.

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate all of the advice.. Mine comes and goes but I don't want it to get worse and it is inhibiting me in my fitness quest. I work around it but would rather not. I think I'll go in finally to the doctor and see if he prescribes PT but also do more stretching and other things people are recommending.. I can her it click/grind when I rotate the shoulder. It's just that sometimes things can be fixed by home remedies and I hate to be running to the doc all the time.

Go to the doctor. He can do all kinds of things including tell you if it is arthritis, torn rotator, and possibly cortisone shots with PT. that's what got me through 10 years. Finally had surgery. Full movement now!