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Adhesive capsulitis or frozen shoulder: What helps?
Bones, Joints & Muscles | Last Active: Feb 9 9:24pm | Replies (76)Comment receiving replies
Hello all. I would love to chat with others that are experiencing severe frozen shoulder. I have now developed it post surgery and am having a really rough time . It’s been 4 months now and could really use some advice/talk therapy with others that are going through it as well .
Replies to "Hello all. I would love to chat with others that are experiencing severe frozen shoulder. I..."
Hi @heather47 and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. Glad you found us. You will see that I did move your post to a long standing discussion on Frozen Shoulder. I did this so you can connect with members like @anniebrook, @drt, @deanna2, @collierga and @auntieoakley, who was the first person to start this post.
What type of treatments have you tried so far?
I did have frozen shoulder, in fact my orthopedic doctor believes both have been frozen several years apart. The first my primary care had said I had a torn rotator cuff and it would heal in time. It did but it took a year or more. When the second one started there really was no possible injury and it slowly just froze up and got more and more painful. When I went for the recheck and asked for PT, my doctor said yes and also gave me a shot of cortisone which helped with the pain. It took more than a year, but eventually it did start to loosen. It is not pain free but it is certainly usable, and bearable. This is not something I would ever wish on another human being, but if it happens to you, seek out the best orthopedic doctor you can find.
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I have it in my left shoulder going on 6 months now (I theorized that it was brought on by a flu vaccine because that’s when it started). I had it in right shoulder back in 2009, and it took what felt like forever to heal. My doctor says I didn’t have a flu shot that year. Back then I went to a physical therapist. Now it’s not as convenient so I haven’t resorted to that yet. Plus my doctor advised that physical therapy is best done during the frozen phase. I’ve tried Advil, Tylenol, Alieve for pain and none seem to help. I’ve used a TENS machine with mixed results. The latest and most effective thing I’ve tried for pain is topical. It’s a roll on lotion called Arnicare. They also make cream. I’m guessing other pain creams like Aspercream or Biofreeze might be just as effective but haven’t tried them yet. My biggest complaint is getting quality sleep (I have always slept on my left side). Arnicare has helped with that.
Good luck! Frozen shoulder is NOT fun!!!!