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Sleeping after reverse shoulder replacement

Posted by warrior6 @warrior6, Nov 30, 2022

Can anyone recommend sleeping suggestions? In April I had my right shoulder replaced (reverse) and tomorrow will get my left one done. This, hopefully, will end a six-joint saga. I did purchase toddler pillows today.

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heyjoe415 | @heyjoe415 | Dec 5, 2023
In reply to @jprust "You don’t know how happy I am to hear about your experience. I am hoping to..." + (show)
@jprust

You don’t know how happy I am to hear about your experience. I am hoping to be in my bed after surgery as I have an adjustable bed. I am schedule for this surgery on Sept 27 and my husband is a little concerned about how much he can do for me. He has fibromyalgia and Stage 4/5 kidney failure. So he is fatigued a lot.
We have to be prepared but not sure what to prepare since we don’t know how much help I might need or how he will feel.

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All the best to you and your husband.

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nonnahelen | @nonnahelen | Dec 5, 2023
In reply to @artscaping "Good evening @nonnahelen, Hi there....it sounds like we both need to stop falling. In the winter..." + (show)
@artscaping

Good evening @nonnahelen, Hi there....it sounds like we both need to stop falling. In the winter at the American Legion where I used to live, they removed the fence at the end of the parking area so that the snow plow could have more room. One day in July, I was attending a dinner. Actually, I was a guest of honor that year because I won the Essence of Idyllwild award.

When I went to leave and waved goodbye to everyone, I was walking backward to my car. And wouldn't you know....they had still not replaced the fence. Down the mountain, I went. Three fractures in my elbow and a major dislocation to my dominant shoulder. I remember that they tied my arm to the interior light in the ceiling of the ambulance to keep it steady on my way down the mountain to the hospital.

Anyway.....long story short......it was a tough year. The first two surgeries were not successful and so I had to have the reverse procedure. My post-op experience was not terrible, just inconvenient. I owned an art gallery then and did some home design work.

I was happy with my PT efforts and the help I received from family, friends, and customers. And today, I have no problems or carryovers. So....it all worked out.

I noticed that now you can have a custom mechanism created that fits perfectly and that robotic surgery is available. My shoulder is not painful...just a little tilted to one side which makes eating an ice cream cone a little bit of a challenge and not so nice to watch.

Anyway.....I would love to hear about your recovery and return to normal living.
May you have happiness and the causes of happiness.
Chris

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Chris,
So sorry to hear about your experience and that you needed 3 surgeries! One is bad enough! You were very lucky to come through with just a tilted shoulder. My shoulder ,the new one isn’t tilted so much as shorter than the other one. It sounds like this happened to you awhile ago but do you remember how long it took you to be able to raise your arm,even to touch the top of your head? And how long before you could sleep without worrying about your arm slipping behind you? My pt is going well,but they tell me to be patient and build up my strength.

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2 replies
terriann | @twinkie23 | Dec 5, 2023

Hi Chris. I had an experience similar to yours. I was planting strawberries in my raised garden bed and lost my balance. I fell backwards and threw my right (dominant) hand over my head, hitting my shoulder and back on the wooden wall of the raised bed. At the ER they saw it was a massive complete tear of my rotator cuff. So, within a couple weeks of misery I had rotator cuff surgery. I started pt after a while and after weeks of therapy and good progress, my pain returned and progress stopped. You guessed it, failure of the muscle and tissue to heal. So in February of this year I had a reverse replacement of my right shoulder. Recovery was slow and pt was not recommended. I found that sleeping in my recliner was very comfortable except for being cold at night. I also found out what a wonderful man I am married to! We planned very well for the second surgery, knowing some of the difficulties from the first surgery. We stocked up on microwaveable frozen dinners, which really made meal preparation easy. My husband also made a unique diy handle for raising the foot of the recliner with my left hand. Little things are important unless you’re ok with being totally dependent on a caregiver. I wasn’t. 😏
I know what you mean about your shoulder being a little tilted but if it works that’s ok. I have almost complete use of my right arm except for reaching behind my back. I’m working on that.
Hoping your recovery is complete and that you remain healthy and whole.

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terriann | @twinkie23 | Dec 5, 2023
In reply to @nonnahelen "Chris, So sorry to hear about your experience and that you needed 3 surgeries! One is..." + (show)
@nonnahelen

Chris,
So sorry to hear about your experience and that you needed 3 surgeries! One is bad enough! You were very lucky to come through with just a tilted shoulder. My shoulder ,the new one isn’t tilted so much as shorter than the other one. It sounds like this happened to you awhile ago but do you remember how long it took you to be able to raise your arm,even to touch the top of your head? And how long before you could sleep without worrying about your arm slipping behind you? My pt is going well,but they tell me to be patient and build up my strength.

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Being patient is the hardest thing about recovering from shoulder surgery. I had no pt after my replacement but it took probably 5 months to touch the top of my head and I still can’t reach behind my back to put on a bra. It’s been 10 months since my surgery. Everyone is different but it’s not easy being patient.

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Mentor
Chris Trout, Volunteer Mentor | @artscaping | Dec 7, 2023
In reply to @nonnahelen "Chris, So sorry to hear about your experience and that you needed 3 surgeries! One is..." + (show)
@nonnahelen

Chris,
So sorry to hear about your experience and that you needed 3 surgeries! One is bad enough! You were very lucky to come through with just a tilted shoulder. My shoulder ,the new one isn’t tilted so much as shorter than the other one. It sounds like this happened to you awhile ago but do you remember how long it took you to be able to raise your arm,even to touch the top of your head? And how long before you could sleep without worrying about your arm slipping behind you? My pt is going well,but they tell me to be patient and build up my strength.

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Good evening @nonnahelen, I am glad you are being reminded to be patient. I was not so patient. My surgery was in 2011 I believe. And it was right before the Holidays. At the time, I owned an Art Gallery and I remember having our Holiday event for customers. My friend came up to stay with me and help in the gallery. Another friend came to sing Holiday songs in the gallery. We had a major snow storm and customers were arriving from down in the valley where there was no snow. I didn't think they would show up but they did even when they had to take off their shoes and walk through the snow with bare feet.

I also remember seeking relief by going outside during the day and finding a bench to sit on to rest a bit every once in a while. However, pain was not such an issue. The struggle was with physical ability especially at the Christmas holidays because we had to wrap gifts. My other struggle was with washing and styling my hair. I think it was a mess for months.

Good luck to you......be safe and careful. I just remembered that I wore a lot of vests so that I could hold onto the edge with my surgery hand.

May you have happiness and the causes of happiness.
Chris

REPLY
1 reply
nonnahelen | @nonnahelen | Dec 8, 2023
In reply to @artscaping "Good evening @nonnahelen, I am glad you are being reminded to be patient. I was not..." + (show)
@artscaping

Good evening @nonnahelen, I am glad you are being reminded to be patient. I was not so patient. My surgery was in 2011 I believe. And it was right before the Holidays. At the time, I owned an Art Gallery and I remember having our Holiday event for customers. My friend came up to stay with me and help in the gallery. Another friend came to sing Holiday songs in the gallery. We had a major snow storm and customers were arriving from down in the valley where there was no snow. I didn't think they would show up but they did even when they had to take off their shoes and walk through the snow with bare feet.

I also remember seeking relief by going outside during the day and finding a bench to sit on to rest a bit every once in a while. However, pain was not such an issue. The struggle was with physical ability especially at the Christmas holidays because we had to wrap gifts. My other struggle was with washing and styling my hair. I think it was a mess for months.

Good luck to you......be safe and careful. I just remembered that I wore a lot of vests so that I could hold onto the edge with my surgery hand.

May you have happiness and the causes of happiness.
Chris

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Good morning, thank you for your encouraging words. You had it much worse than me,you were running a business and probably did a lot more sooner than you should have. I don’t know what my hurry is,I’m a 76 year old Grandma,who retired from nursing 17 years ago to take care of grandkids so their parents could work. Luckily,the youngest started preschool last year! I know what you mean about hair! Got mine cut short and layered while I was waiting for surgery,thinking that would be easier. That turned out not to be true,but as my arm gets looser,hair is starting to improve.
Have a wonderful Christmas and you are an inspiration!
Helen

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