Answers and Advice Needed STAT for Left Arm Acute Injury

Good evening @ladyaceintx1 ---- oh my goodness. You and I are living the same nightmare. I am also facing an MRI on my left shoulder. A few years ago, I was leaving my home with an armful of last-minute items I needed for a Patron Dinner of which I was the chairperson. Carrying my programs and other necessary items, I started down the outside stairs and fell. My left arm somehow got caught in the railing and was what they call wrenched. The reason I had everything in my left arm was that I had already had a series of surgeries on my right shoulder, ending with a reverse shoulder replacement.

The next morning I went down the mountain to see my surgeon. He immediately scheduled a rotator cuff surgery which was somewhat helpful. Then......the pain started and I have been having guided injections for several years. They are no longer helping and when the new specialist showed me the rotator cuff repair, it looked a bit "crumpled".

You are so right....sleeping is a challenge. I also cannot use it for driving or lifting anything. So.... every day, I stare at my phone and tell myself that I need to schedule the MRI. I would so appreciate it if you could keep me informed about your shoulder.

There is some good news. If you do have to undergo a replacement surgery, there is now an opportunity to have a custom mechanism made just for you. Hopefully, the better fit will mean that the ROM is close to normal and the creaks and cracks sound won't be as annoying.

Would you be able to stay in touch with me here on Connect? I am very interested in whatever process you encounter. I have a feeling that I may be wandering down the same path.

In the meantime, my MFR (Myofascial Release) therapist works on the shoulder twice a week to release the pain.

May you be safe, protected, and free of inner and outer harm.
Chris

@artscaping
Chris,
I would be happy to stay in touch as I feel that the support of this site and people like you help to make the journey a little more bearable. Your experience sounds incredibly painful and I'm so sorry that you have a similar injury! I was confused when my new Orthopedic put me through the standardized testing and then wondered why I was stiff through it. I told her I had alot of pain with those movements and it hurt, but she seemed to think I have "Frozen Shoulder" even though I am just 4-5 weeks from the acute injury. She obviously couldn't conclude anything and fortunately did order the MRI. Sometimes I unconsciously forget and will reach out like when I used my fingers to flick the ac vent in my car up and experienced excruciating pain that makes me feel like passing out. How can this symptom be Frozen Shoulder? I'm still using my left arm and shoulder and am trying to avoid the positions that cause pain. It just feels like a tear...but I just don't know.
Any thoughts appreciated and thank you for your kindness.

@artscaping
Hi Chris,
Just wanted to see if you've scheduled your MRI yet?
Whatever my original injury was, it couldn't be detected on the MRI, so now I have a diagnosis of adhesive capsulitis aka frozen left shoulder. I got the flouroguided steroid injection but it hasn't helped and see the Ortho tomorrow which is my 2 week follow up after the injection. She hasn't prescribed therapy or meds. I looked up exercises myself and have been trying to do them and also bought a shoulder heating pad that is made for the shoulder and has Temps up to 140. It's been helpful to bring blood flow to the shoulder. I added a secondary shoulder brace for sleeping which keeps the shoulder from rolling inward while sleeping and holds the arm in position and that has also helped a little.
Let me know how you're feeling.

Good evening. Thanks so much for staying in touch. Adhesive capsulitis is a frozen shoulder so that is correct. I am not surprised that the injection hasn't helped. However, I thought I would share my favorite exercise fron my research because it was what worked for me after the first Reverse shoulder replacement to avoid frozen shoulder in the connective tissue around the joint.
My PT worked with the surgeon to find a "solution". I didn't have trouble with the "circles". They got easier to do as time went on. My sister-in-law suffered from a frozen shoulder after my brother died. She also did circles. She is a polio survivor so her situation was perhaps more severe than my ripped and torn right shoulder.

I haven't had an opportunity to schedule the next step. I have been dealing with some medication changes ......leaving the large doses of gabapentin behind and replacing it with adjusted doses of medical cannabis. It is amazing how much memory spark I have recovered. So of course, I am thinking I might also have found a way to handle the increasing discomfort in the left shoulder.

Where did you get the shoulder brace for sleeping? That is one of my most difficult irritants. Especially in the middle of the night when I just accidentally roll to the left and I feel like screaming. So......it sounds like you are having some protection and comfort from the brace.

It is interesting that heat is helping you. I have always been told to use ice. So, my dear colleague, I will wait and see what you choose for your meds after your follow-up.

So nice to "chat" with you.

May you be healthy and whole...... the sooner the better.
Chris

Relax your shoulders.
Stand and lean over slightly, allowing your affected arm to hang down.
Swing the arm in a small circle — about a foot in diameter.
Perform 10 revolutions in each direction, once a day.
As your symptoms improve, increase the diameter of your swing, but never force it.

@artscaping
Thanks for your reply. I'm including pictures of both products, the Shoulder Brace for sleeping or anytime and the Shoulder electric heating pad. Both have helped and the prices are listed on the photos. To answer your question ice vs heat...usually ice is best for an acute injury and heat for a chronic injury because it brings blood flow to the injured area which helps to promote healing. That being said, of course you can use ice anytime you have pain if it works for you. I did see my Ortho and she was disappointed that the steroid injection didn't help with the pain. She doesn't want to order PT for me yet, as I'm still in Stage I aka the Inflammatory Stage, and she said I would live on narcotics while trying to manage the excruciating pain of therapy. She discussed using the "Shoulder Manipulation" under general anesthesia once I reach Stage II because the stiffer the shoulder is...the better the outcome. She wants to see me again at the end of September.
I'm interested in your medical cannabis. How is it given and how is a dose determined?
I feel like doing the Circle exercises would help me regain movement without causing much pain, so thanks for that idea.
The Ortho refilled my Tramadol and told me to take as much as I need and to stop waiting until I am in severe pain. Of course, it's excellent advice but one, I don't like taking pain meds and two, my pain tolerance is higher, since I've had pain daily for 8 weeks. Sleeping is still a challenge. The brace helps but I was a left-sided sleeper all my life and trying to get quality sleep in any other position is challenging.
Take care and let me know how you're feeling.