Looking for Advice on Full Rotator Cuff Tear Recovery After TraumaInju

I’ve had the reverse shoulder replacement, torn supraspinatus tear, severe. Also other tears not so severe.
Surgery went well, no pain afterwards, remarkable. The surgeon said that most patients do not have pain afterwards.
1st of August was my surgery. I’m playing tennis at 4 months post op.
I have not gotten my strength built up yet to lift my arm to the top of my head.
I’m giving it another 2 months to see much more improvement in my range of motion.
I can’t lift my arm to serve in tennis but my serve now is underhanded.

I had rotatory cup surgery 1 year and 4 months ago. I did wait 3 months to have the surgery after my doctor told me I needed it due to a visit out of town that was already planned. My sugery was supposed to be one and a half hour long and ended up to be 3 hours long. The recovery was very painful. I did PT for 3 months. I still have stiffness in my shoulder. Most of the time it is tolerable. What makes it worse is if I overdue useing my arm at the gym or the worst pain I had was using clippers to cut down very thick branches on one of my trees. (sure cant do that anymore) I have had 2 cortisone shots since the surgery. I have learned that it is a life long journey and the most important thing is to keep up with PT reccomendations which was stretch and continue PT exercises daily. Not fun but thats what works.

In January 2026, I had a hard fall on the cement and injured my right shoulder. An MRI showed Supraspinarus and infrasonic complete full-thickness tears with musculotendinous retraction.
I rested my shoulder for five months, but was still experiencing significant pain. In June 2026, I had a cortisone shot which reduced the pain significantly. I also started physical therapy with targeted shoulder exercises. After a month, I was able to return to the gym and resume strength training.
I have to be careful to not isolate my shoulder muscles, but I can do a full strength training regiment with no significant pain. I continue to ice my shoulder and take over the counter pain medication when necessary.
I recently declined another cortisone injection and I’m hoping that I can maintain this minimal pain level for the long term.
Has anyone else had success with long term physical therapy in managing pain after a full rotator cuff tear?

I had a total reverse shoulder replacement after an arthroscopic surgery for a massive rotator cuff tear after being assaulted and pushed to the ground by my husband.
It's been three months since the total reverse shoulder replacement surgery. I have been attending Physical Therapy three days a week since the surgery. I have regained a lot of movement in my arm. I believe I will be released from Physical Therapy tomorrow because I have achieved 80% of my functionality in the arm and Medicare stops paying for PT after you have reached 80% recovery. I have much less pain, and my arm is capable of much more than before the surgery. I plan to continue home exercises and get to 100%! I wish you the very best whatever you decide!

What had been your experience with pain from day one after surgery to the present? Thanks

I had a off the bone tear of my rotator cuff that have actually retracted meaning it was torn for so long so the doctor explained to me after my surgery that he wasn't sure how long or if the surgery would be 100% successful. I am now 11 months out from my surgery and I can honestly say that Within 4 months I was at 80% recovery. My doctor was very impressed and happy to see that my recovery went so well I did go to PT but I also did exercises at home and used my arm as much as possible without overdoing it. I never had pain after a certain period of time I would say perhaps a month. I guess I'm one of the lucky ones. Good luck to you and God bless.

@michaelh I'll give you the long view - I am roughly two years out from what the surgeon described as a "massive rotator cuff repair" at age 73, following an injury and a subsequent biceps tendon rupture. At first my highly-recommended surgeon was reluctant to operate because of my age, but when I described my pre-injury life, he agreed to do it. He ended up making 5 different repairs to the shoulder, but since 1/2 the biceps tendon was still attached, he left it alone.

He is very conservative in his approach to rehab, allowing 6 weeks of healing before any but passive therapy, and I followed his orders to a T because his failure rate is between 5-10%. One PT tried to convince me he was "old-fashioned and ridiculous" but my gut said to do it the surgeon's way because the failure rate for this operation can be up to 50%.

This week, I saw the PT who did my rehab therapy (remotely) for another issue, and he wanted to see my range of motion - and he was thrilled!

Caveat - I did twice daily home PT (with weekly/bi-weekly check-ins) for 6 full months, then daily PT until I hit 9 months. I have FULL range of motion (above average for my age) and strength in the shoulder and no pain.

Boring? Yes! But well worth the work. PLease remember that after successful surgery, the job is only half done. It is up to you to finish by doing the PT & strengthening work to get back to full use.

@sueinmn Thank you!! NOT boring at all to me.
Here’s my rotator cuff story. I am an avid tennis player, golfer and runner. In 2017 when I was 67 and still working, I developed shoulder pain. I never sleep through the night but because pain persisted after stopping tennis and golf, I consulted shoulder specialist at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS). Xray negative for fracture. MRI:
full thickness tear of posterior aspect supraspinatus tendon insertion; partial insertional tear of subscapularis tendon and partial tear / tendon split of biceps tendon. The surgeon said I had “alot going on in my shoulder”. She did not explain surgery well. I opted for PT. I went to all appointments and did the exercises. I returned to see her in 6 months at which visit she said “ There will come a time when I will not be able to do what I want to do for you”. As a registered nurse, who was working in risk management at another orthopedic hospital in NYC, I was very informed about poor surgical outcomes. I did not have surgery.
The following summer (2018) I resumed tennis and golf.
In September 2024, I had a recurrence. Saw different specialist at HSS. PT, Meloxicam. Pain resolved and I wasn’t playing tennis or golf because it was getting too cold.
July 2026, I had a recurrence of shoulder pain, front, back, all around the joint. My doc was leaving HSS so I saw new shoulder specialist. He has you see PA first. Based upon PA’s assessment, you may or may not see surgeon.
I answered 4 questionnaires before appointment. The only significant test result in MyChart is MRI. PA asked a few questions, did an exam. Said my shoulder strong. I said I was concerned because of MRI results that showed tears, recurrences and thought I should get updated MRI to assess status of tears. He had not reviewed my history. I pointed out MRI is in MyChart. He reluctantly reviewed it. He recommended PT, Meloxicam and in a month, if still painful, cortisone.
I go to PT, do exercises daily. Pain at night, cannot get comfortable even with pillow under my arm and sleeping on good shoulder. I will not get cortisone. If no improvement, will investigate PRP.
I second guess my decision to not have surgery when I was younger but, am very disappointed with PA’s dismissive attitude.
In my disgust and frustration after that visit, I did more research and found that NYU Langone has a Women’s Sports Medicine Department.
This is a long saga to say PT, Meloxicam and stopping and or modifying activities helped me twice. Not sure about this time. I am 76, very active and looking to resume tennis and golf!
Thank you for taking the time to read my story.

Full disclosure: I'm not familiar with the terms you are using. I also do not know technical terms for my own problems. But I am familiar with rotator cuff tears. I've had surgery on left and right shoulder rotator cuff tears.
At 65 I had rotator cuff repair for three torn tendons and two torn muscles on my right arm. Spent one year undiagnosed. Can't have MRIs. Got 3 cortisone shots. Was in bad pain entire time but after the 3rd shot and bad medical advice, I tore one of the tendons off the bone. Luckily, I moved and got a new doctor & referral to an amazing surgeon. When I woke up from surgery, he told me that the surgery consisted of reattaching the one tendon. He said he did the best he could. The other tears healed on their own. On me, they did what they called "implanted" cords, which in time become part of the tendon. This injury was caused by decades of overuse of my right arm.
At 74, my second surgery for rotator cuff repair was confusing to me. He focused his attention to filling in and closing a "hole." This injury was caused by using extreme force turning a steering wheel moving a vehicle. I was fully released to return to work in 6 months.
I drink protein supplements daily. After research, I decided it was the only thing I could take to strengthen my tendons and muscles.
While everything else on my body is degenerating, my surgeon has never told me that my shoulders are. He did mention to me after the second surgery, that if I had another injury, I might have to have shoulder replacement. I did recently do something involving a wheel, but my left shoulder held up and am just healing up on my own. In physical therapy right now so I can return to work. I wish your mum the best!