Anyone suffering with rotator cuff injury?

I have a recurring rotator cuff injury, I had some private physio which did help a couple of years ago but he said I do have arthritis in the shoulder too. The pain is now back, I haven’t bothered my GP yet as I know the wait for physio is months, it must be very painful trying to use crutches with such an injury.
I hope your physio app wait isn’t too long.

Yes I fell over one Easter. So painful.
Have a look on Youtube for ideas on how to get comfortable to sleep. That’s a start.

The physio gave me the confidence to know what I could and should do -previously I was frightened to make it worse by doing some things.

It took 18 months to heal and I still feel it at times in bed.

Thank you tanith, our NHS physio service is very good - I self-referred to our surgery's physio, who gave me exercises, ouch, but the hospital physio will decide if I need a scan. My son aged 42 has the same, due to over-using weights at the gym, so we jointly commiserate! The crutches are a big issue but it's only until I get a knee replacement, phew. Do you find anything helps the pain? Ibuprofen and paracetamol helps a bit but I won't take it regularly. The expensive gels don't touch it.

Whitewavemark, did any exercises you were given by the physio make it more painful?

Yes I have overdone the crocheting.
I had it three years ago in both arms, fortunately it's just the one this time. I'm already on the waiting list for NHS physio for a slipped disc / trapped nerve. It's a 12 week wait minimum here. So I decided to pay and saw a private physio yesterday. £40 for an hour long consult which I thought wasn't bad.
He has given me exercises and says I should see a GP if no improvement in six weeks as I have RA.

I also have recurring rotator cuff injury and have had it for many years. At the start it was really painful and restricted my movements significantly. I did have physio and it’s been quite liveable with recently apart from ‘catching’ when I move my arm in certain positions. It isn’t helped by arthritis as well. Having to use a crutch as well must make it very uncomfortable so I feel for you.

I’m not sure what it is but a few times a week I get pain in my right shoulder, it’s not excruciating. I also get in my right arm a feeling that you get when you’ve just had an injection(sore) and that’s a couple of times a week very odd but not worth bothering the doctor with I think..

I have had this several times. Most of the time physio does the trick but twice I have had to have an op, the last of which was earlier this year. I still have slightly restricted movement but otherwise it is going along nicely. It did take ages to be seen but eventually I rang my GP in tears and they wrote to the muscoskeletal team to ask them to see me urgently which was exactly what happened. Within 8 weeks I was on the operating table.

I was diagnosed with Calcific Tendonitis in both shoulders a few years. Excruciatingly painful condition which affects the rotar cuff of the shoulder due to a build up of calcium within the tendons. Surveys show this is more common in females.
Initially I was given steroid injections and immediately felt pain free. However, I reached my limit of injections per annum and made appointments with a sports physio who uses laser treatment as opposed to manual manipulation, huge improvement and I haven’t had any reoccurrence of CT for six years. 🤞🤞. If I feel an occasional twinge, I rest whichever arm for a day which stops it getting worse.

I do feel for youOP it is such a painful debilitating condition which I hope whichever route you go down results in pain free relief.

Mizuna

*Whitewavemark*, did any exercises you were given by the physio make it more painful?

No. Movement was restricted initially but even before seeing the physio, ordinary housework like reaching up and lifting stuff began to ease it.

In fact you can also find the exercises on YouTube. I was not confident in doing them until I saw the physio, but they were just the same, so you could give it a go.

I fell on my shoulder a few years ago, it involved nerve damage a bout of shingles, I did have a steroid injection which calmed it down and it gradually recovered. Now I do get the occasional twinge if I lift something wrongly, I’m much more careful about what I do these days

Thank you everyone, very helpful. I feel for anyone suffering with it! I had to give up crocheting RedRidingHood because it gave me tennis elbow. I'm now an Extreme Knitter (I overdo everything but am trying to learn new ways!) and that may be aggravating it.

Yes. I had it in my right shoulder a couple of years ago and it took quite a while to get better.
Now I have it in my left shoulder and I'm not bothering with a doctor this time. It will get better, hopefully. It's worse at night so I'm taking paracetamol at bedtime. Also trying not to lift too much with it. Stretching up or out is difficult.

I fell in a canal, fully clothed in winter and was pulled out by one arm which tore its rotator cuff. I 'sort of coped' for a few months but found that I had difficulty driving a car (needed for my job), gear changes and pulling on the handbrake were agony and many everyday movements were severely restricted by the injured shoulder.

I had surgery on my shoulder, and it took nearly 6 months to get the use back properly, but now 15 years later, I have no recurrence of the problem.

I sympathise with Mizuna and all the other posters who suffer with rotator cuff problems and have only posted because no one has mentioned surgery which was successful with me.

I fell (had a fall !) over two years ago and had a rotator cuff injury to my right shoulder . It took over a year to get better but often still get twinges . I’m finding my Aqua exercises for my arthritis and hip joints definitely help my shoulder and gentle muscle building exercises too to support the joint . I did get referred to an orthopaedic consultant who was reluctant to operate as I had arthritis in the shoulder area too. But it does take an age to get even a little improvement.

I did, SusieB50 in my earlier post. I had two lots. The first surgery lasted for over 12 years before I started to get pain again. The second lot was 15 years after the first and I recovered slowly but surely.

Yes I lifted my 6 year old granddaughter out the car as she wanted a wee quickly and she'd taken her shoes off. I immediately felt my shoulder go. I just left it, it did improve a bit but not completely. Then about a year later I reach up into the cupboard and intense pain in shoulder. After that no more pain so I guess it went back into position.

I have had to rotor cuff injury and I'm afraid it heals in its own time. A tear is easier to treat. My shoulder not as it used to be after 10 years, I have to be careful not to lift and stretch as I used to, can't cut my hedge as that requires stretching, but I'm just grateful I can do so many other things that were impossible when I first did it, I could not lift a cup to my mouth orvcut up food I thought it would never get better, but did the exercises and followed instructions and bit by bit it improved.

Thanks everyone, you've given me a good insight into what to expect, which is very helpful. So glad I posted.

Ouch! I sustained one whilst having a routine medical procedure. Physio wouldn’t see me and it subsequently turned into a frozen shoulder. Two years later I’m still recovering. Acupuncture and Tens treatment gave me some relief.

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I had such a bad shoulder due to lupus and arthritis. I could not even lift my arm. I had a reverse shoulder replacement. My Dr did not want me to have it but I felt it was worth a try. Anyway 7 years later it has been a godsend. I have to watch what I lift but at least I can use it. Recovery can take time, your Dr will tell you if this is an option. Good luck.