frozen shoulder

I started with a frozen shoulder which I couldn't shake off. After some years I had an x-ray which showed bone spurs in the joint and had a partial replacement which was successful until a couple of years ago when I messed things up by shovelling snow and now it is arthritic. It has good and bad days (this week - bad!) but as I also have polymyalgia rheumatica I can't always distinguish whether the arthritis or the PMR is causing the pain.

Interesting to hear everyone's comments. I've tried resting it, exercising it, drugs, massaging trigger points and the shoulder is still rigid and so painful. This happened last time too- when I tried acupuncture, TENS machine and - nothing really helped and it gradually improved over two whole years! Awful ! I have a suspicion that no one researches this problem because it affects mainly women over 50- or am I being cynical!

I have pain in my left shoulder and as I'm left handed it's worse when I've done lots of sewing or chopping (as now having made apple and rhubarb crumbles for the freezer) but on holiday in Chiang Rai the hotel had a spa and this tiny girl set about me from the feet up to my skull and although shattered at the end I've been fine for weeks until I overuse my arm. I'd only requested a back and shoulder massage) I don't know how to deal with a computer search for Thai massage in case I get a flood of dubious material or I would have another go. A flight to Thailand is a good option

Speldman you have my sympathy, a frozen shoulder is wrongly named, sounds numb when in reality it is excrutiatingly painful. When I suffered from it my gp prescribed painkillers and exercise. The exercise was painful but with perserverence it was better in a couple of months. I think exercise is the key. Hope yours is better soon.

I have had frozen shoulder and tennis elbow(golf in my case) on and off for years. recently I saw a new physio who gve me exercises which i half did but did sme acupressure and relasing of the tendon which worked like a dream all better in six weeks.

I know this is going to sound totally daft but when I had my acupuncture treatment the guy was also into alternative methods and he put three rods into my arm just below the shoulder and lit the rods they gave off a very sweet scent but also conducted a heat into my arm which really eased the pain I had this treatment twice and it was very successful.

jessm no! It's just a good excuse really but I do think the relaxing effect of the massage breaks the pain, tension, more pain cycle!

I`ve suffered several times over the last few years with frozen shoulder, but have found that the injections work just fine.

thanks for all your posts-glad to know I am not alone! I agree that the medical remedies don't work. Rest might help the pain but I stubbornly refuse to allow it to stop me from doing anything (although I always suffer for it the next day). I will look into 'The frozen shoulder workout' though it is agony to move it at the moment-dressing, drying after a bath etc all very difficult and painful. I had physio last time but the lady gave up on me when she couldn't get the joint to move! hey ho!
Shysal re your last comment-the last time I had this the consultant that I saw said the same thing-treat or not treat it still takes at least 2 years to recover from the wretched thing.

I've had this and it was excellently treated with steroid injection with a bit of local in it too. First time I had the GP do it - I think he missed the spot as it did no good. Next time went to an ortho specialist - he hit the spot right away and it went away almost instantly - wonderful!

jeni - aromatherapy = a nice massage with scented oil. So any nice massage with or without scented oil? I am appealing to your scientific side here. I am sure you do not mean to imply any special properties to the oils, do you?

I suffered a frozen shoulder, brought about by lifting a heavy child in the air. The description sounds like it would just be a stiffness, but it is far worse. I found the only thing that helped was rest, which I am not very good at! After more than a year it slowly got better. I wish I had known about the workout lucid.
A friend had the complaint in both shoulders at different times,one treated and the other not. They both took the same time to mend.
I hope yours gets better soonspeldnan

I've had it in both. A combination of physio and aromatherapy helped better than any conventional medicine.

speldnan I feel for your pain I was treated for the same problem 6/7yrs ago it was caused by the wear and tear of the rotary cuff joint in my shoulder I found anti-inflamatories useless and also the cortisone injections,I went to see an ostiopath and had a deep massage (very very painful) but after the first session I could notice the difference and after two more the pain was bearable I then went on to have a course of acupuncture which proved well worth it,even though now my right shoulder is weak and I do not carry anything heavy I can sometimes feel slight discomfort but nothing to compare to the initial pain.Ask your GP to refer you to a clinic which specialises in this and you should get some respite from the pain.

Hi Speldnan - like you I have had 'frozen shoulder' in both shoulders. First time in my right shoulder when I grabbed my GD to stop her falling (3 years ago) and then in my left shoulder last year, courtesy of the idiot who ran into the back of our car when we were stopped at a junction!! I was referred for physiotherapy both times but found that it was only partly successful. My OH found this book - The Frozen Shoulder Workout by Clair Davies - and it worked brilliantly. Both shoulders now fine, probably better than before.

I ended up having an operation first time but that was privately so not sure the NHS would pay. Second time I was told it would go away in 2 years but it didn't. It went away when we went for a 4 week holiday in the sun doing nothing. I recommend that cure!

I've got tennis elbow now so think it is time to go again.