Frozen shoulder

[ArcheryAnnie]

Am just posting to offer a bit of solidarity to anyone else with a frozen shoulder. I'm now on ny second, and had no idea it was like this before I had one. I had vaguely thought it was "shoulder is a bit stiff", not "someone's replaced my bones with lead ones that aren't the right shape and don't quite fit, they dipped these new bones in acid before sewing them into me, and booby-trapped them with tiny grenades for when I move my arm slightly in the "wrong" direction ".

I can't lie down for longer than about 4 hours because lying down makes it hurt more. You can imagine what this is doing to my sleep patterns. How are you all doing?

I'm sending lots of sympathy. I also thought frozen shoulder the same as stiff neck etc until I was struck down during lockdown.

Like you sleeping became my worst issue, no comfortable position and woke myself up sobbing with pain.

Due to Covid I didn't seek medical help (was when hospitals and gps surgeries were avoided) and I went through the standard 3 months agony, 3 months stiff and sore with reduced movement, 3 months stiff then last 3 months gradually recovering

I know there is a greater likelihood of second shoulder going, and if it does I won't try being brave or stoic, I'll be at the doctors for injections and pain killers asap and would really recommend you do the same.

Good luck

Sending sympathy to you 💐
I am on my second and my first hasn't properly recovered. It's agony and makes me cry so I feel for you.

I can't lie on it for long and now can't put my bra on properly, even from the front. Even putting a jacket on hurts!!

How did yours start? I'm convinced mine's linked to menopause 😩

I'm convinced mines linked to long covid, but at this point who knows.

Solidarity to you both! May the sunlit uplands of not being in bloody agony come sooner rather than later!

I'm still on heavy painkillers from FS#1, but I will pursue injections for FS#2.

You have my sympathy. I developed this during the first lockdown and even now I still can't move my arm in its full range of motion.
The pain is indescribable and the only meds that worked was codeine, but has unfortunate tum related side affects for me.
I also have a bursitis in my leg which has lasted a year! I never had any issues before the pandemic and can't help wondering if it's partly to blame.

I’m jealous of the poster who passed through the stages at 3 month each.

Mine is still freezing…. 7 months and waiting. It’s indescribable😭and now l can’t drive as it’s spread down my back and that is unbearable.

Sick of pain, waiting for cortisone injection.

A cortisone injection injection sorted the pain for me, just left with limited mobility but this is getting better , now 18 months down the line. Definitely see your Gp for an injection.

My other shoulder is now slowly losing mobility but no pain……yet.

See a good physio. Mine comes back if I don't do the stretching exercise I was given. If I forget for more than a week, I get that tingling/pins and needles over my shoulder blade and next thing my left arm feels like it explodes inside when I turn right in the car.

For temporary relief, do you find heat or cold works best? I've been experimenting with icepacks and hot water bottles, and think the hot water bottles have it.

It’s horrible, isn’t it? I’ve also had it in both shoulders, but thankfully not at the same time. I was told it takes 6 months to get as bad as it’s going to get, 6 months for it to be at its worst, then another 6 months to recover. That seemed to be true for me. My GP refused to give me any pain relief other than a cortisone injection, which did absolutely nothing. I went to a Bowens therapist for a while, but I’m afraid it didn’t help either. Ten years later, I’m pretty much back to normal, although I still can’t reach round to fasten/unfasten my bra. I really feel for anyone suffering and hope you get some relief soon.

Thank goodness I have found my people, although I’m very sorry you are suffering too! I am in agony, easily the worst pain I’ve ever had. I’m amazed at how incapacitating it is. I can’t even go for a walk - the weight of my arm and inadvertent movement are too painful. My elbow and wrist hurt too from moving awkwardly. Very little movement in my arm. I’m having a volume hydrodilatation injection for it, then physio, and praying it helps. Much sympathy to all of you, it’s horrible.

I have had two, physio worked for me eventually. Now back to normal, and if my shoulders get stiff I just incorporate some of the physio exercises into my work outs, but I am careful about what exercises I do. Push ups are out for me

Mines 71/2 months and still getting worse.

@ArcheryAnnie I prefer heat to cold, but a physio has told me that cold is better for a frozen shoulder. I’m using a hot water bottle on my lower back to help with stiffness caused by being so sedentary, and frozen peas on my shoulder for short periods of time

I had this a few years ago and luckily work provide a private GP and private health. I had a steroid injection which, once the local anaesthetic wore off, was a little sore until the next day and then nothing. No pain whatsoever and nothing since.
if you access to private health then go for it otherwise push the GP to get this injection. It was amazing.

I was told heat is best!

I'm on my second too. Got the first one about the start of Jan 2021. Midst of covid and got no where with the NHS for about 6 months (then given some physio). Managed to see a private consultant instead and had the steroid injection, and my god, the relief!! Was amazing. As a previous poster has said, it didn't help with mobility, but the agony disappeared within a day. Roll on 12 months, and I feel the other shoulder starting to go. I got myself another appt for a steroid injection, thinking this would cure just like before. But no. Did nothing! 😫

Oh, to answer your question I also found heat helped with the pain. Tried cold but didn't rate that. My physio said to do both so I suspect it's fine to do whatever suits you. It's so incapacitating.

I’m just about over my second. It’s been a year for each phase not three months though and tbh I thought a year was standard. In fact, three years and four months and I’m about 85% back normal.

I had hydrodilatation for the second one and it was a game changer. Stopped the zingers dead.

I had a frozen shoulder in the first lockdown.
the pain when DH was helping me take a top off over my head that I couldn’t get off myself was indescribable when he moved too fast and jerked my arm! I literally was in agony.

I wasn’t very good at doing the exercises but one that did help was bending over a bit from your waist and letting your arm dangle - them gently using your body to make your arm swing back and forth and in circles. It seemed to just create a tiny bit of relief and somehow felt good.

For sleep I slept on the unaffected side and then had my “bad” arm propped up on a pillow, almost like hugging a pillow and it helped.

In the end it just gradually unfroze itself but now it’s definitely weaker than the other side.

Going into lockdown #1. It took a year and I can still feel a shimmer of remembered pain which terrifies me in case it starts again. Just such a miserable condition.

I found a buckwheat bolster shaped pillow helped sleep enormously. Otherwise heat was better than cold.

Sympathy to you all. Mine never quite froze but I have had bursitis for 18 months now. Finally got steriod injections about 5 weeks ago and the difference is incredible. I got an acupressure pillow over Christmas which I find great, it's a semi circle so I wegde it in between my shoulder and neck and it really helps relieve the muscle spasms and helps keep then less tense so my physio exercises are less painful.

The pain of FS1 (left) was so bad, I was determined to keep my right arm moving so that I didn't get one the other side. But despite this, I've ended up with FS on my right side.

I am convinced if you have one, you are susceptible to getting another.

Heat definitely helps me - standing under a hot shower for example. Also, the physio told me to lie on the floor with a tennis ball under my shoulder, where the painful little point is...if you can bear the pain, it's supposed to help!

Oh hello fellow FS sufferers! I think I’m in the thawing stage - increased ROM and nowhere near as much pain. Currently having deep tissue massage to help. When it was freezing, I used Tiger Balm - a lot of it! I preferred heat to cold. I do think that having physio didn’t help much in the longer term, but gave a bit of relief. I injured my shoulder in Nov 20, it gradually became worse in Jan 21 when I was in an accident. Initially nobody medical would see me in person so that injury then turned into a FS. I had a cortisone jab in Sept 21 and from then I could stretch my arm a little more each day. Good luck with it!

I've been trying the Nurofen 24 hour patches and they're helping. Night is worst for me, so I put one on before bed. They are expensive (£8.79 for 2 or £13ish for 4 if you can get them).