# What is the proper way to heal a shoulder injury? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 5, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344 "2018-07-05T19:58:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Carla.Liz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Carla.Liz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carla.Liz)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/1 "2018-07-05T19:58:54Z")
Is it to immobilize it (as in a cast) until it heals? Here’s what happened to me: I was doing push ups some 6 months ago and noticed pain on my right shoulder, instead of stopping I pushed through it (a bad idea.) Since then I haven’t done any exercise but it hasn’t really healed much if at all. I can move and use it but there’s discomfort and a bit of pain (but not excruciating pain) such as when I shift the transmission in my car, or the steering wheel or moving a pillow. Am I doing something wrong? Does the injured part have to be completely immobilized for it to heal? ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/2 "2018-07-05T20:02:12Z")
What does your doctor say? Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/3 "2018-07-05T20:18:19Z")
The first thing I would try is a massage, someone needs to get into the back and neck muscles and find the ones that are knotted up and then kneed them like dough. I have seen this work time and time again on shoulders that doctors have said only surgery can fix. The good part is that it often only requires one massage and relief will usually start occurring within hours. I have used this method for years on myself and friends with miraculous results. About 3 months ago I decided I wanted to try and work up to shooting a heavy bow for my last archery flight shooting event coming up. I started pulling the heavy bows and ignoring the pain. Day after day. It got so bad I thought I had destroyed my shoulder. I went to one of those massage parlors and had her work out the muscles. The next day I was back to pulling the heavy bows with no discomfort . ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/4 "2018-07-05T20:20:59Z")
MrsB is a doctor several times over. She would tell you to go see a doctor or a physiotherapist. She would also tell you that [frozen shoulder](https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/frozen-shoulder/symptoms-causes/syc-20372684) is a bitch and a half to recover from, so you probably don’t want to deliberately induce it. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/5 "2018-07-05T20:23:14Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > The first thing I would try is a massage First: I am not a doctor, and random people on a message board are simply not going to be a good substitute for actual medical evaluation. (Nonetheless, welcome to the SDMB, Carla.Liz!) A massage _might_ help, but the poster is still suffering significant pain and impairment six months after the injury, while engaging in simple, everyday activities, which suggests that it could well be something more serious than knotted muscles (i.e., torn muscles, torn tendons, etc.) It definitely sounds to me like, if you haven’t already seen a doctor about your injury, such a visit is overdue. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/6 "2018-07-05T20:25:55Z")
1. Another vote for “Go see a doctor” 2. I gotta ask-How the heck did you remember your password after close to 6 1/2 years? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/7 "2018-07-05T20:29:29Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > What does your doctor say? > > Regards, > Shodan Absolutely. Recently I had a mysterious stomach pain. I called a paramedic, who said I should go straight to hospital. They found gallstones and I’ve got a keyhole operation scheduled. The surgeon said “Don’t be a stoic when you have a problem - we see so many serious problems that could have been sorted easily if the patient had come straight in.” ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/8 "2018-07-05T20:32:52Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > What does your doctor say? > > Regards, > Shodan This ^. Your question is roughly analogous to “The transmission in my car started slipping, how do I fix it?”. The answer to both is “Depends on what is wrong.” ---
**Author:** ![Carla.Liz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Carla.Liz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carla.Liz)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/9 "2018-07-05T20:34:19Z")
Well, I have the full range of movement and it’s definitely not “frozen shoulder,” I haven’t seen a doctor because well, I am poor. If there isn’t a generally accepted method of recovery, then that’s what I’ll do. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/10 "2018-07-05T20:44:08Z")
> [@Carla.Liz](#): > > Well, I have the full range of movement and it’s definitely not “frozen shoulder,” I haven’t seen a doctor because well, I am poor. If there isn’t a generally accepted method of recovery, then that’s what I’ll do. The shoulder is a rather complex joint with a lot of things that can go wrong. There’s no one cure for “shoulder pain”. You have to find out what you injured. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/11 "2018-07-05T20:51:03Z")
Rotator cuff. See a doc. ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/12 "2018-07-05T20:52:53Z")
> [@Carla.Liz](#): > > Well, I have the full range of movement and it’s definitely not “frozen shoulder,” I haven’t seen a doctor because well, I am poor. If there isn’t a generally accepted method of recovery, then that’s what I’ll do. A “frozen shoulder” can happen when an injured shoulder is immobilized for too long. It can be a nightmare to fix, so don’t go that route. I am a doctor and absent a thorough physical exam and possibly advanced imaging your question can’t be definitively answered here. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/13 "2018-07-05T21:07:05Z")
Medical advice is best suited to IMHO. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/14 "2018-07-05T22:29:22Z")
See a doctor. In the meantime, applying ice to your shoulder will most likely help with the pain by reducing any swelling and inflammation. I have dealt with rotator cuff tears for almost 2 decades, and of all the medications I’ve tried, both prescription and otc, it’s been icing that has been most helpful. By far. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2018, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/15 "2018-07-05T22:41:29Z")
There are lots of things you can do to help decrease the pain in your shoulder without seeing a doc. Ice and massage have already been mentioned I’ve also used tense units, heating pads, painkillers and booze, physical therapy with exercises and stretching is great too. But as someone who had two shoulder replacements before 35 I’ll echo most people here and say go talk to a sports orthopedist. I did most of the damage to my shoulders by keeping myself put together on my own and with a chiropractor and then when I did see a doc their goals were to put me together for an intentionally short period of time. That being said I’ve had my latest new shoulder for three years and I love both of them. I’m not excited about getting new ones again in 15 years or so though. ---
**Author:** ![Weisshund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba8739/32.png) [@Weisshund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weisshund)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/16 "2018-07-06T01:20:58Z")
> [@Carla.Liz](#): > > Well, I have the full range of movement and it’s definitely not “frozen shoulder,” I haven’t seen a doctor because well, I am poor. If there isn’t a generally accepted method of recovery, then that’s what I’ll do. I blew my rotator up when a motorcycle landed on top of me (long story) It took a very long time to heal and has lost a bit of range of motion. It took much more than 6 months of leaving it heal on it’s own. I did not go to a doctor but i would recommend you do so if you can. I was lucky perhaps that it could fix itself and not need surgery, but not being able to see inside your own shoulder, you have to way to guarantee yourself of that. I definitely did not have full range of motion, i could not even lift my arm to the table with out helping with the other arm, but still it might be worth at least getting someone to look at it. Immobilizing is not always the right route to take, for somethings it is the bad way to go and results in loss of motion and use. Only a doctor can answer that for you. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/17 "2018-07-06T02:22:28Z")
A massage therapist may tell you to go to the doctor after talking to. Ms. P was taught to do that if it was something a massage might make worse. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/18 "2018-07-06T02:55:06Z")
Agree with everyone else, you need to see a doc, if for no other reason, to get a real diagnosis. Even without doing any imaging, there are a handful of tests your GP can do right in the office that will give them a pretty good idea, or at least be able to rule out certain things. They’re all quick and easy, but some can be a bit painful. Most of them is just the doc having you hold your arm in a certain position while they manipulate it. If it hurts when they do this, but not that, it can narrow it down or rule certain things out. An x-ray or MRI is what will probably be needed to know for sure. In my limited experience, they’ll likely send you off for a few rounds of physical therapy, which can be very helpful. But if it’s not, the next step is going to be to an orthopedic surgeon. > [@Beckdawrek](#): > > Rotator cuff. See a doc. Everyone jumps right to that. In fact, often times when I mention something about my shoulder and someone says ‘oh, you tore your rotator cuff’, I just agree with it. If I were the OP, I’d look into symptoms of a torn labrum. That’s a common injury that can happen when your arm is pushed straight in one direction or another. For example, you you were to fall forward to the floor with outstreched arms or stiff arm someone running at you, tearing your labrum would be expected. Another thing to look into would be shoulder impingement. I had both of these at the same time from the same injury. The PT cleared up the impingement, surgery fixed the tear. I always had (more or less) full ROM, but my shoulder was also always sore and tired. Another thing to mention, while I did ‘diagnose’ myself before seeing the doctor, that was just based on the symptoms and causes. Trying to do the tests you see by yourself, just isn’t possible. No way that I could bend or torque my arm produced the ‘desired’ results, but my doc grabbed my wrist and shoulder and turned my arm a certain way and I swore at him (he laughed, it was okay), and that was that. Remember, you can do all the reading about it you want, but the doctors have the experience. TLDR, go see a doc and if they suggest PT, take it. PT is awful, but it can do a lot of good. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/19 "2018-07-06T05:10:36Z")
I still say start with a massage no matter how painful your shoulder is. You can’t hurt anything that’s for sure so you have nothing to loose. Shoulder surgeries I have read are the number 1 surgery performed for no good reason. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2018, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344/20 "2018-07-06T12:05:26Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > I still say start with a massage no matter how painful your shoulder is. You can’t hurt anything that’s for sure so you have nothing to loose. It’s not clear that this is true. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-the-proper-way-to-heal-a-shoulder-injury/817344.md?page=2)