Ryan's Shoulder Surgery and Recovery Journal

[RyanGrob]

So here I am again, going on my third shoulder surgery scheduled for May 20th, 2010. I wanted to start this thread a little earlier to keep myself sane through the whole ordeal.

History: Jan 10th, 2008 I had surgery for a torn labrum. Arthrogram didn't pick it up but after an exploratory arthroscopic surgery, the doc found it and repaired it.

August 14th, 2009 - Subacromonial debringement surgery. My acromion somehow gathered a nice sized bone spur that needed to be shaved down. I also had some cartilage that was cleaned out.

Still had pain. Went through PT after surgery but it didn't help. Started seeing a new doc in late Nov of 2009 and got a new MRI taken. Lots of inflammation and possible torn labrum again. The new doc prescribed PT and gave me some cortisone, both of which didn't help (surprise!). Last week I was told another surgery would be ideal (FINALLY!) and scheduled it.

The surgery will be 3 procedures in one, basically checking the labrum, acromion, and doing a clavicle resection. He's also going to manipulate it while I'm under and see if there are movements that irritate the RC. If so, he will shrink the capsule. If all goes well, the labrum will be fine and only the bone work will need to be done. I am excited for this surgery since I have been waiting over 3 years to not have constant shoulder pain.

The purpose of this journal will will be to document my progress through recovery. Also, I'm not a doctor by any means but seeing I have quite the history with shoulder pain (since March of 2007), I can help with questions you may have. I may not answer right away, but if you leave something in this thread I will get back to it relatively soon (I'm in grad school now so time is always limited!).

Please feel free to post whatever you wish. Hopefully this can serve as another useful journal for people who are struggling through shoulder problems.

[RyanGrob]

What am I doing now?

Currently I workout but have to design my routine around the injury. This means no barbell pressing of any kind. I can do dumbbell bench presses with minimal pain (surprisingly) but limited in weight. Tricep movements also are limited (close grip bench causes issues along with rope pulldowns, dips, etc). What's nice though is I can do most compound exercises such as deadlifts, squats (causes some pain but manageable), rows, etc. The most painful exercise in the world to do is side lateral raises. Even with 10 lbs they cause excruciating pain. This is my routine though for the most part:

Chest - Flat dumbbell press 75lbs (4x8-10 reps)
Cable flies
Incline dumbbell press 60 lbs (4x8-10 reps)
Incline flies

Back - Deadlifts
Bent-over Barbell rows
Lat Pulldown
Cable rows
Wide grip pull ups (til failure)

Arms - Close grip bench press
Skull crushers
V-bar pushdowns
Barbell curls
Preacher Curls
Incline hammer curls

Shoulders (lulz) - Front lateral raises
Side lateral raises (just enough weight to have SOME strength)
Dumbbell shoulder press (limited movement - don't go below parallel and low weight)
Shrugs (on smith machine)

Legs - Squats
Leg press
Leg curls
Leg extensions
Lunges
Calf work (varies)

I keep the reps for the most part in the 8-12 range as strength training would tear me apart. Before every workout I do RC work which has helped me tremendously not only in the gym but outside as well. I take 6-9 fish oil capsules a day along with Animal Flex. I have Cissus as well but am saving that for post-op. I'll update the big lift maxes before surgery so I have something to strive for. Unfortunately my lifts before my first surgery far exceeded any I've been able to do since Hopefully this changes with this surgery.

[FLbeach321]

hey ryan, good luck with surgery. it sounds like this is the one to fix it all! your going to do great

[RyanGrob]

hey ryan, good luck with surgery. it sounds like this is the one to fix it all! your going to do great

Thanks for the support! I'm hoping this is the last

[anonymous]

hey man i hurt my shoulder lifting also, i hope its just an impingement, but sometimes if i stretch it out itll like crackle or pop and there will be some pain for a little while u think i tore something? i can pretty much move it around and evrything im so friken woried its torn tho im gunna take a few more weeks off upper body then go bak to training, if it hurts get an mri then probly surgery if torn

[JDkeystone]

WOW, three surgeries? i just had my first one three weeks ago, and that was just arthroscopic stabilization (the "easy" surgery lol), and right now i can't even imagine having anything more severe than that heh...

i'll definitely be following your progress, since i've had tons of shoulder problems for the last seven years, myself. good luck with your upcoming surgery; hopefully this will be the last one you'll need!

[RyanGrob]

hey man i hurt my shoulder lifting also, i hope its just an impingement, but sometimes if i stretch it out itll like crackle or pop and there will be some pain for a little while u think i tore something? i can pretty much move it around and evrything im so friken woried its torn tho im gunna take a few more weeks off upper body then go bak to training, if it hurts get an mri then probly surgery if torn

Where exactly is the pain? If it's impingement, it's very easy to pinpoint and doesn't really spread much. Also, impingement is easy to tell off an X-RAY for the most part (although there is internal impingement my doc was getting into that blew my mind).

Does the crackling feel like a joint/bone crack or like a tendon passing over a rough spot? Does it feel loose? Is there an ache or does it only hurt with certain movements? Answers to these will help narrow it down. Also, is there any exercises that cause a lot of pain?

[RyanGrob]

WOW, three surgeries? i just had my first one three weeks ago, and that was just arthroscopic stabilization (the "easy" surgery lol), and right now i can't even imagine having anything more severe than that heh...

i'll definitely be following your progress, since i've had tons of shoulder problems for the last seven years, myself. good luck with your upcoming surgery; hopefully this will be the last one you'll need!

Hey, thanks for the kind words. How is your recovery going?

[JDkeystone]

Hey, thanks for the kind words. How is your recovery going?

meh, it's been more painful than i'd like to admit, but overall not too bad. i start physio on friday, and i have a feeling my therapist is gonna give me sh*t when he finds out how much stuff i've been doing (random, daily tasks) that i really should've been avoiding so as not to screw up the healing process lol. but that's kinda hard to do when you live alone and have to do everything yourself.

i also have a recovery journal in this section (see sig), so if you wanna follow my progress too, feel free to check it out.

[RyanGrob]

meh, it's been more painful than i'd like to admit, but overall not too bad. i start physio on friday, and i have a feeling my therapist is gonna give me sh*t when he finds out how much stuff i've been doing (random, daily tasks) that i really should've been avoiding so as not to screw up the healing process lol. but that's kinda hard to do when you live alone and have to do everything yourself.

i also have a recovery journal in this section (see sig), so if you wanna follow my progress too, feel free to check it out.

Ouch, having someone around to help has saved me for each surgery. I will definitely take a peek tomorrow at your journal! Good luck with recovery! If you need any moral support feel free to stop on in. I've been through a good deal so I know the emotional toll that shoulder surgery (or any for that matter) can have.

[anonymous]

Where exactly is the pain? If it's impingement, it's very easy to pinpoint and doesn't really spread much. Also, impingement is easy to tell off an X-RAY for the most part (although there is internal impingement my doc was getting into that blew my mind).

Does the crackling feel like a joint/bone crack or like a tendon passing over a rough spot? Does it feel loose? Is there an ache or does it only hurt with certain movements? Answers to these will help narrow it down. Also, is there any exercises that cause a lot of pain?

not sure where the pain is exactly i think i feel it everywhere in the shoulder and at times it makes my entire arm feel weak. the cracking just feels like bone cracking and pain quickly sets in after the cracking. not sure if it feels loose best way i can explain it is just my arm feels weak. there is an ache that comes and goes, im actually pretty depressed because it has been getting better with rest this past week but today i irritated it at the gym from either squats, shrugs, or sldl. alot of pain hmm, chest day definitely caused the most, incline bench, flat bench, flies, dips, also tricep cable extensions were very bad at the end of the workout. i really appreciate the help and any opinions u have by my symptoms

lateral raises also hurt forgot those

literally it never hurts unless i start stretching it out in ways to make it crack or irritate it at the gym

[RyanGrob]

not sure where the pain is exactly i think i feel it everywhere in the shoulder and at times it makes my entire arm feel weak. the cracking just feels like bone cracking and pain quickly sets in after the cracking. not sure if it feels loose best way i can explain it is just my arm feels weak. there is an ache that comes and goes, im actually pretty depressed because it has been getting better with rest this past week but today i irritated it at the gym from either squats, shrugs, or sldl. alot of pain hmm, chest day definitely caused the most, incline bench, flat bench, flies, dips, also tricep cable extensions were very bad at the end of the workout. i really appreciate the help and any opinions u have by my symptoms

lateral raises also hurt forgot those

literally it never hurts unless i start stretching it out in ways to make it crack or irritate it at the gym

Interesting. A dull ache in the joint usually is a dead giveaway to a labrum tear. Mine was so bad I couldn't even lift a bag of groceries without intense pain. A sign of weakness is usually related to the rotator cuff. Was there any sudden trauma that caused this or was it something that kind of happened over time? When my labrum tore, it made a huge POP noise and I instantly had pain/numbness from then on.

From what I can gather so far, it does sound more of impingement rather than a tear somewhere. Since you mention it doesn't hurt at rest, that usually takes out a tear of some kind (not totally, but highly unlikely). Theres a couple things you can do. First, I would take a couple weeks off to offset any inflammation you may have. It also might be a good idea to mega dose some fish oil to help as well. Start doing a lot of RC work (there's a nice sticky in this forum that has some great exercises) to help strengthen and stabilize the shoulder. You can slowly work back into a routine after that. If you want to take the doctor route, you could go see one and he will probably prescribe PT (maybe give you cortisone) which obviously would help.

[FLbeach321]

JUST on the info you gave, those were my exact symptoms for torn labrum. bad news is surgery to fix it if its "catching". good news is its fixable.

ps..mine didnt hurt too bad either if i didnt use it or stretch it, but when i did, OH MAN....

[RyanGrob]

JUST on the info you gave, those were my exact symptoms for torn labrum. bad news is surgery to fix it if its "catching". good news is its fixable.

ps..mine didnt hurt too bad either if i didnt use it or stretch it, but when i did, OH MAN....

Yeah, you can try the PT for life route but honestly, surgery is your best bet. Sorry to hear that you have a torn labrum though :/ Let me know if you need any info!

[anonymous]

thanks for the help guys, i will keep resting, icing, and taking ibuprofen, hopefully i can beat this thing

[RyanGrob]

thanks for the help guys, i will keep resting, icing, and taking ibuprofen, hopefully i can beat this thing

I should have asked, how long has this been bothering you? Also, you only ice for the first couple days after an injury, after that heat is better to provide increased blood flow and circulation in the area (which helps to signal repair). Make sure to throw in fish oil at generous dosages (not a huge fan of IB Proufen).

[anonymous]

I should have asked, how long has this been bothering you? Also, you only ice for the first couple days after an injury, after that heat is better to provide increased blood flow and circulation in the area (which helps to signal repair). Make sure to throw in fish oil at generous dosages (not a huge fan of IB Proufen).

it first started bothering me probably sometime in the fall all i did was take dips out of my routine and it went away i got the pain again sometime in january again took dips out of my routine and it went away. i got it again now like 1-2 months ago and i took dips out of my routine but the pain stayed, it came and went in this time if i was sper strict with my form and stretched and took preworkout i wouldnt feel pain during the workout but at night when i got bak and showered my arm would ache in the shoulder area and it would feel weak. Currently i have been icing for the past 2 weeks twice a day, i also take 600mg of ibuprofen per day and i take animal flex which has a bunch of good joint stuff in it. does heat help alot? if so ill go this coming weekend to pathmark with my brother and see if they got some stuff there maybe? im at college right now so i dont got many options man, no car or anything. again thanks for the help

[RyanGrob]

it first started bothering me probably sometime in the fall all i did was take dips out of my routine and it went away i got the pain again sometime in january again took dips out of my routine and it went away. i got it again now like 1-2 months ago and i took dips out of my routine but the pain stayed, it came and went in this time if i was sper strict with my form and stretched and took preworkout i wouldnt feel pain during the workout but at night when i got bak and showered my arm would ache in the shoulder area and it would feel weak. Currently i have been icing for the past 2 weeks twice a day, i also take 600mg of ibuprofen per day and i take animal flex which has a bunch of good joint stuff in it. does heat help alot? if so ill go this coming weekend to pathmark with my brother and see if they got some stuff there maybe? im at college right now so i dont got many options man, no car or anything. again thanks for the help

Hmm, yea your issue definitely sounds related to impingement of some sort. I would switch up to heat but if you can't find a way to get a heating pad then you will just have to make do. I would discontinue ice though because as mentioned earlier, after about 3-4 days its actually counter productive. Animal Flex is great stuff - I use it coupled with Fish Oil to provide great joint support. Sounds like you just need to give your shoulder some adequate rest, strengthen your RC and ease back into things. Let me know how it goes.

[anonymous]

Hmm, yea your issue definitely sounds related to impingement of some sort. I would switch up to heat but if you can't find a way to get a heating pad then you will just have to make do. I would discontinue ice though because as mentioned earlier, after about 3-4 days its actually counter productive. Animal Flex is great stuff - I use it coupled with Fish Oil to provide great joint support. Sounds like you just need to give your shoulder some adequate rest, strengthen your RC and ease back into things. Let me know how it goes.

thanks will do, i actually just found this thing called the broom stretch and supposedly this guy swears by it, i did the subscapularis version of it and held the stretch for 30 seconds i have now had 0 pain for the past 2 hours its amazing

[RyanGrob]

thanks will do, i actually just found this thing called the broom stretch and supposedly this guy swears by it, i did the subscapularis version of it and held the stretch for 30 seconds i have now had 0 pain for the past 2 hours its amazing

Yup, that's a great stretch once you can do it properly. I remember using it and had great results. Thanks for reminding me to do it!

[RyanGrob]

Well change of plans, I'll be having my surgery on the 18th of May. Got a call that my doc won't be in town the 20th. Should be a blast!

[anonymous]

Well change of plans, I'll be having my surgery on the 18th of May. Got a call that my doc won't be in town the 20th. Should be a blast!

good luck man, good news my shoulder is doing much better, it seems people are right in saying treating impingements should be done through not only rest and icing but through stretching and exercises. I actually thought i was gunna be out for awhile but i actually may be ready to workout full force this next week starting tuesday with shoulders...broomstick is amazing

[RyanGrob]

good luck man, good news my shoulder is doing much better, it seems people are right in saying treating impingements should be done through not only rest and icing but through stretching and exercises. I actually thought i was gunna be out for awhile but i actually may be ready to workout full force this next week starting tuesday with shoulders...broomstick is amazing

Good to hear man. Impingement is a pain but can be fixed through proper stretching and strengthening exercises (in most cases, some like mine required surgery). Just listen to your body and take things from there!

[CTpump]

Shoulder injuries are the biatch. How did this come about?

[RyanGrob]

Shoulder injuries are the biatch. How did this come about?

Decline bench press and neglecting rotator cuff exercises while rapidly increasing my benching weight.

[RyanGrob]

Bump for any others who have questions/concerns.

Lately just been doing the usual. Modified my split a bit and just keeping the BF% low while working out as much as I can before surgery. Also scheduled my post-op appointment for May 26th. All just a matter of time now

[JDkeystone]

Do you have to go to a pre-op before surgery, too (like for bloodwork/x-rays/testing, etc)?

Also, meant to ask; if your labrum is torn again, any idea how that might've happened this time? Would it be from training too hard, or playing a particular sport or something?

[pvdude]

Did you tear the labrum in the same shoulder again? Are they doing it arhtroscopic? I've read that if it fails the first time then they have to do an open surgery. Maybe that was just that doctor though.

[RyanGrob]

Do you have to go to a pre-op before surgery, too (like for bloodwork/x-rays/testing, etc)?

Also, meant to ask; if your labrum is torn again, any idea how that might've happened this time? Would it be from training too hard, or playing a particular sport or something?

Thankfully I don't have to do any pre-op stuff. I only care because I currently go to grad school in a city thats over an hour away from home. He has recent X-RAY's of me since I started seeing him along with all the medical documents from my previous doctor.

To be honest, my labrum doesn't feel torn. This feels totally different and I think my previous doc missed something the last time he was in. My old doc used to be very well known and the doc for the student athletes here at my school for many years. Unfortunately I believe he is past his prime and should retire. If for some reason my labrum did re-tear, it would be because of continued lifting before my past two surgeries. The MRI showed a *possible* labrum tear but the report said it was more likely due to my previous repair and that the labrum is in tact (don't know if you've ever read an MRI report but it's the worst writing possible). Doc said labrum didn't look torn but it was hard to tell from the images. For my last surgery the doc checked the labrum and said it looked perfectly fine. I haven't had any trauma since my last surgery nor do I really have any symptoms related to a labrum tear so I find it hard to believe that it is indeed torn.

Did you tear the labrum in the same shoulder again? Are they doing it arhtroscopic? I've read that if it fails the first time then they have to do an open surgery. Maybe that was just that doctor though.

If it is a tear, it would be the same shoulder as my first tear. I've had all my surgeries on my left shoulder. This operation will be an arthroscopic procedure but like my previous two, I'm sure they will make me sign something saying it could possibly be open if something is found that requires it to be. I think that is doctor dependent if an open surgery would be required. I've read (from a user on this forum) that his first surgery was done open for a torn labrum (and this was a recent surgery). I think there is other variables to consider when going for an open surgery but it's my understanding that if you re-tear a labrum an open surgery is not required.

If you have anymore questions please feel free to post them!

[JDkeystone]

Ryan, question. I'm worried I'm not doing my PT exercises correctly or I'm not progressing as fast as I could be for the type of surgery I had. Can you give me an idea of what kind of exercises you were doing after your first surgery at about 8 weeks post-op, and what your ROM was like? Did you find yourself involuntarily hiking up your trap (or lifting your entire shoulder/upper back) when doing your exercises? That's what I'm noticing I'm still doing, and I can't seem to stop (and if I force my trap down with my left hand, I can't seem to get past 90 degrees in height before the pain starts to kill).

My PT says I'm progressing "fine", but for some reason I don't believe him lol. I just have a feeling I'm doing something wrong (every other journal I've read, everyone seems to be advancing through their rehab faster than I am, but I know a lot of people are also recovering from different surgeries, which prolly accounts for this, too).