Anterior Bankart Labrum Tear Surgery – My Recovery Log

[2Rude4MyOwnGood]

How long before you guys were sleeping normally on your back? just had surg yesterday, slept propped up on some pillows but it wasnt too bad.

I was sleeping on my back within a week or two, but wasn't sleeping comfortably for at least a month.

This is how it all started.
-I was benching 185lbs about 5 reps, prior to that also curl bar and other weights. My muscles were tight.
-I decided I was going to go for a run at the YMCA track. I was sprinting really fast, all of the sudden when I brought my left arm back to propel my self I felt something weird(possibly a tear) close to the end of the collar bone and inside shoulder. This made me stop and say uhh ohh.
-This was about 2 months ago and still my shoulder is weak in that area but not painful. I can't do what I used to be able to do. I am a running back in football and I want to be the best so I try to lift every day non-stop. I was wondering if this played a cause in my injury. Football is starting soon and I want to be in the best condition possible. Should I go to the doctor??? I already tried taking a whole week off of weights and still no results. Now I try lifting weights and my shoulder area feels weak and sore when I rep it out. Also when I try touching my right shoulder blade on my back and then come down with my shoulder I can feel a click. So now since I cant lift that much a
I am worried I will get weak and also when I lower my shoulder for a hit I am afraid that will irritate my shoulder. Please someone comment and if you can give me suggestions or advice that would be great thank you.
-------Rotator cuff tear???--------------
-------Overtraining????------------------
-------Labrum tear??---------
----------ac tear????-------
--------Please comment need an answer soon????-----------

Dude, you definitely need to see a shoulder doc about this before you consider playing football. You definitely run a high risk of making any injury much, much worse by playing a contact sport.

A week off of the gym will not do anything to heal an injury, it's going to take a lot longer than that even if it's just a strain.

You can try some of the tests along the left hand side of this website to help you figure out what's going on, but you really should see a doctor ASAP.

http://www.pthaven.com/page/show/157395-speed-s-test

[383max]

I was sleeping on my back within a week or two, but wasn't sleeping comfortably for at least a month.



Dude, you definitely need to see a shoulder doc about this before you consider playing football. You definitely run a high risk of making any injury much, much worse by playing a contact sport.

A week off of the gym will not do anything to heal an injury, it's going to take a lot longer than that even if it's just a strain.

You can try some of the tests along the left hand side of this website to help you figure out what's going on, but you really should see a doctor ASAP.

I agree. If you make this stuff worse it takes much longer to come back. It will already be a few months so dont push it to a year etc by ignoring it

[ryansmeltzer]

4 Week Update

Its officially been 4 weeks post op for me today and my shoulder feels great! I'm no longer wearing my sling except for when I go out in public where there are a lot of people. Out my sling, my shoulder feels great just hanging by my side. Theres no pain or tightness unless I move it too far. My ROM is coming back slowly but surely. I can really tell my shoulder is more stable and am confident it will heal to my liking. Im continuing all my PROM exercises twice daily. My surgeon has told me I will advance to assistive range of motion here at the 5-6 week mark. Im excited to progress more each and every day. Other than that, not too much going on. Im off to see my physical therapist and get some therapy and cardio in!

[theuptownfan]

This is how it all started.
-I was benching 185lbs about 5 reps, prior to that also curl bar and other weights. My muscles were tight.
-I decided I was going to go for a run at the YMCA track. I was sprinting really fast, all of the sudden when I brought my left arm back to propel my self I felt something weird(possibly a tear) close to the end of the collar bone and inside shoulder. This made me stop and say uhh ohh.
-This was about 2 months ago and still my shoulder is weak in that area but not painful. I can't do what I used to be able to do. I am a running back in football and I want to be the best so I try to lift every day non-stop. I was wondering if this played a cause in my injury. Football is starting soon and I want to be in the best condition possible. Should I go to the doctor??? I already tried taking a whole week off of weights and still no results. Now I try lifting weights and my shoulder area feels weak and sore when I rep it out. Also when I try touching my right shoulder blade on my back and then come down with my shoulder I can feel a click. So now since I cant lift that much a
I am worried I will get weak and also when I lower my shoulder for a hit I am afraid that will irritate my shoulder. Please someone comment and if you can give me suggestions or advice that would be great thank you.
-------Rotator cuff tear???--------------
-------Overtraining????------------------
-------Labrum tear??---------
----------ac tear????-------
--------Please comment need an answer soon????-----------

Go see an orthopedic surgeon. They are better at diagnosing injuries than regular doctors. For instance I was misdiagnosed for 9 months by a regular doctor and I knew something was very wrong, so I went to an orthopedic surgeon at a reputable bone and joint institute. I handed a CD-ROM of my MRI to the front desk, and as I'm waiting in the room, the orthopedic walks in, shakes my hand, and tells me he had a quick look at my MRI and noticed they misread my old MRI and that I had a labrum tear. These guys are no BS, they will diagnose your injury efficiently and order an MRI/Arthrogram if necessary. That will put your mind at ease

[theuptownfan]

4 Week Update

Its officially been 4 weeks post op for me today and my shoulder feels great! I'm no longer wearing my sling except for when I go out in public where there are a lot of people. Out my sling, my shoulder feels great just hanging by my side. Theres no pain or tightness unless I move it too far. My ROM is coming back slowly but surely. I can really tell my shoulder is more stable and am confident it will heal to my liking. Im continuing all my PROM exercises twice daily. My surgeon has told me I will advance to assistive range of motion here at the 5-6 week mark. Im excited to progress more each and every day. Other than that, not too much going on. Im off to see my physical therapist and get some therapy and cardio in!

Encouraging to hear man. I'm set to get the surgery tomorrow as of right now. I'm actually getting my second opinion today lol, but I've done a ton of research and know my body. I think my recovery has plateued for good and I'm not content with where I'm at. It can only get worse from here if I don't get it fixed. I accidentally popped a few aspirin the other day but luckily the docs told me that I have nothing to worry about (was given a few aspirin by my mom after a late night of drinking since I had to get up early... I was half asleep... whoops).

I'm gonna be handicapped for a while. Guess I'll start watching Game of Thrones or something. Keep me posted about your recovery since you're ahead of the curve!

[ryansmeltzer]

Encouraging to hear man. I'm set to get the surgery tomorrow as of right now. I'm actually getting my second opinion today lol, but I've done a ton of research and know my body. I think my recovery has plateued for good and I'm not content with where I'm at. It can only get worse from here if I don't get it fixed. I accidentally popped a few aspirin the other day but luckily the docs told me that I have nothing to worry about (was given a few aspirin by my mom after a late night of drinking since I had to get up early... I was half asleep... whoops).

I'm gonna be handicapped for a while. Guess I'll start watching Game of Thrones or something. Keep me posted about your recovery since you're ahead of the curve!

Yeah man you have definitely plateued. Id definitely say just get the surgery. I plateued after about 2 months. Im only 4 weeks post op but so far it hasnt been that bad at all. The worse thing is wearing a damn sling. My recovery so far has been relatively easier than other stories about labrums that youll read. BUT, my symptoms and tear were not as bad. I only had a 3 oclock tear, but due to my goals in life, I wanted to get it fixed, much like you. The first 4 weeks there wont be much progress, but stay positive and always do your therapy. I just recently got out of my sling at the 3 week 3 day mark and these past 4 days, Ive progressed more than the previous 24 days. What are your symptoms? Whatd your MRI reveal?

[ryansmeltzer]

Oh also when you're in public wearing your big bulky sling, people will stare at you like you have horns coming out of your head haha and every single person will be like omg what happened to your wrist, hand, arm, or shoulder lol

[383max]

sounds like you are rockin the recovery. keep it up

how long till you guys were able to get dressed normally? like put the arm through a shirt sleeve? currently at 4 days post-op, gonna take a shower today for the first time since surgery

[theuptownfan]

Yeah man you have definitely plateued. Id definitely say just get the surgery. I plateued after about 2 months. Im only 4 weeks post op but so far it hasnt been that bad at all. The worse thing is wearing a damn sling. My recovery so far has been relatively easier than other stories about labrums that youll read. BUT, my symptoms and tear were not as bad. I only had a 3 oclock tear, but due to my goals in life, I wanted to get it fixed, much like you. The first 4 weeks there wont be much progress, but stay positive and always do your therapy. I just recently got out of my sling at the 3 week 3 day mark and these past 4 days, Ive progressed more than the previous 24 days. What are your symptoms? Whatd your MRI reveal?

TBH I can't definitively tell you exactly what's wrong. My orthopedic told me I have a large bankart tear, but the MRI report itself goes into greater detail. I suffered a GLAD lesion (not so glad, actually), that stands for glenolabral articular disruption/damage. It's pretty much a bankart tear with cartilage issues. I have a large piece of dangling cartilage that needs to be cleaned up. There's a 99% chance that the bankart tear is significant enough in which it will need to be repaired. There's about a 1% chance that the bankart tear isn't too bad and all he'll have to do is fix up the cartilage (the labrum basically is cartilage, but I guess there's another part of cartilage that is along the labrum).

I pretty much have a confirmed labrum tear through all of the physical tests that orthopedics use. The only thing is that I don't have the instability sensations that most people with labrum tears have. It's a unique injury. I'll hear more tomorrow when the surgeon sees what's going on inside.

[theuptownfan]

Oh also when you're in public wearing your big bulky sling, people will stare at you like you have horns coming out of your head haha and every single person will be like omg what happened to your wrist, hand, arm, or shoulder lol

Looking forward to the attention lol

[2Rude4MyOwnGood]

TBH I can't definitively tell you exactly what's wrong. My orthopedic told me I have a large bankart tear, but the MRI report itself goes into greater detail. I suffered a GLAD lesion (not so glad, actually), that stands for glenolabral articular disruption/damage. It's pretty much a bankart tear with cartilage issues. I have a large piece of dangling cartilage that needs to be cleaned up. There's a 99% chance that the bankart tear is significant enough in which it will need to be repaired. There's about a 1% chance that the bankart tear isn't too bad and all he'll have to do is fix up the cartilage (the labrum basically is cartilage, but I guess there's another part of cartilage that is along the labrum).

I pretty much have a confirmed labrum tear through all of the physical tests that orthopedics use. The only thing is that I don't have the instability sensations that most people with labrum tears have. It's a unique injury. I'll hear more tomorrow when the surgeon sees what's going on inside.

I was the same way. No clicking or instability but it ended up being a bucket handle SLAP + Bankart lesion. I had positive findings on most of the tests that were part of the physical exam, but other than that a very atypical presentation.

[brahsanity]

4 Week Update

Its officially been 4 weeks post op for me today and my shoulder feels great! I'm no longer wearing my sling except for when I go out in public where there are a lot of people. Out my sling, my shoulder feels great just hanging by my side. Theres no pain or tightness unless I move it too far. My ROM is coming back slowly but surely. I can really tell my shoulder is more stable and am confident it will heal to my liking. Im continuing all my PROM exercises twice daily. My surgeon has told me I will advance to assistive range of motion here at the 5-6 week mark. Im excited to progress more each and every day. Other than that, not too much going on. Im off to see my physical therapist and get some therapy and cardio in!

Awesome to hear that you are recovering well man Hopefully we both can keep progressing in the right direction!

[383max]

How long was it until you were able to get dressed normally/without pain? Mainly just wondering about getting the arm through a shirt sleeve so I can go out in public again

[ryansmeltzer]

sounds like you are rockin the recovery. keep it up

how long till you guys were able to get dressed normally? like put the arm through a shirt sleeve? currently at 4 days post-op, gonna take a shower today for the first time since surgery

I'm really close at 4 weeks. I cant quite raise my arm directly up so I still just put my right arm through the sleeve then pull my shirt on

[ryansmeltzer]

TBH I can't definitively tell you exactly what's wrong. My orthopedic told me I have a large bankart tear, but the MRI report itself goes into greater detail. I suffered a GLAD lesion (not so glad, actually), that stands for glenolabral articular disruption/damage. It's pretty much a bankart tear with cartilage issues. I have a large piece of dangling cartilage that needs to be cleaned up. There's a 99% chance that the bankart tear is significant enough in which it will need to be repaired. There's about a 1% chance that the bankart tear isn't too bad and all he'll have to do is fix up the cartilage (the labrum basically is cartilage, but I guess there's another part of cartilage that is along the labrum).

I pretty much have a confirmed labrum tear through all of the physical tests that orthopedics use. The only thing is that I don't have the instability sensations that most people with labrum tears have. It's a unique injury. I'll hear more tomorrow when the surgeon sees what's going on inside.

Ok I got you. From what my surgeon tells me, people with bankart tears usually recover a little faster than those with bicep tendon issues being involved. Thats also good you dont have instability problems. Instability was the only symptom I had. If you dont have that problem, your surgeon may not have to tighten you up as much which is good.

[ryansmeltzer]

Awesome to hear that you are recovering well man Hopefully we both can keep progressing in the right direction!

Thanks man. Seems like you are doing pretty good as well. I have popping noises but I dont have that squeky noise you talked about it. Hopefully its nothing too bad though. Lets keep progressing!

[theuptownfan]

Ok I got you. From what my surgeon tells me, people with bankart tears usually recover a little faster than those with bicep tendon issues being involved. Thats also good you dont have instability problems. Instability was the only symptom I had. If you dont have that problem, your surgeon may not have to tighten you up as much which is good.

Operation went well according to surgeon. Sent me home with a DVD and narrated it as it unfolded. he had to tighten it because the bankart tear was large and he also had to put an anchor in the SLAP tear. cleaned out a loose fragment as well. luckily the biceps tendon "looked great." sounds like the surgery went as planned. now its up to my body to respond.

how long did your surgery take? i was put under at 9am and alert at 10:45am, so the surgery took a little under an hour i think (they initially told me it would be 30 minutes).

[383max]

Operation went well according to surgeon. Sent me home with a DVD and narrated it as it unfolded. he had to tighten it because the bankart tear was large and he also had to put an anchor in the SLAP tear. cleaned out a loose fragment as well. luckily the biceps tendon "looked great." sounds like the surgery went as planned. now its up to my body to respond.

how long did your surgery take? i was put under at 9am and alert at 10:45am, so the surgery took a little under an hour i think (they initially told me it would be 30 minutes).

That's about right, mine was like 2 hrs approx till I woke up, and they put 2 anchors in. My surgeon said it was a pretty routine procedure, no curve-balls

[theuptownfan]

That's about right, mine was like 2 hrs approx till I woke up, and they put 2 anchors in. My surgeon said it was a pretty routine procedure, no curve-balls

I see you had the surgery recently. How long did you take the pain killers for? These things are my best friend right now because the nerve block wore off and I'm definitely in pain

[ryansmeltzer]

I see you had the surgery recently. How long did you take the pain killers for? These things are my best friend right now because the nerve block wore off and I'm definitely in pain

Thats about the right time. Mine was an hour long then about 30 min to an hour to wake up from the anesthesia. I took my pain killers for only 2 days after the surgery. I didnt really have that much pain. Be careful though with strong narcotics, they can cause some side effects. I was on ********/oxycodone for 2 days and I was super tired, got bad headaches, and was constipated so just be aware. But the pain should subside quick as long as you are in your sling and not moving your shoulder.

[2Rude4MyOwnGood]

Pain killers were the only thing keeping me alive after my nerve block wore off. Words can't describe the pain that I was in. I was taking 3 different narcotics around the clock.

Most people tolerate them just fine, and to be honest, the buzz helps pass the time. You WILL become constipated though, and that can be a serious issue if you get impacted bowels. If you're able to, try to take a dump before you start your pain meds for the day. If nothing else, take a stool softener and a fiber supplement to help keep things moving. If you get really backed up, buy some Magnesium citrate from the pharmacy. It's only a few bucks and it works like a charm.

[ryansmeltzer]

Good news - today I got cleared to do my first leg workout. It consisted of leg press, leg extensions, leg curls, donkey calf raises, and walking lounges with no weight. My oh my have I missed getting a pump lol

[383max]

I see you had the surgery recently. How long did you take the pain killers for? These things are my best friend right now because the nerve block wore off and I'm definitely in pain

Honestly after the original meds via IV wore off I only took tylenol 500mg 2x a day for about 4 days. Yesterday I didnt even take any and was fine overall; some pain but manageable. I dont like taking meds due to side effects so I avoided using my norco entirely. Try tylenol first, if you need stronger then go up to your Rx meds.

[383max]

Good news - today I got cleared to do my first leg workout. It consisted of leg press, leg extensions, leg curls, donkey calf raises, and walking lounges with no weight. My oh my have I missed getting a pump lol

How do you get to your gym? Do you get a ride from someone? Cant imagine driving right now

[theuptownfan]

Pain killers were the only thing keeping me alive after my nerve block wore off. Words can't describe the pain that I was in. I was taking 3 different narcotics around the clock.

Most people tolerate them just fine, and to be honest, the buzz helps pass the time. You WILL become constipated though, and that can be a serious issue if you get impacted bowels. If you're able to, try to take a dump before you start your pain meds for the day. If nothing else, take a stool softener and a fiber supplement to help keep things moving. If you get really backed up, buy some Magnesium citrate from the pharmacy. It's only a few bucks and it works like a charm.

Thanks for the tips. I was concerned about that maybe I should cut back on how much I eat before I continue to take these things like its candy. I've already taken about 8 norco in a 16 hour span

[ryansmeltzer]

How do you get to your gym? Do you get a ride from someone? Cant imagine driving right now

I drive by myself. I didnt drive at all for the first week post op, but yea its tough driving with only one arm, especially with my left arm. But its alot easier now that Im out of the sling. At first its really hard turning the key in the ignition with your left arm but Im used to it now.

[theuptownfan]

Good news - today I got cleared to do my first leg workout. It consisted of leg press, leg extensions, leg curls, donkey calf raises, and walking lounges with no weight. My oh my have I missed getting a pump lol

Nice. I plan on working out my legs and abs when I'm cleared for that.

[2Rude4MyOwnGood]

Thanks for the tips. I was concerned about that maybe I should cut back on how much I eat before I continue to take these things like its candy. I've already taken about 8 norco in a 16 hour span

No need to cut your food intake, your body needs nutrients right now anyway. Just try to get a morning dump in after breakfast, before you start with the pain meds. It's ok to be constipated but you just want to make sure that you're moving at least some stool each day. It's just very difficult once you've taken a narcotic. After a few days of no shtting, you'll be in a world of hurt.

Take some Metamucil with your breakfast and let that work through ya. The mag citrate is an intense laxative and will def clear you out, it's just better to not let it reach that point.

[theuptownfan]

No need to cut your food intake, your body needs nutrients right now anyway. Just try to get a morning dump in after breakfast, before you start with the pain meds. It's ok to be constipated but you just want to make sure that you're moving at least some stool each day. It's just very difficult once you've taken a narcotic. After a few days of no shtting, you'll be in a world of hurt.

Take some Metamucil with your breakfast and let that work through ya. The mag citrate is an intense laxative and will def clear you out, it's just better to not let it reach that point.

I ordered some mag citrate for purposes other than a laxative effect and took 400 mg hopefully this does the trick

[ryansmeltzer]

I ordered some mag citrate for purposes other than a laxative effect and took 400 mg hopefully this does the trick

Yes stay ahead on your bowel movements!! I didnt lol and paid the price and went on dulcolax for like a week. Not fun. Honestly if I could go back, I wouldnt even of taken any narotics at all. I didnt need them.