Ask the chiropractor anything about

[Alpha Zulu]

I have about a year-long history with a painful right shoulder...

The shoulder first started hurting in Jan. 2007 while doing bench press and eventually began hurting also while doing flies and both front and lateral raises. I took several weeks off and then returned to lifting but was still in pain.

I went to the ortho to get it looked at last March (2007). He took some x-rays and said that it looked like the space between the clavicle and I forget what looked narrow. I followed this up with an MRI. The doc said the MRI came back normal, whatever that means, because obviously something is not normal. I think he was referring to no labral tears, which I tend to agree with because the shoulder has never felt unstable or like it would pop out.

So the doctor said he believed I had some imbalances in the rotator cuff that were causing inflammation (is guess this is impingement, but I am not sure and I do not specificially recall him using that word) and recommended a few more weeks off and some self-guided therapy work which mostly consisted of interal rotations, external rotations, anteversion, abduction, and retroversion with Thera-bands.

I did that 2-3x per week from July through December and noticed some improvement, but not full recovery so I went back to the doctor. He sent me to a physical therapist.

So from February until now I have been doing rehab work 3x per week. They gave me the same exercises as above but also included variant lying facedown on a bench for the raises, walk-outs and push-ups from a Swiss ball, circles on a against the wall with a light medicine ball etc... They also have me doing diagonals in four planes with the band (low to high inward, low to high outward, and the same for high to low). I myself have added OH shrugs, scapula pushups and DB presses (arms stay straight, only shoulder blades move). I should not that the low-to-high inward diagonal caused some discomfort once my hand reach about head level.

All of this seems to be working. I can do flies and crossovers in the 12 rep range with only a slight amount of discomfort. There is not pain during the set, but sometimes when I finish the areas of the front and medial delts burn or ache for a few minutes.

What is strange is that I can press overhead as heavy as I want but as I move more towards flat presses, the pain gets worse - moderate on incline, noticeably worse on flat bench - but I can do dips with only a slight amount of discomfort if I really push for 12 reps (haven't tried anything lower reps).

Barbells hurt more than dumbbells when pressing but only when I let my elbows "pinch" in towards my body -- I have always been a triceps presser -- which I guess puts pressure on the shoulder joint. It feels OK (not fine) when my elbows are out at about 45 degrees from the body, but if I tuck them in, the pain starts immediately. This can't really happen with dumbbells so that's why it doesn't hurt on them as much (although I will still get the burning/aching pain after the set is done sometimes).

Finally, I should point out that in day-to-day activities, I don't have any pain. But if I push my thumb into my front delt and the area between the front delt and the medial delt, I can cause a lot of sharp pain.

I guess I am just wondering if this sounds like impingement or something else? Will it likely go away if I continue my current therapy regimen (also stretching all those muscles several times a week as well)?

Is there anything else I should try, any exercises you might recommend? I have been looking into ART and deep tissue massage and think that might be another strong option.

I was on my way to starting powerlifting meets as all this happened and I would give anything to be able to bench heavy again (also have a bulged disk at L5-S1 that needs to heal as well). Any help getting me back on the bench using heavy weights would be much appreciated.

[oziem]

I was deadlifting a while ago and my back made 2 loud crunching noises, like pops while halfway into my rep. I felt stuck for a few seconds and then I felt the pain. It was killing me when I tried to bend over. For about a month I couldn't sit down for too long because my back would tighten up. I took a few weeks off from lifting and have barely started working out my back again. The thing is, my right lower back still bothers me a bit, I feel a bit of pain run down my lower back down my right but cheek. I'm thinking it may be my SI joint. I'm pretty familiar with anatomy since i'm currently a student in radiography, what do you think it may be?

I am thinking it is a disc. A chiropractic exam will tell and a chiropractor should be able to fix it.
When you get a lateral and A-P film of the area send me the image and I will show you the problem on the film, once it is found by directly examining your body with palpation and temperature thermography first.

[oziem]

when i change direction, or shift my legs around i feel my hips popping around,
i actually squatted today, and i was unsure if i should or not
but i did it already, but how should i go about dealing with this?
doctors?
not doing any leg work?
what about cardio?
thanks in advance

the exercise is probably ok. The clicking is a compensation to a problem (subluxation) elsewhere. The lumbar spine.
You may consult with a chiropractor found in a directory below...

[oziem]

Thanks for the response! Could you elaborate a little bit more? I don't think it's an inflamed nerve because I don't feel any pain whatsoever.. just grinding and popping in my left jaw in the mornings. Also, if it was inflamed wouldn't it go away with adequate rest? Maybe I'm making too big a deal of it, it's just looks like my right jaw is bigger than my left lol.

The alveolar nerve is a nerve that may not exhibit noteable pain when impinged. Actually only 1/3 of nerve fibers have anything to do with pain!
You could have visceral fibers impinged that can make you sick or die without pain. That explains how so many diseases go undetected.
That is the value of chiropractic exams. A problem may be found and corrected regardless of symptoms, which safeguards your health and possibly prevents disaster.

[oziem]

I have about a year-long history with a painful right shoulder...

The shoulder first started hurting in Jan. 2007 while doing bench press and eventually began hurting also while doing flies and both front and lateral raises. I took several weeks off and then returned to lifting but was still in pain.

I went to the ortho to get it looked at last March (2007). He took some x-rays and said that it looked like the space between the clavicle and I forget what looked narrow. I followed this up with an MRI. The doc said the MRI came back normal, whatever that means, because obviously something is not normal. I think he was referring to no labral tears, which I tend to agree with because the shoulder has never felt unstable or like it would pop out.

So the doctor said he believed I had some imbalances in the rotator cuff that were causing inflammation (is guess this is impingement, but I am not sure and I do not specificially recall him using that word) and recommended a few more weeks off and some self-guided therapy work which mostly consisted of interal rotations, external rotations, anteversion, abduction, and retroversion with Thera-bands.

I did that 2-3x per week from July through December and noticed some improvement, but not full recovery so I went back to the doctor. He sent me to a physical therapist.

So from February until now I have been doing rehab work 3x per week. They gave me the same exercises as above but also included variant lying facedown on a bench for the raises, walk-outs and push-ups from a Swiss ball, circles on a against the wall with a light medicine ball etc... They also have me doing diagonals in four planes with the band (low to high inward, low to high outward, and the same for high to low). I myself have added OH shrugs, scapula pushups and DB presses (arms stay straight, only shoulder blades move). I should not that the low-to-high inward diagonal caused some discomfort once my hand reach about head level.

All of this seems to be working. I can do flies and crossovers in the 12 rep range with only a slight amount of discomfort. There is not pain during the set, but sometimes when I finish the areas of the front and medial delts burn or ache for a few minutes.

What is strange is that I can press overhead as heavy as I want but as I move more towards flat presses, the pain gets worse - moderate on incline, noticeably worse on flat bench - but I can do dips with only a slight amount of discomfort if I really push for 12 reps (haven't tried anything lower reps).

Barbells hurt more than dumbbells when pressing but only when I let my elbows "pinch" in towards my body -- I have always been a triceps presser -- which I guess puts pressure on the shoulder joint. It feels OK (not fine) when my elbows are out at about 45 degrees from the body, but if I tuck them in, the pain starts immediately. This can't really happen with dumbbells so that's why it doesn't hurt on them as much (although I will still get the burning/aching pain after the set is done sometimes).

Finally, I should point out that in day-to-day activities, I don't have any pain. But if I push my thumb into my front delt and the area between the front delt and the medial delt, I can cause a lot of sharp pain.

I guess I am just wondering if this sounds like impingement or something else? Will it likely go away if I continue my current therapy regimen (also stretching all those muscles several times a week as well)?

Is there anything else I should try, any exercises you might recommend? I have been looking into ART and deep tissue massage and think that might be another strong option.

I was on my way to starting powerlifting meets as all this happened and I would give anything to be able to bench heavy again (also have a bulged disk at L5-S1 that needs to heal as well). Any help getting me back on the bench using heavy weights would be much appreciated.

My take and I am likely right on this: A cervico-thoracic nerve is impinged the pain is referred.
ART may help you well. I advocate the Gonstead method.

[dangerbird]

hi i have just had surgery to free up a frozen shoulder and its still stiff as heck 6 months after, will a chiropractor be able to deal with the stiffness?

[stepup.stepout]

Ive been to the chiropractor a couple of times now. The first couple of times helped my back greatly. Lately, nothing has been working. I have this dull aching pain in my lower and mid back. Ive tried a better posture, laying in bed, icing it, heating it, taking aspirin/Bayer, nothings been working. Laying in bed or on a couch actually makes it worse. it seems the only way it doesnt ache is when Im laying on a hard surface or on the floor. What might be the problem?

[oziem]

hi i have just had surgery to free up a frozen shoulder and its still stiff as heck 6 months after, will a chiropractor be able to deal with the stiffness?

It has been so in my experience. Give a Gonstead doc some time to get it right for you. BTW. Frozen shoulder is a bursitis that is complicated. It does take time. The shoulder joint itself is corrected in this way:
The sacrum and T3 (near always though it could be as high as C7) must be adjusted. Then the scapula. Once you can move the arm with active assistance pulley raises, then the GH may be adjusted.
Toughest cases, but I have helped all of them in my practice.
It does take TIME.
6 weeks to 3 months for a good doc and good compliant patient. It could take a year though.

It is ALWAYS best to not mess with a shoulder injury. Watch that flat bench!
Never sleep with an outstretched arm. Never sleep with your arm under your head.

[oziem]

Ive been to the chiropractor a couple of times now. The first couple of times helped my back greatly. Lately, nothing has been working. I have this dull aching pain in my lower and mid back. Ive tried a better posture, laying in bed, icing it, heating it, taking aspirin/Bayer, nothings been working. Laying in bed or on a couch actually makes it worse. it seems the only way it doesnt ache is when Im laying on a hard surface or on the floor. What might be the problem?

Nee more details. Couple of times? How long?
Consult with your doc.
If you have had just a few visits you may have a second problem needing fixing. You may just need more rest for recovery.

[stepup.stepout]

Nee more details. Couple of times? How long?
Consult with your doc.
If you have had just a few visits you may have a second problem needing fixing. You may just need more rest for recovery.

Ive seen the chiropractor about 5 or 6 times.

[oziem]

Ive seen the chiropractor about 5 or 6 times.

Have a talk with the doc. Feel free to PM me with any further question.

[ben3133]

Hi Dr. Oziem,

This is a wonderful resource, thank you for doing this.

I have had a numb pinkie and ring finger in my left arm for over a week now. It started after a typical, heavy shoulder day. I believe I have snapping tricep and ulnar nerve dislocation across the epicondyle upon flexion - its visible.

I searched this thread already and read a few similar situations, but I did not see any that specifically mentioned this combination of issues.

I have stopped any push exercises and I'm trying to avoid flexing my elbow, especially during sleep. My doc prescribed me with naproxen for the inflammation and told me to come back and see an ortho if the numbness is not gone in the next few weeks.

My question is whether this problem will ever go away given the snapping tricep. I believe it has been snapping for years or at least for periods of time in the past, but had not caused any ulnar nerve irritation until now (which is its own mystery). Will this go away if I stop lifting for some time, ice it, take naproxen, and stretch like you have recommeded others do, or is my case different? Will the nerve be irritated as soon as I start lifting again and the tri starts snapping? I read somewhere that the tricep is what drags the nerve across, in which case I'm not understanding how this will ever go away until the tricep stop snapping (surgery). Please help, I have spent hours researching this to no avail.

Thank you so much.

you need rest from overtraining and adjustment will help. 95% sure you have a T2 disc problem.

Please elaborate? (regarding T2)

[scott215]

I went to a chiropractor today for lower back pain I've been experiencing for months now. The pain feels like it is right above my glutes, near the sacrum. The x-rays showed that my neck is missing the proper curve, she said that my head is about 1.5" too far forward and one of the disks at the bottom of the neck was thinner than the other cervical disks. When we viewed the front x-ray, you could see that my spine was sort of twisting, the vertebral processes weren't in a straight line, they sort of twisted to the side and then went back to straight. I've been having a strong feeling of imbalance in my neck for a long time, always moving my head side to side, and twisting it, trying to get something to crack. How common is this and could it be linked to the lower back pain I'm feeling? The lower back x-ray looked completely fine.

[brianrex]

I've been to both my MD and chiro and the diagnosis seems to be that I somehow strained my SI joint during a leg workout about two weeks ago. I don't recall actually doing anything and continued with my workout without incident. I only realized that there was a problem when I woke up the next morning a bit sore. The soreness became progressively worse over the next few days, leading me to seek help. I've had a number of adjustments by my chiro and was prescribed a 5-day course of steroidal anti-inflammatories and muscle relaxers (for some lumbar spasms) by my MD. The issue is much more localized now, I have a much greater range of mobility, and things definitely feel better, although the soreness is still present in the tailbone area -- particularly when I first stand up from sitting on a soft surface.

My question is this: I'm climbing the walls and haven't been in the gym in about two weeks. A week ago, my MD told me I should stay out of the gym for about a week (which ends tomorrow). Do you have any recommendations about exercises that are good for my condition (as well as excersises to avoid) as I try to ease back into a reasonable workout schedule? Thanks iln advance!

[oziem]

Please elaborate? (regarding T2)

T2 is the vertebral disc level of a sprain/herniated disc most commonly associated with this problem. A simple adjustment should begin the process.

[oziem]

I went to a chiropractor today for lower back pain I've been experiencing for months now. The pain feels like it is right above my glutes, near the sacrum. The x-rays showed that my neck is missing the proper curve, she said that my head is about 1.5" too far forward and one of the disks at the bottom of the neck was thinner than the other cervical disks. When we viewed the front x-ray, you could see that my spine was sort of twisting, the vertebral processes weren't in a straight line, they sort of twisted to the side and then went back to straight. I've been having a strong feeling of imbalance in my neck for a long time, always moving my head side to side, and twisting it, trying to get something to crack. How common is this and could it be linked to the lower back pain I'm feeling? The lower back x-ray looked completely fine.

Very common. Yes the neck could affect the lower back but more likely the other way around or you have several issues to correct.

[oziem]

I've been to both my MD and chiro and the diagnosis seems to be that I somehow strained my SI joint during a leg workout about two weeks ago. I don't recall actually doing anything and continued with my workout without incident. I only realized that there was a problem when I woke up the next morning a bit sore. The soreness became progressively worse over the next few days, leading me to seek help. I've had a number of adjustments by my chiro and was prescribed a 5-day course of steroidal anti-inflammatories and muscle relaxers (for some lumbar spasms) by my MD. The issue is much more localized now, I have a much greater range of mobility, and things definitely feel better, although the soreness is still present in the tailbone area -- particularly when I first stand up from sitting on a soft surface.

My question is this: I'm climbing the walls and haven't been in the gym in about two weeks. A week ago, my MD told me I should stay out of the gym for about a week (which ends tomorrow). Do you have any recommendations about exercises that are good for my condition (as well as excersises to avoid) as I try to ease back into a reasonable workout schedule? Thanks iln advance!

The absolute best exercise for this and any other inflammatory condition is...

Long stride walking. Period.
If that is too boring do some stairs or hills.

[oziem]

It has been a great privilege and pleasure folks. I thank you.

If you need more information please search key words in the thread using my username for posts--- OZIEM

If you need a chiropractor and who doesn't? Please look them up in the directories listed below in my sig.

If you need to reach me directly. Do not PM me. Send an email to
gonsteadnc@yahoo.com

Love and peace friends.
God bless you all.

O

[ben3133]

T2 is the vertebral disc level of a sprain/herniated disc most commonly associated with this problem. A simple adjustment should begin the process.

Sorry I should have been clearer in what I was asking. How does T2 cause the subluxing ulnar nerve/tendon of medial head of triceps?

[DarkWolfa]

Hello Dr. Oziem!
Very Good Thread GREETS!
I think I have shoulder subluxation!
The doctors in my country just don't carry because It affect only the bodybuilding side!

My Symptoms are:
1.I'm pain free - but I know it is possible with the subluxation
2.My Shoulder "Click" - on some movements like Bench Press,over head Exercises,and especially hard "click" - like my shoulder will crash when I perform one Rotator Cuff Exercise (Please See First 3 Pictures for Visual Idea)

3.I can't feel my right side and rear delts (Muscles not response or very very hard response on Side Lateral Raises,and Rear Delt Raises) - I know from one article on my native language (Bulgarian) this can be from long-winded (PROLIX) nerves from outer side - right under upper part of the (right) shoulder! I know the nerves must recover.IS this TRUE?

4.By the way I feel Side Lateral Raises - "in Front Delt" instead "Side Delts" - ONLY FOR RIGHT SHOULDER!LEFT IS OK!
Same Situation with Rear Delts - I feel left side delt, but I feel as well right FRONT DELT on place of rear delt!
Can it be effect from minor dislocation?

5.I will attach the pictures (see pictures "difference.jpg" and " 27032008(007).jpg ") - My shoulders looks difference in "Back Double Biceps Pose and IN Contracted Side Lateral Position (Uppest part of the movement)!
I HAVE PROBLEMS ONLY WITH MY RIGHT SHOULDER (On the Pictures Side WITHOUT red/white marker on the forearm is My Right SIDE)

WHAT TREATMENT I NEED?
CAN I FIX PROBLEM AND PUT BACK ON PLACE MY RIGHT SHOULDER ONLY WITH ROTATOR CUFF and SCAPULA EXERCISES? Can Stronger rotator cuff muscles put back my shoulder and keep him on right place all the time?

I'm from Bulgaria and My English is Bad,but I hope you understand me doc!

THANK YOU!