Being an older dad with young kids I do try fairly hard to be fit, active and in shape so that I can keep up with the kids as they grow uo. I also enjoy a game of golf occasionally, a good walk ruined as they say. I'm not a briiliant player as I never get to play as often as I would like but I do like a round every now and again, so was really annoyed when I developed a shoulder problem that stopped me playing.
Being a slightly older dad with young kids I do try fairly hard to try to stay fit, active and in shape so that I can keep up with my kids as they grow uo. I also enjoy a game of golf, a good walk ruined as they say. I'm not a great player as I am never able to play as frequently as I would like but I do enjoy it, so was really annoyed when I developed a shoulder injury that made me stop playing.
It was more complicated than that. The shoulder injury turned out to be nothing less than a torn rotator cuff which really stopped me from doing any form of activity. It was very painfull when I ran or walked, even though I am right handed, any movement caused serious pain in my left shoulder. If I forgot for a moment and made a sudden movement I could end up crying with pain. I can remember exactly when I did it. I was being my usual impatient self and trying to lift some furniture on my own rather than waiting for help, felt something go in my shoulder and that was that. Shoulder messed up| The next day I woke up with shoulder pain and it just got worse with each passing day.
I couldn't reach much above shoulder height, reaching for anything was impossible. I couldn't reach behind me. I couldn't sleep because I couldn't get comfortable and doing anything with the kids was impossible. Golf was out of the question. So it was off to the doctor who sent me to a shoulder specialist. He diagnosed a torn rotator cuffand confirmed it with an MRI scan. The shoulder joint is a basic ball and socket joint. Unlike the hip, the socket is made up of cartilage rather than bone and doesn't grip the bone of the arm. Instead, a group of four muscles help to hold the arm in place and stabilise the shoulder joint. These form the rotator cuff. What I had done was tear one of these muscles which had caused. Because all the muscles are so close together any inflammation can cause pressure and pain.
The muscle that I had torn is called the supraspinatus. I had manged to tear a tendon that runs under my clavicle or collar bone and the end of my scapula or shoulder blade. Because it became inflammed, each time that I moved in a certain wayit got pinched or impingedpinched and was aggravated. I was recommended for surgery to cut away part of my collar bone to release the impinged tendon and allow it to heal without any more damage. It all sounded very simple but I was a bit worried.
Being in the UK we are used to waiting for surgery so I took the time to do some research on the subject while waiting for my surgery date. Having studied my injury extensively I finally discovered that most rotator cuff problems are cured with physical therapy .Even a torn rotator cuff can be solved in this way, as long as it is only a partial tear. You start off by resting the joint to allow the inflammation to calm down, treating it with anti-inflammatory drugs like Ibuprofen and using ice packs. Once the inflammation and pain have calmed down you can start gentle exercises aimed at strengthening the rotator cuff muscles
Within six weeks my shoulder was pain free and the movement had returned to near normal. A few more weeks saw me return to what feels like one hundred percent fitness. I have put off the surgery and will probably be cancelling it altogether if I remain pain free.
In the meantime I am back playing golf, still losing but hey, I do have a bad shoulder!
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