Chronic shoulder pain, finding it hard to cope
Posted , 7 users are following.
Hey everyone.
To be really honest I'm quite desperate. I'm 21 and for the past 10 months I've been struggling hard with constant pains in multiple locations around my right shoulder : above the shoulder blade in the trapezius, in the scapula, in the first , second and third ribs, under the clavicle, in the shoulder joints (forcing me to crack my shoulder constantly - basically i feel like the painful tension builds up in the joints, then lifting my arm produces a loud popping sound which relieves the tension for a few seconds). I also have neck pain and stiffness (accompanied by frequent crackings) which sometimes radiates all the way down to my right hand (and I'm probably forgetting about some other pain locations that trigger from time to time) Basically, my entire upper right side of trunk can potentially generate pain. Quite interestingly, most pains can be somewhat relieved by lifting my right arm above my head - that's how I manage to sleep with no real issue. I'd describe the intensity as a manageable 2/10 in the good days, and an hardly bearable 6-7/10 constant ache during the bad days. Issue is lately I've had entire weeks made off bad days.
All these pains got me to visit 3 different GPs, a physio, an osteopath, a chiropractor, but nothing they did provided a real, reliable relief. No matter what I do, the pain is ALWAYS there and doesn't decreases in intensity over time , quite the opposite in fact - the only things that temporarily relieve it are cracking my neck/shoulder, stretching, taking a hot bath or sleeping. Also the aches are usually better when I'm lying in bed (whether its on my back or on my achey side). I've tried various different painkillers, posture adjustments, physical therapies, which had little to no effect.
Obviously when checking about my symptoms on Google I was led to think that I may have a Pancoast Tumor (which is the only thing that somewhat matches the symptoms of experience), so I went for a chest Xray and a cervical/thoracic spine MRI. Nothing abnormal was picked up at all (beside what's thought to be an azygos lobe on my right lung, which I was told is completely benign) not even a little herniated disc that could explain why im suffering. So that's where I am right now. Nothing I try works in providing medium term relief, and the pain is slowly getting harder and harder to deal with - my muscles are getting very tense and the temporary relief provided by cracking my joints is getting shorter and shorter. Additionally, after 10 months of investigations and after paying well over a dozen visits to my regular GP, after 4 months of seeing a physiotherapist two times a week, after several visits to different osteopaths and chiropractors (luckily I live in Europe and healthcare is pretty affordable - if not free), I still have no clue about what the hell is going on in my body and whats wrong with it. I requested a shoulder xray but was denied it because "it wouldn't show anything anyway". Honestly I dont know what to do because the pain just cannot be ignored anymore, at least not recently... No matter what I do its always there and its starting to impact my life significantly. My GP told me the pain should slowly fade away, but it's not the case at all.
It might also have an impact on my professional life and future career as well, as I'm currently on my way to becoming a teacher and I do help a couple teenagers with their homework in my free time already; I used to be very patient and always in a positive mood before my health issues flared up, but now with the relentless pain I'm finding it increasingly difficult to keep my composure... And finding it a lot harder to focus as well as my shoulder constantly reminds me that it hurts and needs to be cracked to relieve some pressure.
I'm not really asking a specific question, just wanted to share my experience with intense chronic pain and eventually hear about people being in a situation similar to mine.
Have a nice day.
0 likes, 5 replies
Dooges_45m mello7
Edited
Hi Mello,
The symptoms your describing are similar to to what I was experiencing but not at the intensity that you are describing. I did the chiro, physio, osteopath, accupuncture etc but after 4 months the pain n the shoulder remained the same. Now I should say at this point that I could not sleep on my shoulder or raise it fully above my head without pain. I could almost function normally but anything I did that involved a highly raised shoulder (golf, swimming) I could not do.
I finally got a referral to a sports doctor who immediately diagnosed me with a suspected labral tear which was confirmed with an MRI.
If you havent had a MRI of your shoulder yet then get one.
My injury was a result of a slight shoulder dislocation at the gym. I didn't realise how much damage I did at the time and I didn't know what the pain was from until I was diagnosed properly and put two and two together.
So my advice, see a shoulder specialist, get an MRI and go from there.
Paul
aitarg35939 mello7
Posted
Yes, by all means you might benefit from both an orthopedic specialist and an MRI.
I lived with shoulder pain for too many years due to misdiagnosis of original injury by a GP. Tons of PT & acupuncture & a fortune spent on pain patches and liniments. Whatever is going on with you doesn't sound like my issue (completely torn rotator cuff & biceps tendon) except for the living in agony part.
I had rotator cuff surgery on 9/16, and am pleased with how things are going; not everyone says that after any kind of shoulder surgery. I don't know what might be suggested for you, but my suggestion is that GPs, European and American, are not equipped to figure out what's really going on. Chronic pain easily can lead to depression. I hope that you find some long-term relief.
zz33 mello7
Posted
An MRI's pricey and might be overkill. My doctor had me in for an ultrasound to check for a muscle tear (my frozen shoulder syndrome, took 2 years before it pretty much fully healed). This was over a decade ago and now my other shoulder's starting to act up the same way (tendonitis at first).
I'm now poking away at stretches (I've read studies where stretches and wait and see, are comparable to surgical outcomes, so of course stretches should be given a good try first). An excellent text on the topic I bought during my first frozen shoulder that I am back to following is: Jim Johnson's "Treat Your Own Shoulder Cuff", has lots of background explanation and easy to understand stretching routines.
y85411 mello7
Posted
Hi Mello,
I'm sure you are pretty miserable. I
I have almost the same symptoms as you. I'll tell you what has worked for me although the way I got my symptoms is pretty odd. Long story short, I had a UTI infection when i was 28 (I'm 29 now) took antibiotics, and everything spiraled out of control from there. From panic attacks to arrythmias to back pain. Anyway, my most notable symptom was shoulder pain as well as scapula pain. It all cracks and pops also. My neck can hurt on bad days too. For the longest time I did not do much about it, I just cried. My issue had a trigger but MDs could not tell me why. Fast forward a few months after several MRIs and XRAYS were negative, I found out my vitamin D was low as I'm sure many people are. VD helped my symptoms slightly but not enough. Fast fwd a few months and I did not feel a lot of improvement. I realized I was depleting my magnesium by taking too much vitamin D. Fast forward a few months AGAIN 10/2020 and I started feeling terrible again. Shoulder/neck/back pain like crazy. I then reevaluated my symptoms and my diet. Well I was clearly not getting enough potassium, like AT ALL. It's no wonder VD and Mg were not doing much. I needed potassium. As soon as I upped my intake of K I started feeling SOME relief from my shoulder pain. Not a lot but it was something.
Anyway, I know this may sound crazy but it has worked for me. Mineral imbalances can be really uncomfortable especially if it gets really bad and you can go years without really knowing. Since 11/1/20, I have upped my K intake quite a bit! Have not gone a whole day with out having at least 3500-4100mgs through food. IT'S HARD but worth it. Slowly but surely my left shoulder pain is going away. My right shoulder is the worst and I'm sure that one will take the longest to go away. Imagine how long you have been depriving your body of these minerals? Especially potassium (k). Not to mention that salt reduces the k in our body and given that most foods especially junk food is so bad for our bodies. Here I am 3 months later on what seems like a potassium-magnesium-calcium focused diet and my shoulders are starting to REALLY feel better. I would even go as far as saying that I hardly felt my right shoulder the last week. I could cry with joy. I started feeling a relief in my worst shoulder (right) after two months. Pain is most definitely still there but I am more comfortable now and this has been the only thing I have done that has given me noticeable results.
It took time for my body to get where it was 3 months ago. YEARS of malnutrition probably. I'm sure so many people are walking around with deficiencies. So I'm sure it will take a long time to get my health back but I have nothing else to lose. If you are like me and want to get to the root cause try balancing your minerals. I tried everything, all kinds of therapy, PT, chiro you name it. Only thing that really helped (not cured) was dry needling. Provided temporary relief. Like you, only hot baths and sleep work. Feel free to send me a message. Hope you get better! Sorry I typed so much.
MattNele mello7
Posted
Hello mello7, I had chronic shoulder pain in my left shoulder when I was younger due to a couple minor shoulder dislocations. The pain felt exactly how you described, a painful tension build up followed by a quick crackle and temporary relief that lasted only seconds. It was a miserable experience, especially when it starts to put you on edge and affect other parts of your personal and professional life like with you tutoring those students. It was all I could think about everyday. Even when trying to do a simple task such as getting changed in the morning, my shoulder would cause immense pain and discomfort. It was as if this health condition was taking over my life, so I got an MRI when I was 15 years old. They found that I had a partially torn labrum in my left shoulder that caused me pain, discomfort, and instability within the joint. Sadly, an X-ray won’t cut it since it will not show any cartilage and/or tendon damage, so maybe requesting an MRI could potentially help identify this pain you’re having. I had it surgically repaired about three weeks after my MRI and although it was a decently long recovery I would say that it was definitely worth it.
I’m 23 now and I haven't had a problem with my shoulder since the surgery. I even had another MRI for a physical for a job I applied to when I was 19, and it looked like a perfectly healthy shoulder. I hope this helps you mentally at least cope with the pain and if you do consider going the surgery route, I would gladly share my experiences pertaining to the road to recovery and answer any questions or concerns you might have.