Diagnosed with Frozen Shoulder a few months ago..

It's sounds like your description is dead on! I having been doing it since June although my is from shoulder surgery I seem to be having the same timeline as everyone else! I litterally was at the end of my rope at my last dr apt! She recommended surgery and I told her that I would schedule surgery for nov 30 which would put me at the 6 month time frame! About 3 weeks after that apt something changed and I woke up with less pain! I shot up in bed and was like something is different and sure enough since that morning my pain has been less! I did quit pt when I saw my dr and I think the rest def helped! But it could just be timing hard to say but it was pretty much at the 4 month mark when the pain dropped! It's not gone but it's livable! So I have 2 months till surgery! So I will decide whether or not to ride it out! It's hard to think about going back in pain after just getting out of it! Hold on the pain will decrease but it sure is hard to stay positive during that 1 st period! Pain pills, hot and cold packs, you can do it!

I had frozen shoulder in both of my shoulders, 2 years apart.  I had surgery in my left shoulder to repair a torn labrum and remove some scar tissue created by the frozen shoulder.  The recovery included intensely painful physical therapy which took about a year.  When I developed frozen shoulder in my right shoulder 2 years later, I opted to NOT do physical therapy, and do the exercises I learned from the first FS but, without forcing the range of motion.  The recover took about a year for the right shoulder.  I cannot tolerate pain pills and function so I opted for more natural pain relief remedies which included massage and accupuncture several times per week.  Warm baths, icing, analgesic creams, ibuprophen, tylenol, avoiding any kind of sudden movement or tensing of the body.  

Best of luck, it will get better, I promise.

Reading everybody's responses I would definitely say I'm in the right place.  FS sucks!!!  I like to workout a little too much, my body told me so in May of this year when I ripped my chest muscle off the bone (pectoralis major avulsion), I had surgical reattachment in May and since then, FS from being in the sling.  I am encroaching on the 5 month mark of FS and have been going to PT 3 times a week, I took a cortisone shot once in the shoulder.....did absolutely nothing, I don't take pain medications I've never liked them.  PT has been a waste of time for me as well.  All I did was reach a sticking point in therapy and constant pain.  A few weeks ago I decided to be more aggressive and get back to more of my normal routine with exercising so started more of a bodybuilder workout and kickboxing and rather quickly I saw better improvements in a short period of time and better range of motion.  I'm seeing my doctor this week to discuss MUA, I'm really on the fence about doing it I see the positives and negatives of this procedure and being in the medical field doesn't help at all, I think it just adds to the complexity of the decision for me. 

The more I've researched FS the more I find there is not an easy solution to it, outside of chopping off your arm, which for some reason, my doctor seems to be against that idea.  From personal experience I've found by increasing my exercises doing weights, running, kickboxing it incorporates alot of rotator cuff movement and strengthening along with stretching everyday I find the pain is less and ROM has increased as opposed to doing less and just going to PT I was getting worse.  Either way I'm going to be in pain so decided to keep it active and have less pain is the way to go for me.  I've also started more of a bodybuilder diet with heavy increase in amino acids like l-glutamine to help with repair and incorporating anti-inflammatory diet....3 weeks later since starting....I'm definitely in a much better condition mentally, emotionally and physically along with less pain.

I know the mental and emotional aspect of FS is very taxing.  You try to explain it to friends and family and of course they just don't understand it unless they have been through it.  It wears you out quite a bit to be in pain everyday.  When I feel it starts to get to me emotionally I just tell myself "this pain isn't going to last forever I will get through this", then I shift my attention to something more important like torturing my Yorkie or beating up my girlfriend.  My girlfriend has been great to me during this time, she's even offered to do the MUA for me since she's seen a youtube video on it, so she feels confident she can perform it for me plus the constant threat of punching me in the shoulder.  My friends and family are all a bunch of comedians so keeping humor also helps! 

Bottom line is there is no quick and easy fix that I've found.  Unfortunately we have to travel down this path.  Since we are all different we don't know what will be best for us.  I've seen some people go through MUA or MUA plus surgery and have great success, I've seen other's do the same and have more pain and also need repeat procedures.  Some people do nothing and it resolves in less than a year for others it goes on for over 2 years.  I can't control those variables but what I can control is how I deal with it emotionally. 

As patients we want control in our lives, over our health and to know we are doing everything we possibly can to benefit us and overcome our afflictions, hence arriving at message boards seeking answers.  I feel good knowing I'm doing the best I can and understand this is just something that takes time and won't go on forever.  I'm often reminded of something I read once. 

What's stronger? A blade of grass or a tree?  During a heavy storm the tree does not bend to the forces of nature so it can be ripped out of the ground and toppled but grass just simply blows with the wind instead of fighting against it.  So you can either fight against the pain, become depressed, "this isn't fair", "I'm sick of this" or you can just go with it, not wear yourself out emotionally, tell yourself this is just a moment in time it won't last forever and find something to take your mind off of it.  Go for a walk, run, get busy doing some hobby, get lost in a good movie or book, research ways to improve your day. 

It's funny I've told my patients in the ER stuff like this for years and my bs actually works since I'm telling myself the same things now!  Good luck to all going through this!

Hot and cold packs 20mins with cold 20mins with hot. A warming bean bag that can be heated in microwave is very comforting at night time, sleep with pillow under frozen arm shoulder to support it, see a physio for gentle excercise to keep the muscles working. take magnesium this is good for the muscles.  It will be 3 months pain, 3 months freezing and 3months thawing, in some cases a lot longer.  there maybe operations and all kinds of treatments, with little success and the shoulder will freeze up again. check with doctor for diabetes, frozen should can be symptom of diabetics, also hypothryrodism.  If from injury, than it will take time, rest and take care of yourself.  also check there is no swelling if you have a temperature with it see your doctor as once as this can be a sign of sepsis. also have read that woman in their fifties get FS due to menopause, lack of estrogen, which oils the joints. laser treatment can help a osteopaths can offer this treatment and neil asher manipulation.

I hope this helps, I have  FS for nearly 8 months, and have researchedon the internet.  I am now in phase of frozen, in my right and partially in my left, my is from injury, have spent a lot of money on therapy with some results mostly with the osteopath, do not over work your arm and try not to exert it in any way, be gentle and let it heal.  If you can go to swimming pool the coolness of the water will relieve the pain, the water will support the arm, you can do some gentle stretches and excercise.

Hi Queen, I think you posted previously and that trauma hurt your shoulder and you were a twenty something. So you don't have a frozen shoulder.  With the way you describe the continuous pain perhaps you should have a full medical just in case.