Muscle wastage?

Hi Charlotte,

?I can relate to the "muscle weakness" part of your post.  I had FS for 6 months, the first couple of them being instense pain.  Then it went into the Frozen stage with no discomfort unless the arm was moved beyond the ROM allowed.  WHICH WAS CLOSE TO NOTHING!  I described it to my ortho doc as "I feel like my arm has shrunk" because the muscle had deteriorated so much.  I was explained that muscle atrophy can set in within weeks.  But it was useless trying to build any of that back up because I had no range of motion.  I finally had a MUA in late April, followed by a lot of PT.  Even though the MUA got the range of motion back, I still had intense therapy to keep that ROM there because it has a tendancy to freeze back up if you don't keep it moving.  Just this last 2 weeks, I was cleared for "strength building" now that I have almost all ROM back.  I was SHOCKED at how weak this arm is.  I can now raise my arm over my head but cannot keep it there for more than a few seconds without having to use my other hand to hold it up.  There is just NO muscle strength.  So now my journey continues, starting on the road to rebuilding strength.  

?

?I did have a lot of concern this past 6 weeks of the instense "muscle pain" while working with the PT.  The shoulder discomfort doesn't seem to be as bad as the muscle pain I feel between the shoulder and the elbow.  The therapist said that is to be expected because the muscles/tissues/tendons have not been in use for 6 months.  They said with rebuilding the muscle, the discomfort should subside.  It hasn't yet, but I also have gotten a little lazy the last couple of weeks with my exercises. 

?I am hopeful that I am still on a successful road to recovery!  It's a long process but each week seems to get better!

Charlotte I can sympathize with you.  This is my second time with a frozen shoulder but with the opposite arm.  I can honestly say that I do not remember the muscles in my arm hurting like they do now.  My ortho told me I had a frozen shoulder and this has been going on for 9 months now.  Yes my arm at the shoulder joint is very stiff.  I cannot raise my arm up over my head or behind my back.  The muscles in my upper arm actually hurt.  It is my deltoid muscle. That is the muscle you would get an injection in if you were to need some type of injection.  I will say that yesterday I was at my daughter in law's house and she works with a chiropractor that believes in "all natural." She gave me some oil that is supposed be similar to I would say Icy Hot, and for the first time in a long time, I finally got a some relief.  If I rub my deltoid area, it feel like knots or the feel of  small masses.  I believe it is because it is tense and  it is a constant tenseness.  I have been taking Ibuprofen and with the oils yesterday, it is the best it has been in months!!!  I also like you have been using my arm but it comes with a price, PAIN!!!!  Especially with certain movements, applying pressure to an object or lifting anything with weight.  My saving grace is that I have had this before and know that when the shoulder finally thaws, all movement and muscle tone returns!  This is just my experience.  I also had a steroid injection this time around not from the same MD I saw the last time but it was not directly into the affected area so I did not get any relief  from the injection!  Just a cost to my pocketbook!  Best of luck to you!  I will be glad to share or answer any questions you may have related to my own experience. If you have read through others experince the treatment methods are very varied.  I did nothing and it resolved on its own but approx. 18 months to get full ROM.  Good luck!!

?Jana

Hi Charlotte,

I'm now at the very tail end of my right frozen shoulder. I have a bicycle injury last September 2016, shoulder pain through out October/November, completely frozen Dec to February, complete r.o.m. I only feel aches when I have a busy day doing a bunch of chores. I went to my p.t. and did the recommended exercise, watched exercises on you tube, went to a neurokinesiologist, sat in hot pool saunas while stretching, and acupuncture plus massage which I think really helped. I'm a bus driver so I was unable to work but I still drove my car. I don't recommend using one arm unless you are comfortable but just so everything you can to not hurt yourself while pulling the handbrake including turning and using your good arm, leaning the seat back so you have ample space if need additional leverage. I feel really lucky to recover from this in just a matter of months. I did experience some muscle loss, I do weights as much as I can. I bought the 2lb weights that you can usually get for cheap at Ross or a few extra cost at Walmart. I also used? exercise bands to strengthen my arms since I can't really handle that much weight. There's different weights on these bands so just pick a thin one or is your going to p.t. they should have these. Foam rollers are also great to massage your subscapular muscles. If you lie on your side arm streched out foam roller underneath and roll your arm underneath slowly. If this is too much you can also lie on a baseball behind your back just a few inches below your shoulders and gently press your back against it. There are plenty of videos on subscapular release which helps f.s. be careful in doing any exercise always start out slowly. Good luck to you!