Rotator Cuff Surgery-4 weeks post-op

I agree that this is a great thread. Very comforting. I am just past 7 months and the shoulder is a little achy but coming along. The problem seems to be my back muscles below. I favor the shoulder and keep spasming the back muscle. It was sensitive anyway from years of improperly working at a desk and keyboard. I don't know if I should back off of my excercises for a bit and let the back heal or keep at it and hope for the best. When my back spasms I do need pain meds. The only good thing about these spasms is they make the shoulder pain feel like a paper cut! Any thoughts? This is a very difficult surgery and you must be careful.

do you swim?

I can but I don't. Do you think that would help?

Hi Christine,

Please, please don't do anything that your doc or PT has not expressly told you to do. Swimming is an over head exercise and has the potential to ruin what you gained, or even re-tare the tendon.

I'm on my third, because I was over zealous, and watching others heal faster than me convinced me I could do what they did.... I'm paying the price now.

That's how I hurt my back. You're right I'm not doing this again. Protecting my shoulder and using my already stressed out back is how this happens. I think I'll do the new stretches and wait a few days for the weights. I'm in California and as you can see from the news we're not having much winter yet so those irresistible weeds are still out there. It's hard to garden without using your shoulder. But I try. I'll get some blinders so I can ignore them. Remember to follow your own advice! I'm sorry for what you went thru. Thanks for your thoughts!

My rt rotator cuff surgery was Jan 30 2018, not even 2 weeks. This mobilizer thing is SO uncomfortable &  I haven’t had a full nights sleep since surgery. Reading these posts make me want to cry.  I had a90% tear & calcium deposit growing from an injury 10 years ago

Reinjured In Nov, had no choice but to repair. Luckily  I have a top orthopedic Dr in my area. But hearing about the pain is freaking me out!  I cry all the time.

It does get better. It just seems like it won't. 2 weeks isn't very long. As you can read from these postsmost of us have improved. It just seems to take forever. I had no idea. I thought it would be like having a tooth pulled. Surprise! But it does heal. Sleep when you can and don't be afraid of an occasional pain med. Listen to Henpen and do your exercises as best you can. I couldn't even straighten my arm after 4 weeks in immobilizer . I'm 9 months. Much much better. Complain all you want that's why we're here.

Oh Mia....I understand!  I had to wear the immobilizer for 4 weeks, and you can tell people how awful it is, but unless they walk that mile in your shoes they just can’t understand what it’s like.  And yessss....the lack of sleep!   I’m a stomach sleeper WITH an arm over my head, so it was the absolute pits!!!  I dreaded nighttime, knowing I’d be up almost all night.  It was a lonely thing to go through....big time!  I had a complete rotator cuff tear and a bicep tear, had the surgery last June, only had 5 PT appointments before moving to Phoenix, and am just now going to start PT up again.  

I’ve had 6 surgeries in the past 7 years, one being breast cancer, so I’ve been through the ringer.  And I was the one that didn’t have a single surgery until I turned 50!  ~ My advice is do things that help you get through this phase, like take the immobilizer off when you know you won’t be moving, eat foods that make you happy, and do little things that make life seem normal (ie throw a load of laundry in with one arm etc.) Hang in there day by day.   This too shall pass...for real.  😊

Thank you so much. Since I found the site I check with that every so often. And read what other people say. It is extremely discouraging to hear that it’s going to be such a long process. But I did read before the surgery it could take up to 14 months to be completely healed after the surgery. I’m a very active person, and I’m getting bored, I’m getting angry, and I hate this immobilizer more than anything. I’ll be four weeks in, in two days. I see my surgeon next Wednesday and hopefully he will tell me to start PT.

 Thank you so much. Since I found the site I check with it every so often. And read what other people say. It is extremely discouraging to hear that it’s going to be such a long process. But I did read before the surgery it could take up to 14 months to be completely healed after the surgery. I’m a very active person, and I’m getting bored, I’m getting angry, and I hate this immobilizer more than anything. I’ll be four weeks in, in two days. I see my surgeon next Wednesday and hopefully he will tell me to start PT.  I’m not Sure who mentioned above, that nobody understands how uncomfortable this thing is unless they have to wear it 24/7. Every time I crawl in bed at night I don’t look forward to it, when I used to love sleeping in my comfortable king size bed. I wake up throughout the night and have to sit up and breathe because the straps are digging into my rib cage and my back and my breasts. It is so uncomfortable I have no idea. I will check back after my first physical therapy and write something. Thanks everyone for your encouragement

Maybe the sling is too tight!    I tended to loosen the strap on the waist of the sling a bit at night.  I slept on a wedge pillow and on my back using a pillow under my sore arm.  I wore long sleeve COTTON shirts with a collar to sleep.  That way I could lift the collar up so the shoulder strap didn't touch my skin.  I also used one of those sheepskin strap covers (Walmart).  I cut the toe ends off socks so I could slip the sock over the arm in the sling...so my arm wouldn't get so sweaty & aggravated.

PERSEVERE!!  I'm 3 months post op and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.  You too will survive!  YOU CAN DO THIS!

Mia, I really do understand what you're going through. I'm 5 months out and it does get easier, but very slowly. I'm a pretty patient person, but the pain, inability to get comfortable especially when trying to sleep, and doing all the things you're used to doing on your own can bring on all those nasty emotions that usually stay at bay. I wasn't able to sleep in bed for over 3 months and my husband got pretty used to having the bed to himself, so it's good to hear that you're sleeping in a bed. When you're able to drive again and have more independence, things will start to get better. Be sure to socialize and be around others. The loneliness of recovery can be a dark place, but just getting out of the house does help. Even now, I still have discomfort and pain, but yoga is helping and also is doing the daily exercises. DO NOT stop doing the exercises at home once you start PT. So, be kind to yourself and know that you're part of a club now. There are a lot of us out there who understand and wishes you good health and better days. We're here for you.

Cathy-  thank you so much. My friends have been taking me out to dinner & my daughters have been taking me out to brunch etc too, and I’ve tried to socialize as much as I can. The problem is I need to go where I can sit down and rest my arm on my lap and undo the straps to be comfortable. My left shoulder, the one that I did NOT have surgery on, tends to get sore because the strap pulls  down from the weight of my right arm in the sling. Does that make sense? I’ve gotten to the point where I can walk my dogs, I have two of them. Small ones.

 And I live in an area where I can walk to the store, the bank, etc. So I’m doing lots of walks when I can. And in between I’m icing constantly to keep the swelling down. 

 Yoga, that’s my thing. I think I miss my four day a week yoga classes more than anything. It kept my sanity. So now I try to do some stretching and squats as I can. 

 Thank you all so much for your ideas, your encouragement as well.  

Thank you I did loosen the strap. And I do sleep on a wedge with pillows & a pillow under my arm etc.

 I also seem to be having crazy dreams because I feel the confinement, and in my sleep, subconsciously I think I’m trying to move my arm and I’ll wake up in the middle of the night in excruciating pain. And realize I had a dream that my arm was stuck and I was pulling to try to get it loose from something. All part of the game I suppose? 

I do understand about the sling bothering the non-surgery side. According to my PT, I got "sling neck" on the left side (non-surgery side) due to the sling pulling on that side of my neck.. That caused numbness & tingling in my left hand, especially when I was sleeping. It eventually affected the right side, the surgery side, and I got numbness & tingling but not as badly. So, I'm sleeping with wrist braces on both hands and it is slowly getting better.

I started bugging my PT & surgeon at the outset as to when I could start back at yoga. The day after I got ok's from both, I was back in class. Nothing strenuous, but practices like Yoga as Medicine (for neck, back & spine with shoulders thrown in), gentle yoga, and Yin Yoga. I don't do anything that puts too much pressure on the shoulder and Child's Pose is my go-to when everyone else is doing Down Dogs.

One other thing that I found helped - doing jigsaw puzzles. You have to stretch your arm to reach the far side. Just check with your PT as to when that may good to do.

Keep up the good work. You will be fine, Yoga Friend!

This is the best discussion of how things really are.  I had good luck with taking an old hand towel and putting it around my neck for support and to provide cushion from the strap.  I’m now 11 weeks since surgery and I had a breakthrough in week 10.  I’ve finally been able to string 7 pain free days together and I can see the light now.  A couple weeks ago I told people that I questioned my decision to do this but I needed a better quality of life.  I’ve had various surgeries before and I get healed in the end but never as fast as they want.  The therapist said the normal recovery from this is 12 mths but for me it’ll probably be 18.  Keep reading and posting what works and doesn’t work for you!

You are very lucky to be able to sleep in a bed. I slept in the recliner for 2 months, then moved to the spare bedroom, then finally in my own bed. I wish you luck with your upcoming appointment!

I'm glad I'm not the only one, I've developed wrist problems on my non surgical arm. I also wear a wrist guard at night.

I got the immobilizer off after 4 weeks. Then I wore the sling for a few weeks mostly to protect my arm from myself. Getting that thing off was a huge step in my attitude. By reading these comments you know we were all miserable and then slowly got better. But make no mistake it takes time. I can hook my own bra in the back!! But that took 5 months! My arm still aches and I have to remember to be careful for a few more months. There was a lot of ice this weekend and I kept skidding which jerks the whole body. Scared me. I'm rambling now but keep your spirits up and know you're not alone. This is a great site. Keep in touch.

Hi. I hope you're doing well. You seem to give good advice so I have questions. I am almost 11 months and the last three weekends I have been using loppers to cut some bushes and reasonable sized tree branches. Some of them required a considerable amount of squeezing. Right handed right shoulder repaired. A week ago I had a sharp pain at the front scar site, and aching pecs. I am hoping I just did too much to weaker muscles. My shoulder isn't hurting it's the biceps and pecs. Any thoughts anyone?

I’m eight weeks postop in 2 days. I have found rolling on the lacrosse ball on my sore spots in my back I go up against a wall, and rolling it in my wing bone my neck and my arm pit again against a wall, helps me. Also staying active the more I sit around and baby myself the more pain I seem to feel. I’m walking my dogs now and yesterday I actually worked in the garden using mostly my left arm but I rake the leaves I moved some furniture and I parted some geraniums. It felt wonderful to be out doing stuff again. I ne I have found rolling on the lacrosse ball on my sore spots in my back I go up against a wall, and rolling it in my wing bone my neck and my arm pit again against a wall, helps me. Also staying active the more I sit around and baby myself the more pain I seem to feel. I’m walking my dogs now and yesterday I actually worked in the garden using mostly my left arm but I rake the leaves I moved some furniture and I podded some geraniums. It felt wonderful to be out doing stuff again.  My physical therapist worked on me last Thursday and said no physical therapy should hurt. There should be limited pain if any. She said massaging the sore muscles around the shoulder and in your neck are imperative to taking the pain away and healing. I’m doing everything she’s telling me. I also received an email from my physical therapist that said to keep doing routine things as you would normally do but just be careful not to lift things with that bad arm. So I’m now going out to dinner with friends I’m going to birthday parties,   And resuming my social life. I’m sleeping better at night and I actually took the wedge out of my bed. I never slept on the recliner. There’s no way I would be able to sleep in one of those things that would be more comfortable than my bed. 

 I’m looking forward to more physical therapy I’m doing my exercises they sent home for me five times a day I’m being diligent yet careful.  

 Sleeping in an uncomfortable recliner was never an option or possibility for me. I have a beautiful small recliner but sleeping in it, there was no way I was even going to try. Where do I put my legs? How do I move around? Nope not for me. I’m also very tall and slender I need legroom. I have a California king are used a wedge with seven pillows and it was fine. I still had pain when I slept, but that was a given. Now the wedges God I’m sleeping pretty much through the night and I wake up with a little bit of an egg. I’m healing very quickly. Thank you 

My experience is that the healing time atrophied pretty much all arm and shoulder muscles. Take some Tylenol and give it time. I retore mine swimming when I did it I had the same pain as the last time. Not sure I would panic yet

Thanks. The pain is different from before surgery but I was afraid it was wishful thinking. I'll be more careful using garden tools.

Christine, hope you're feeling better by now. I'm 6 months out and slowly beginning to get back into yard work. Finally, I can put yard waste into a container without pain from crossing my arm across my body. But, I'll have my husband cut back the segos & palm. Not taking any chances still. I remember how painful it was for my therapist to stretch the pec minor and know that it is still tight even with all the stretching from yoga. Listen to your body even though you're 11 months out and continue to be good to yourself.

Thanks for your response. We also had to move 2 cords of wood this weekend and I was carefully pulling my red radio flyer wagon up a hill with both arms! So now I'll rest it. I can deal with achiness if I have to it's the fear of damage that freaks me out. To all new patients this healing process is long but it does get easier. I think that's the problem, you feel better and then do too much. Stay well!

Man, Christine, that's impressive. I find that if I take 2 Maximum Strength Tylenol in the morning to get over the sleeping on the surgery side, I'm pretty good for the rest of the day. I've been on a couple of trips out of town recently and found that I need to wear my wrist brace on the non-surgical wrist while driving. Otherwise, my hand tingles. I guess it's the angle of holding the steering wheel. That is getting better, but slowly, just like the shoulder.

My last follow-up with the surgeon was at the beginning of March. He wanted to do a nerve conduction test on my wrists to see if it is cervical or carpal tunnel. I was at the 5 1/2 month point then and decided to wait and see if this is something that will go away on its own. The idea of going through more tests and possible CT surgery so soon after this surgery is something I'm not comfortable with right now. And, since it didn't begin until after surgery I'm comfortable with waiting.

It seems like the 6-month point is the time that I've seen real improvement on a daily basis. Like you, I want to get outside and do everything that needs to be done post-winter. We just have to be smart and listen to what our bodies tell us. They really do know best.

I didn't mean to sound impressive, it had to be done because the delivery man dumped it in our neighbors driveway. Sigh. It was the last thing I wanted to do. I too get an achy arm driving. I can't figure that out. I had surgery in May and haven't needed meds for my shoulder since September. It has been achy but not bad. Now since my episodes with the loppers I am needing something. Tylenol does nothing for me. You're lucky. I had no idea surgery would be like this. Maybe warmer weather will help some. Luck!

Cathy, I am 10 months and having to wear a wrist brace also on the opposite wrist. I have had 2 shots in ut, but it's swollen and painful. Like you I do not want another surgery so, I haven't been back to the doctor. They said I compensated with my left arm and hand, and that was why it hurt. But when I went to see the Dr for the shot, she noticed that at some point my wrist had been broken. That was first grade! I'm 60 now! Yikes.

Our experience parallels each other. My PT also said that I had compensated on the non-surgical side. So, I'm just going to continue sleeping with the braces until the symptoms go away.

Several years ago I went through many months of PT on my hips. Stupid in the gym, I was, using weights that were way too heavy and messed myself up big time. Prior to PT, my chiropractor found a knot in my left hip flexor. He sent me to my GP. After a series of x-rays over several months, he determined it was nothing to worry about. My PT, who is a Doctor of PT, determined that it was scar tissue and was able to break it up. He also said that I could have sustained injury as a child. I have learned that the body remembers everything and that the best thing I can do now is listen to it and continue my yoga practice. At 62, I may not be as toned as I would like, but I am now taking care of my body like never before. 

It seems we all overcompensate to protect our shoulder. I was using my back instead of my shoulder and kept spasming the muscles back there. Very annoying. Yesterday I reluctantly paid someone to mow the lawn and trim and I didn't help. I watched. That was hard. I have good normal ROM but still stiff and achy. I think I'll have to get used to the aches. Then I have to decide when I can use my arm as I think I should be able to. I read somewhere that a recovering patient was told not to ever start a lawnmower. I guess we'll find this out the hard way.