Are you suffering from shoulder pain? Do your shoulders feel stiff and painful? Do you experience burning, throbbing, and grinding sensations in the joints of your shoulders? If the answer is an emphatic yes, you may be on the verge of experiencing complications that could leave you out of action for weeks.
Shoulder pain is a major problem for many people. It is a serious issue among older adults and those who engage in regular sports activities, but it can be just as problematic among younger people. It's usually the result of improper carrying of your body's weight for a long time, which is why it is common among people who sit at desks all day.
Some cases of shoulder pain get better with time and treatment. But in some cases, the pain can worsen over time if not treated. If you have been experiencing shoulder pain for an extended period of time and it suddenly gets worse, this could be a sign that you have a more serious condition than you first thought.
Fortunately, at our pain management NYC center, we offer a number of procedures that can help get you back to normal as soon as possible. In this post, we will tell you about shoulder pain treatments and ways that can be done to reduce the pain and prevent it from worsening. The goal is to help you find relief from your shoulder pain and improve your quality of life.
Find the Cause of Your Shoulder Pain
Shoulder pain is a common problem that can severely disable you from doing even the most basic daily activities. Shoulder pain can be caused by a number of different injuries, including rotator cuff tears and tendinitis. If you're suffering from shoulder pain, it's important to identify the underlying cause so that you can treat it appropriately.
The shoulder is one of the most complex joints in the body. It can be affected by a variety of conditions, such as bursitis, tendinitis, fractures, and dislocation. Shoulder pain is a common problem for people of all ages. It can be caused by overuse, arthritis, and injury, or it might be part of the normal aging process.
Many people don't realize that injury can be one of the most common underlying causes of shoulder pain. When you injure a muscle or tendon, it becomes inflamed and swollen. This inflammation can cause significant pain in addition to limiting your range of motion.
The most common causes of shoulder pain include rotator cuff injuries and frozen shoulder syndrome. Rotator cuff injuries are characterized by impingement of the tendons or bursa that surround the shoulder joint. Frozen shoulder syndrome is caused by inflammation of the tendon sheath that surrounds the rotator cuff muscles, causing stiffness and loss of motion in the affected shoulder.
See a Pain Specialist for Diagnosis and Treatment
In the United States, more than 31 million people experience shoulder pain each year. Shoulder pain is also a common reason for doctors' appointments, as well as time off from work.
Keeping shoulder pain from worsening is easier said than done, but with the right approach, you can manage it and prevent further damage. The key to effectively managing shoulder pain lies in identifying the factors that contributed to its onset and then learning how to control them entirely from your life.
The first thing that you should do is schedule an appointment with a medical professional for an evaluation and diagnosis. This can help you understand what's going on with your body and what the next steps are.
Tests may be ordered to evaluate how much damage has been done to certain structures within the joint and also determine if there are any conditions that may contribute to future problems with the joint itself.
Explore the Treatment Options for Shoulder Pain
Although some cases of shoulder pain are minor and will go away on their own, others can be extremely painful and debilitating. Talk to your doctor about treatment options if you have chronic shoulder pain that interferes with your daily activities.
There are many treatment options available for treating this condition without surgery. Your doctor may recommend one or more of the following:
Physical Therapy
Physical therapy can help improve mobility and strength in the shoulder joint. This may include exercises designed to strengthen muscles around the joint, stretching exercises, and massage therapy.
A physical therapist can develop an exercise program that strengthens muscles around the shoulder joint without overworking them. You'll perform these exercises under the supervision of your therapist until you're able to do them on your own without pain or discomfort.
Medical Massage
Medical massage can relieve shoulder pain, improve mobility and circulation and promote healing in the tissues. Licensed massage therapists are trained to identify the muscles that are contributing to your pain and work on them with a combination of deep tissue work and stretching.
Medical massage therapy can be used in conjunction with other treatments for shoulder pain, such as physical therapy or acupuncture. It can be used to complement other therapies or as a stand-alone treatment.
Therapeutic Injections
In some cases, a doctor may suggest an injection, such as an epidural injection (corticosteroid injection). These injections can be very effective at reducing inflammation in the joint, which will help relieve your pain and allow you to move more easily.
An epidural injection involves injecting medication into the space around the spinal cord called the epidural space. This type of injection can be used to treat many conditions, including shoulder pain, nerve pain caused by arthritis, or fibromyalgia (widespread chronic pain). It can also be used for certain types of back pain when other treatments haven't worked or when other treatments aren't effective for you.
Give Your Shoulder Enough Time to Heal
When recovering from shoulder pain, it's important to take things slow. You should never resume your regular motion immediately. Instead, you should let the injury properly heal before you return to normal activities.
If you have a minor injury, you can wait for up to three weeks or more before returning to normal activity. This will give the body enough time to start healing properly and will help prevent further damage from happening. However, if your injury is more severe or if there is any doubt about the severity of the injury, then you should consult with a pain specialist before resuming any kind of physical activity.
Take Care of Your Shoulder's Health
You should also make sure that you are taking care of your overall health by getting plenty of sleep, eating healthy foods, and exercising regularly. This will help reduce stress on your body and give it time to repair itself naturally.
Get plenty of rest between activities if necessary. Overdoing it will just make things worse in the long run because your body needs time to recover from injuries and other stresses on its muscles and joints.
Don't reach above your head if possible. This puts strain on your shoulder joint and its tendons (bands of tissue) as well as on other muscles around the joint that help keep it stable.
Be aware of your posture. Your shoulders should be back and down, with your chest open. Make sure your head is level with your spine, not jutting forward or looking down at the ground.
Avoid lifting weights that are too heavy for you. If you're unsure about how much weight is too heavy, ask a trainer at the gym or consult a physical therapist who can help you figure out if you should lift more weight or do an easier exercise instead.
Proper Treatment Can Prevent Further Damage
Shoulder pain can be caused by an injury or a severe strain on the ligaments or tendons in your shoulder. But whatever the case, the key is to not allow your shoulder pain to continue for extended periods of time.
The shoulder is a highly complex part of the body. Its mobility makes it susceptible to injury and pain, meaning proper treatment is essential to decrease the chance of further complications. In addition, the right care could help you prevent more serious conditions in the future, so it's well worth it to take action now. If you have shoulder pain, contact our pain management NYC center as soon as possible so we can provide you with treatments tailored to you and your needs.
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