Shoulder Pain

Shoulder pain can present itself in many ways. It could show up when you’re reaching toward the top shelf to put dishes away or when you’re struggling to find a comfortable position to sleep in. Shoulder pain can come on gradually or suddenly. Once the shoulder joint is injured, it can stiffen very quickly making your shoulder immobile. onIt can also develop as a result of an injury, making you feel as if your shoulder is immobile. There are many causes for shoulder pain including a pulled muscle to the agonizing bone-on-bone friction of arthritis.

Due to the complexities of the shoulder, there are several pain-causing conditions that may occur. According to WebMD, some of the most common causes of shoulder pain include:

• Tendonitis – When the shoulder joint is excessively overused, tendonitis can occur. This is typically due to the demands of a labor-intensive job or sport, which can cause the tendons to undergo ongoing inflammation. Tendonitis can result in swelling and painful impingement when raising your arm.
• Dislocation – When the head of the humerus pops out of place, it is known as a dislocation. Those who have sustained dislocation injuries report them as being extremely painful, and it unfortunately is something that you become more vulnerable to after the first dislocation occurs.
• Arthritis – The most common types of arthritis are known as osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis occurs when the cartilage in the shoulder joint experiences significant “wear and tear,” typically due to age or excessive overuse. Rheumatoid arthritis occurs when the immune system sees the joints as a threat. In the shoulder, the immune system attacks the membranes surrounding the shoulder joint, resulting in pain and inflammation.
• Frozen shoulder – Frozen shoulder, medically referred to as “adhesive capsulitis,” is a poorly understood condition that can occur as a result of disuse of your arm and shoulder after an injury or surgery. It can also come on for no good reason at all. It is most common in women over 40. The symptoms most often come on gradually, worsen over time, and then resolve in 1-3 years.

Physical therapy is an easy, comfortable, and natural way to find relief for shoulder pain, without the need for harmful drugs or invasive surgery. Our physical therapists are trained to pinpoint the cause of your pain through a variety of diagnostic techniques. Once we have established the cause of your shoulder pain, we can create a specialized combination of physical therapy methods to manage and relieve your pain. These may include gentle exercises, which have proven to ease the pain of osteoarthritis and reduce the stiffness of frozen shoulders. They may also include more specialized techniques, such as athletic training, ice and heat therapies, or ergonomics.

Strengthening programs may also be implemented as a way to rehabilitate injured muscles or help stabilize a shoulder that is prone to dislocation.

Don’t let your shoulder pain limit your physical abilities any longer! Get shoulder pain relief with New Stride Physical Therapy.