Actually frozen shoulder is a common symptom of Hypothyroidism. This happened to my wife who is a PT and she did a ton of research on it. You may or may not have hypothyroidism but if you are unsure I would ask your endo to check your TSH levels. This could just be your first warning. I think taking Synthroid and getting the Hypothyroidism under control (as much as one can) is what finally got rid of the frozen shoulder for my wife.
My step-brother is an orthopedic surgeon, and he’s the one who said I should see an orthopedist if I thought it was frozen shoulder. The more aggressively and the sooner you treat, the better the resolution.
If I had gotten a diagnosis in my hips 16 years ago, I could have gotten treatment and wouldn’t still have it to the extent that I do. And if it hadn’t taken over a year for me to get an accurate diagnosis in my shoulders, I’m guessing it would be even better than it is now that I’ve had surgery and manipulation.
i’d never heard of this before, but it seems like an issue i’ve been suffering with in my left shoulder for a couple of months and especially when after waking because i sleep on my sides and if i’m on my right the left arm hangs in front of me and will slip a bit… my shoulders easily slide out of place (i was either a contortionist or a master escape artist in a past life i suppose) and after one too many times i began to get an ache in the left one. heat seems to help along with yoga. most importantly though, i don’t hold excess weight with that arm anymore so as not to allow my shoulder to pop out anymore and aggrivate my problems. just to clarify about the shoulder popping out of joint, it has never been painful and there is a diagnosable condition where the can look at an x-ray of your bones and it basically says you have a predisposition to contortion. i actually think that’s how they used to pick girls to train in gymnastics in russia. weird, but true.
Maybe I’m misunderstanding your description, but that doesn’t sound like frozen shoulder. With frozen shoulder, you develop limited range of motion. Like Kathy described, she couldn’t even lift her arm to her side far enough so it was parallel to the floor. I couldn’t do that either until I had those procedures done, and even now, it causes some discomfort. I couldn’t reach behind me to straighten my bra because I couldn’t raise my hand any higher than the small of my back. It hurt just to raise my arms to wash my hair - I had to tuck my head down so I could reach my head to compensate for where I couldn’t move my arms. What you’re describing sounds like the opposite of that, unless I’m not following.
I got this about five years ago, the result of sleeping on one side all the time because of snoring. I addition to the loss of range of motion, I would sometimes get these incredibly intense shooting pains through the shoulder sometimes with a small movement.
My orthopedist immediately made the diagnosis and gave me two options (after the cortisone shots did not work): PT or surgery. He said the surgery was not 100% likely to solve the problem. I did the PT for a while (until the insurance ran out), and then continued the exercises/stretches. At that point, the orthopedist gave me two options for the surgery: have it immediately or do the exercises and wait a couple of years, because it can become bearable in time. I decided to wait and try to avoid the surgery.
Now, years later, I still do not have the range of motion, but it is better than it was. I do not try to throw a ball any more or play tennis, but it no longer is something that causes discomfort.
leave it to my babbling to confuse the heck out of everyone lol. i do have trouble with raising it (though not too much because i noticed it pretty early and logic says to stretch something that won’t move well). i can raise it above my head now from the consant use of it in the manner that was difficult for me. the part i was talking about before was moreso what i found to be the reason why my shoulder was getting locked up, the stress on it from too much displacement. so i try not to put to much stress on it that will pull it improperly and instead focus on trying to reach and stretch in ways that help it get back to a normal range (like behind the back reaches and overhead stretches). i could, of course, always be wrong since i have no official diagnosis to confirm my problem and am basing my previous comment on the similairty of the symptoms. in any case though, i do believe yoga can greatly help with mobility issues and would recomend it as an option to help gain back the range of motion that has been lost.
Ive been fighting frozen shoulder now for almost two years.I went to physical therapy but had no relief.A month ago the Dr. put me under and manully manipulated my shoulder and I restarted P.T.
Finally It seems to be working.Although I still have pain its not nearly as bad and I am going to P.T. three days a week.I am very hopefull this time.
I’ve been T1 for 35 years and a volleyball enthusist. I’ve had a frozen right shoulder twice in the last 7 years.Both occurances happened during the winter holiday break when I’m less active. Each time, I went through PT that lasted several months. This past June, PT ended and I’m still stretching frequently to gain back the flexibiltiy to serve overhand without pain. It’s a very slow process but I do see improvement each month. I’m glad I found this thread to assure me that I’m not the only T1 with this problem.
Very interesting about the carpal tunnel, I have had it in both hands for years from repetitous work. Now you have me wondering if it was an early sign of my type 1. I was taking anti-inflammatories for years before I developed D. although they contirbute my D to developing due to the anti-inflammatory drug. the drug it self killed the pancreas.
The problem is mostly in the subscapularis and a good massotherapist should be able treat it.I’ve treated many in my practice. But not all massotherapist know medical massage .make sure that thery are able to do it .I’m usally able to get result in a few sessions.
Once again I would take a look into hypothyroidism as the cause. There is a very good chance that if you have type 1 diabetes that you have or will get Hypothyroidism. Work on the Hypothyroidism and your frozen shoulder will most likely get better without the physical therapy (I am pro PT) or the cortisone shot that the orthopedic Dr is going to give because they have no idea how to really make it better.
Angi,
You posted this about eight months ago, and I’m wondering how you’re doing? I’m about the same age, have type 1 (though not on the pump), my a1c has been in the 7’s for the last 10 years, and my frozen shoulder was not brought on by injury either. I too, was told that mine was an impingement in the beginning, and later told that it was a frozen shoulder. I too did physical therapy, and felt that it was only getting worse. I tried some pretty agressive massage therapy, and that didn’t help either. All these things were costing me a fortune, and ultimately decided to just give my shoulder a rest. The constant pain (night and day) quit shortly thereafter, but my range of motion is still pretty limited, though I can finally wash my hair without wincing. I do take Mobic 15mg, daily, and don’t like having to take it because I worry about the effect it’ll have on my kidneys, but also have a disk issue in my neck, and it helps with this, so I do it. Curiously, I’d tried cutting back on my antiinflamitory medicine (due to concern about kidney health) a couple months prior to the frozen shoulder rearing its ugly head.
I’m very curious to know if your shoulder is better because I’m looking for hope that mine will be too, soon. It’s been about 15 months for me.
Drop me a line, please. Thank you!
I started having reduced range of motion in my arms/shoulders and hips starting about 1 yr ago. I just figured it was from getting old, being diabetic for so long (20+ yrs) and my job. About 2 months ago my DH got really worried when I told him I was constantly dropping things at work with my left arm so he made me go to my doctor. Well my doctor wasn’t very helpful and sent me for an xray which didn’t show any damage so off to physical therapy I went. So far I’m not impressed with the therapy and try to stretch my arm as much as possible all day long also but still have the pulling and pain in the upper part of my arm. My hips have gotten so bad that I can’t cross my legs while sitting on floor or do my yoga. No word from my doctor on what is causing this but wonder if it’s related in a way to the frozen shoulder (frozen hips?) I feel like a weakling now when I can’t lift anything. Any upward motions above waist kill me. Has anyone ever gotten steroid shots and have they worked for the shoulder? I had them in my left left (bursitis) and so far they’ve worked.
I have had frozen shoulder right in 02, left last year. Cortizone is great but I was almost hospitalized because I could not control the bs spike. About 7 days of 200% of normal dosing. Every time it would come down I was scared the affect was wearing off. So I would lower my insulin and my bs would shoot for the roof. But I did get 30 days of no pain. It really sucks when reality hits and the pain comes back.
Last time I was in my ortho said that they have started to study frozen hip. So of course self fulfilling prophecy kicks in and I am now having issues with the left hip. My right shoulder got better at about 18 months and I have 96% ROM back. Left is just about gone and about 90% ROM. Left hip sounds the same as yours. Crossing my legs or even leaning on the left hip is not a good time. The problem I have is I cracked my tail bone in 2000 and can’t sit straight for more than 2 hours. We have a trip in June. 48 hours in a car over 7 days. 4-12 hour days. Does anyone have any great ideas besides making my wife drive or not going.
Yes, the pain was unbelievable at night…I went to my primary physician who then sent me to a physical medicine doctor who sent me to acupuncture (helped) and physical therapy. I did PT for about 4-6 mo. It is much better now but I am beginning to have symptoms on the other shoulder. I found out about diabetes and connective tissue disorders when I began to have tendonities and trigger fingers on my hand. My ortho mentioned that he had read about these conditions…so I researched it. I had about 4 conditions out of the 5-6–bilateral carpel tunnel, frozen shoulders, trigger fingers, polyneuropathies, and nodes on the palm of my hand and feet. I have been diabetic T1 for 40 years and its common for us to get these kinds of conditions at this juncture. The problem is that is can be debilitating and affects the quality of life.
In terms of meds, I take motrin (800mg) and neurontin for the nerve pain. This gets me through the day. I had surgery on my right hand because there was inflammation and it was affecting my hand functions…I am still recovering. I am having problems around the groin area and the hip–I am scheduled for a cortisone shot…will let you know how that goes.
Take care and my best to you.