Hi there. Just wondering if anyone has ever had frozen shoulder? I was diagnosed almost a year ago, had 3 months of physical therapy and a shoulder manipulation in March but still in a whole lotta pain and very limited range of motion. The doctor just scheduled shoulder surgery for 8/21..just wondering if anyone has had the surgery? I have just started bringing my a1c down and I'm afraid the surgery will make it go back up :( Thanks so much..Kristy
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I have had both shoulders at different times frozen. Steroid shot and PT worked to release one of them. Had surgery about 4 years ago on the other and no problems since. If you don't use a CGM you might want to check with your Endo to see if you can 'borrow' one until you are covered. It would help the Endo help you with regulating blood sugars. Hopefully you have someone that knows how to put an infusion in for you and work your pump because you have NO use of your arm for a number of days after surgery. It's a little rough for 4-5 days but the outcome is great. Prayers for the surgery and recovery for you
Thank you both very much! I have been in severe pain for over a year so I am ready to do whatever it takes to feel better and get my life back! I don't have a cgm but I check my blood sugar every two hours in attempts to keep super tight control (just recently started taking better care of myself). Thanks Trouble for the advice about my pump, I'll have to teach my husband before my surgery..
My right shoulder has been frozen and it took PT to get it unlocked. I did something very wrong, I waited until the whole thing froze up and wow it was tough getting it unlocked. I can say it is unlocked today and no issues.
You are facing a tough road and I am so sorry for your issue. Take care, do the PT and I will hope you get along as best as possible.
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I had a frozen shoulder, went through weeks of PT with no success. Then, one day, the therapist asked me to try something different. She took a large ball (like a beach ball), had me stand three feet from a tall wall, and "walk" the ball up the wall and then back, using my fingertips. In two visits, the majority of the pain went away! Seemed like magic, don't know why, but it worked!
Make sure your husband knows how often you change your infusion site. I did not teach my husband anything and recently had to have emergency surgery with morphine for 5 days. He took care of me 24/7 in the hospital and did an outstanding job but thought infusion was changed once a week. God must have kept that tubing open for insulin delivery!
I have had surgery on both shoulders both in different stages of freezing. I had very different outcomes on both. The first, was well advanced into the last stage of freezing and I had a great outcome, good recovery and now only somewhat limited to behind the back motion. The second shoulder, was early in the onset, during the first stage, which produced little effect on movement and pain, even with all the physical therapy and home exercises.
I have decided that the difference between the two outcomes had to do with the stage of freezing. For well over a year I had been told that this was an inflammatory process and it would run its course. And now I believe that's what happened with the second surgery. The inflammation continued to run its course despite the surgery. Cutting the adhesion's, which is what the surgery is, does not stop the inflammatory process.
Of course, this is only my experience. But I know how desperate I was after so long with so much pain, loss of work, depression, etc... Even with a not so great outcome for the second shoulder, at the time, having the use of my dominant arm back was a life changer.
And yes, control is key. I was never more motivated to take care of myself than I was when I had frozen shoulder and the need to prevent future problems. There are other musculoskeletal complications that can occur with long term high blood sugars. Tendonitis occurs commonly in the hands and fingers causing trigger finger, deQuervains and other types of tendonitis.
Thanks for the comments everyone..I am hoping this works since the manipulation and months of physical therapy did not..I did seem to get some of my motion back (although not behind my back)but the pain has never gone away :( I haven't met anyone (besides here) that knows the pain I am in from this condition. I also had neck surgery in 2009 to remove/replace two disks and this condition with my shoulder is WAY worse than the pain I had from my discectomy!
I didn't know they did surgery for frozen shoulder. A year or so before my D diagnosis I had bursitis in my left shoulder, I couldn't lift my arm- it came on pretty suddenly. A steroid shot released it in a few minutes. Then I did 3 months of pt which helped the pain/mobility. After that I joined a gym and I was doing weight training etc. This helped my shoulder tremendously. Now my other shoulder is in pain, but the mobility was not as bad. I did some therapy but it hasn't improved as much. With all my various activities it gets a little worse again. I did an mri, but I haven't gone back to the doctor yet- I'm so sick of going to doctors, lol. I also stopped the therapy because it didn't seem to help as much this time- I'm doing my own exercises at home now. I hope you can avoid surgery, it may not be necessary? But if you do it I hope it helps your pain and mobility.
Hi meee..surgery is set for aug 21st and its sooo necessary!! I have been in pain for over a year and a half..in physical therapy since September of last year and had a manipulation that didn't work :( I'm believing this plus more physical therapy is going to work!! Thanks so much!
Thanks Judith..I will keep you posted, friend!
Hi Kristy, I hope it goes smoothly and you get some relief soon :)
Kristy, I had frozen shoulder for years and did everything but surgery, X-ray guided shots helped temporarily and then I went to my old chiropractor for a car accident and mentioned the horrible pain and what I’d been through with my shoulder. After seeing my orthopedic surgeon for YEARS, I saw my chiropractor for a few months and he adjusted mt shoulder and I am now pain free!
Kristy, I had frozen shoulder for years and saw one of the top ortho surgeons in Boston for it. He gave me multiple injections guided by X-ray which helped a little but then I moved back to florida. I had a car accident and went to my previous chiropractor for my neck and told him about my horrible shoulder and he said he could fix it. A few months of him adjusting it fixed me and I haven’t had pain in over a year! It’s definatley worth a try! Surgery requires a lot of healing and is not guaranteed. Good luck
I woke up one morning thinking I slept on my shoulder the wrong way. I favored it thinking it would eventually go away. 3 months later, the pain had increased and I couldn't take it anymore so I went to the Dr. and was told I had frozen shoulder. He recommended physio to try first, and if that didn't work,then surgery was the next option. I did not have health insurance at the time so paying for physio was not an option for me. I started taking glucosimine and played tug of war with my dog every day for a few min. She pulled just the right amount to make slow progress with me. Now, 6 months later I have about 97% mobility back and no pain.
Hi Renka...I'm glad you are feeling better. I used to be able to go to the chiropractor but after my neck surgery (a plate and 2 fake disks) I can't get adjusted anymore..
Hi Karebear..I had the same experience with my shoulder. I woke up with it hurting one day..I had physical therapy for about eight months with no change at all..so here I am 16 months later, still not sleeping, still in pain. Surgery is set for next Wed and I'm ready to start the healing process! This will be my 5th surgery and I've healed pretty well! Thank God for your doggy!!
My grandmother had frozen shoulder for as long as I knew her until the day she died. She also had Multiple Sclerosis, And T2 Diabetes among other things. She never got her shoulder fixed because she was afraid for some reason and she was the strongest women mentally and emotionally that I ever knew. I also think that she regretted not going through with the surgery when it was brought up. My suggestion is to go ahead with the surgery if you have the means to do it. Of course your BG’s will go up in the beginning because of the stress and pain, but the stress and pain should only be temporary when everything goes according to plan and the BG’s will go down again.
I injured my shoulder not to long ago and kept moving it to try to keep it from getting frozen like my gram’s did. The idea freaked me out because I saw how it effected my gram. Thankfully it is only a little sore now and the stiffness is gone, but it scared me for a little bit. I would think a little bit of time in pain and higher BG’s would be worth being able to have my shoulder back to normal if mine had frozen.
Hi Karena! Thanks for the encouragement. Your Poor Gramma!! I am definetly having the surgery on the 21st and I am expecting great results! They are bringing in a machine that moves and stretches my shoulder and I will have physical therapy everyday after the surgery. I am ready to get my life and sleep back!! I also asked them not to give me the nerve block this time (last time they did and I hated it!)..I know I will be in more pain but my bs wont go up as much as it would with the nerve block. I'll keep you posted..thanks again friend.