The Traditional Shoulder Pain Cycle

 

A couple of years ago, before meeting exercise physiologist Rick Kaselj, MS I found myself caught in this vicious cycle after injuring my shoulder while competing in powerlifting.

As Rick later explained to me this cycle is very common and has happened to most of his clients in the past. It goes a little something like this…

• STEP 1: At some point in your lifting career you come home and your shoulder just feels extra sore and you know something isn’t right so you take some anti-inflammatory pills and throw an ice pack on. It’s not a big deal and part of playing sports and training hard right?Hopefully in a few days it will be completely better, but usually some kind of discomfort or pain lingers. That’s no reason to miss a workout though. I know what’s on your mind, you can always avoid a few exercises that cause it to flare up or just train legs.
• STEP 2: Eventually this gets old and if it doesn’t feel better after a few weeks or months it’s probably time to visit the doctor to find out what’s going on. After using up a sick day and sitting for an hour in the waiting room it’s pretty annoying when the doctor tells you to rest, ice, and don’t do things that hurt. Seriously?If your insurance isn’t that great you’ll probably have to go back to your primary care doctor to get a referral to see a specialist. They’ll have you do an MRI which is super expensive. You’ll have to schedule another appointment for that though.
• STEP 3: After the MRI you’ll get the diagnosis at your next appointment. How many appointments is that so far? I’ve lost track already…sigh
• STEP 4: of the pain cycle is when you get sent to a physical therapist. If you’re in luck your therapist has worked with athletes in the past but who are we kidding, most of the people in the center are not physically fit at all.
• STEP 5: Modalities you might be exposed to include hot packs, cold packs, ultrasound and electrical stimulation to name just a few.
• STEP 6: Once your insurance runs out or you think you know the stretches and strengthening exercises well enough you can continue with the rehab on your own time.
• STEP 7: If it still doesn’t feel better it’s time for another MRI……cha-ching, the cost is really adding up fast.
• STEP 8: Next you can try more physical therapy or you can cover the symptoms with a cortisone shot that will numb the pain for a couple months. After that there’s always surgery, but something in your gut tells you that’s not what you really need. Listen to your instincts.
  

In my case this entire cycle lasted 6-months, but others aren’t so fortunate. The worst part is it can keep perpetuating itself and you can find yourself going through this pain cycle over and over.