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Rotator Cuff Syndrome - Why Does it Hurt So Much?

By: Nick Bryant

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After tearing my rotator cuff a few months ago and experiencing severe pain and discomfort on an ongoing basis for several weeks I decided to research the subject and learn as much as I could about the rotator cuff and why an injury to it can be so painful.

The term rotator cuff suggests that there is just one of them but in actual fact the rotator cuff is comprised of a group of four different muscles that together are responsible for moving the shoulder and holding the shoulder joint together. They are all grouped around the shoulder joint and run across the back, front top and bottom of the shoulder joint. Some of the muscles run under each other and they all run under and over the bones of the shoulder.

So, depending on which of them you damage, if the damaged tendon becomes inflamed and starts to swell you end up with the swollen muscle getting impinged or pinched, either between other muscles or by one of the bones such as the collar bone or shoulder blade. When you try moving the inflamed muscle, tendons can literally start to fray like old rope. Each movement will be painful.

So, is there anything you can do about it? I tried various things, high dosage Ibuprofen, a steroid injection into the rotator cuff muscle as well as cold compresses to reduce the swelling. All gave me some relief but nothing managed to sort it out completely so I was offered an operation to shave away a piece of bone to free up the impinged tendon so that it could heal.

Living in the UK the operation date was three months away so I began to research the subject. I found out what I had been doing wrong. The secret to a successful recovery is rest. Proper rest avoiding any movement that causes pain. If I am completely honest I had paid lip service to resting my shoulder and had carried on doing things that still caused me some pain. So I rested the joint properly and used ice packs and anti-inflammatories to work on the inflammation..

Once the joint started to settle down I began some easy exercises based on Pilates aimed at developing flexibility and control whilst strengthening the muscles. The exercises started slowly with movements that I could do despite my injury all the time taking care not to cause any pain and gradually built up until full pain free movement had returned. Just ten weeks after I started the programme I played my first round of golf in over six months. Obviously I was out of practice and well below my normal performance but six months ago I could barely lift a golf club yet alone think about taking a swing at a ball.

My operation date has passed. I postponed and I am confident that barring accidents, I will not be going ahead with it. My theory is that the exercises improved my posture sufficiently to free up the impinged tendons on their own. I know that as we get older our posture changes. I know that I am holding my shoulders a bit straighter these days. Maybe by re-educating our bodies and waking up a few lazy muscles we can sort out lots of potential health problems.

In the meantime I am carrying on with the exercises. One rotator cuff injury is enough for anyone.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

If you would like to know more about rotator cuff syndrome check out my blog at myrotatorcuffcure.blogspot.com where I give more information on rotator cuff strengthening exercises

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