The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › Injuries, Restrictions, Ailments, Pose Modifications › Injuries › Frozen Shoulder
-
AuthorPosts
-
Hi Gabrielle!
I hope you can give me some tips and help me with my current problem.
I’m currently suffering from a condition known as Frozen Shoulder on my right side. The problem is that I can not lift my arm up to the side, either bent or or held straight out. Picture yourself trying to do the Chicken Dance with your arms flapping up and down. I can’t do that (In a way that’s a good thing). This problem just started to act up yesterday and I attended a Bikram class today. I have to say that the Bikram DEFINITELY HELPED!
My shoulder joint was much less painful and I had more range of motion.
I know this ailment is Frozen Shoulder since I experienced it once before, about 3 years ago. I did everything wrong in thinking that I needed to stabilize my arm, rather than keep using it. Literally, my arm froze and I could not move it at all. I ended up having to get a cortizone shot and doing physical therapy.
I’m trying to avoid the shot and hoping that the Bikram can be my physical therapy.
My toughest poses today were:
Pranayama Breathing (1st pose). Could barely raise my right arm. Almost started crying from the pain.
Awkward – trying to hold my arms up for that long was not possible. Had to drop them for 3rd part
Triangle- The set up, with arms straight out, was tough and then had to modify with elbow resting on right thigh
Full Locust – Not even a chance. I kept my arms straight down and just lifted my body.All the other poses were fine.
Do you think you can give me some ideas for modifications in the poses I had problems with? Have you ever had a student suffer from this ailment?
Thanks in advance. I’m looking forward to your advice. It’s always very concise and practical.
Barb
hi i am a massage therapist at a very busy rehab clinic who is also a yoga junkie, and i can tell you that the best thing to do is avoid the cortizone and don’t try to modify (in my opinion). i think you should just keep trying, so what if you can’t go all the way right now for some postures…i tell my patients all the time to keep trying to do everything they normally do because as you already know if you don’t use it you lose it…so many people think they should stop because it hurts or it just won’t go there…if you modify things you should be able to do, your body will get used to doing it that way and adjust, and thats not good…just keep it moving and you’ll eventually be ok…it can take a while, a long while sometimes but thats alright too…i’ve had many patients get a full recovery and i can tell you it would have made my job a hell of a lot easier had they been doing something like this as part of their treatment…it will hurt but its ok…your not going to make it any worse…bikram will definately help…just keep going…i would also recommend some manual physio or deep tissue/myofascial release type massage if you are not already doing it…let me know if i can help in any other way….good luck…
trace
Hi Trace!
Thanks for the reply and the suggestions.
I’m not modifying in the positions too much, but I don’t want to look/feel like a doofus by just doing nothing! %-P I have a pretty high pain tolerance and I can’t believe how horrible this pain can be sometimes. It’s such a sharp and deep pain when it happens.
Today I have a 1/2hr appointment with a massage therapist that my husband and I use. She knows about the shoulder and hopefully she can work it out a bit more. I’ll let you know how that goes. There’s a Bikram class this evening that’s right after the massage and I may attend that also.
I’m still sore and very “aware” of my shoulder, but it is 1,000% better than the last time this happened. Definitely did the wrong thing, and stopped using it. I guess the old adage, “If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it”, is very true!
Keep the suggestions coming.
Barb
Hello Barb
Hello TraceBarb, it can be very difficult to know what to do when you are in pain. But you are definitely doing the right thing. I have personally taught and witnessed the total rehabilitation of several frozen-shoulder-sufferers who have used Bikram Yoga exclusively as their therapy. The combination of the heat and the traction forces that you create in the poses is of great benefit.
Continue to use your arms to your best ability. The aim is to create space in the joints and break up the deposits etc. Please avoid excruciating pain but certainly try to push your ‘edge’.
Use the wall if you need it although you have indicated poses where this may not be necessary. Commonly the wall is handy for the lifted or front arm in standing bow. In Locust symmetrically place your arms wherever you can, even if they are lying next to your body and not under it.
Will keep an eye out for signs of progress or more questions!
Thank you for your words of wisdom Trace.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Just a quick update
My shoulder looks like I’ve been abused, (small fingertip black and blue marks), but I have full rotation and movement after a 1/2 hour deep tissue massage this afternoon. After the massage I took 2 Aleeve and iced my shoulder on and off twice for 20mins. I also did some physical therapy moves, like dangling the arm in small clockwise and counter clockwise circles.
I’m not a fan of deep tissue, since I do bruise easily, but I’m amazed at how good my shoulder feels. The deep internal pain is totally gone, just some external tenderness from the bruising. This is like night and day compared to the last time that I suffered from Frozen Shoulder. Never would have believed it if I didn’t experience it myself.
Hopefully this will never happen to me again, but the combination of Bikram, massage and some therapy moves have worked a miracle! Time is definitely of the essence with this injury and I’m just glad I caught it so quickly to clear things up.
I plan on attending my normal morning Bikram class tomorrow as usual. I thought it was a bit premature to go right after the massage and so did the therapist. She definitely felt the morning would be perfect.
Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. Trace, if you hadn’t mentioned the massage I probably wouldn’t have committed to mine so quickly!
Barb
hi there
you’re very welcome and it sounds like you’re definately doing the right thing for your body….it also sounds like you’ve picked a good therapist who knows what she’s doing…lol the bruising can come as a shock but we therapists know its ok as long as its working…one thing i would suggest that instead of just using the ice i would have reccomended a contrast of hot and cold, 3 mins hot and 1 min cold for approx 1/2 hr sometime in the evening after your treatment, just to keep the blood flowing through constantly, but you can ask your therapist about that if you wish…well good luck and keep pushing!!
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.