Have you been experiencing shoulder pain? Do activities like lifting your arm up when putting on a top or reaching for something high up in the cupboard give you pain? Or is sleeping on your side causing pain and keeping you up at night? If you have experienced pain or discomfort in your shoulders, our experienced osteopaths at Canterbury Health Hub can help you.
Shoulder pain
The shoulder is a complex joint that is involved in quite dynamic movements and activities. Pain in and around the shoulder is a common complaint that can impact our daily activities. It can be caused by injury, repetitive strain, or a chronic condition, and can manifest as dull aches, sharp pain or stiffness. Conditions the shoulder is prone to include rotator cuff injuries, frozen shoulder, sprains, strains, tendonitis, bursitis, and arthritis.
How osteopathy can help you with shoulder pain
To get to the cause of your shoulder pain, a thorough assessment of your shoulder is necessary. This will involve your treating osteopath taking a detailed history of your symptoms and lifestyle factors, and a physical assessment to assess your shoulder’s range of motion, strength and stability. The assessment will also check your neck and back for any compensatory patterns. Once a diagnosis has been reached, your osteopath will develop a treatment plan tailored to meet your specific needs, the main goals of which are to provide pain relief, restore biomechanics and prevent further injury. This plan may include a combination of manual therapy techniques and self-management strategies such as stretching, strengthening and activity modification.
Self-management
Self-management strategies that can assist in recovering from shoulder pain include rest, applying ice or heat; stretching and strengthening. This last strategy plays an important role in rehabilitating your shoulder, and usually involves an exercise rehabilitation program that is tailored to your specific needs. Below are a few examples of strength and mobility exercises that your osteopath may give you to improve your shoulder pain symptoms.
1. Shoulder internal rotation with resistance band
Tie a resistance band securely to a solid object in front of you at approximately elbow height. Hold the other end in your hand with elbow bent to 90 degrees. Pull the band towards your belly keeping your elbow by your side and shoulder blade in a relaxed position. Take a step back to increase tension of the band. Hold this position for 30 seconds repeating 3 times.
2. Shoulder external rotation with resistance band
Tie a resistance band securely to a solid object in front of you at approximately elbow height. Hold the other end in your hand with elbow bent to 90 degrees. Pull the band out to the side, away from your body keeping your elbow by your side and shoulder blade in a relaxed position. Take a step back to increase tension of the band. Hold this position for 30 seconds repeating 3 times.
3. Shoulder flexion with resistance band loop
Tie a light resistance band in a loop and place it around your wrists. With bent elbows at your side and hands forming a light fist, apply outward tension to the band (this should not be a strong activation). Maintain this tension and raise your arms up maintaining an upright posture through neck and shoulders. Lower your arms bringing your elbows back to your side. Perform this exercise in two sets of 15-20 repetitions.
Part 1
4. Shoulder rolls
Begin with an upright posture. Slowly raise your shoulders up and then roll then backwards squeezing your shoulder blades together, lowering the shoulder blades and the bringing your shoulders forward. Imagine if your shoulders were viewed from the side that you are tracing the outline of a clock face with your shoulders. Perform 5 to 10 times, then repeat in the opposite direction.
Ways in which our team can help:
If you are experiencing shoulder pain and want help to get your pain under control, feel free to contact our clinic.
If you are experiencing bursitis in your shoulder, we offer a bursitis recovery program. More information on this program can be found here.
Further exercises that can assist with rotator cuff tendinopathy can be found here.
This article is for information purposes only. Please consult your CHH primary healthcare professional for further information.