Rotator Cuff Recovery Day 3

[@Medevicerep]

Post op day 4 for me for repair of a “massive rotator cuff injury “. I have taken two showers with the mesh shower sling. I agree with you, I probably don’t need it and it is more trouble than it is worth. Like most patients, I injured my dominant arm so doing everything one handed with the non dominant is a real challenge. Sonic toothbrush and those one handed floss handles are very helpful. The key is to go slow and think through every movement.

[@LisaMonique]

Exactly!! Good luck with your recovery!

[@blondept7044]

As a PT if my Ortho Docs don’t prescribe CPMs I request it but many insurers don’t cover it which is why I think some Drs don’t prescribe them as much . I always ask my patients if they mind paying out of pocket. You would think that insurance companies would cover CPMs cause in the long run it would save them a lot of money in rehab costs ..all my patients recover faster if they have a CPM. Good luck on your recovery.. you seem to be doing fantastic 😊

[@LisaMonique]

Thank you and the CPM machine is my favorite part of my daily physical therapy!!!! Yes insurance companies should cover it!!!

[@pepperspot805]

I work for a durable Medical provider. We used to get orders for CPMs for knees years ago and insurance (Specifically Medicare) did cover them. I haven't seen them ordered for years

[@RNSharyn]

I am having an arthroscopic rotator cuff repair in March 2024. While I'm a nurse practitioner, it is nice to hear a first hand point of view. And I'm getting good tips from you! My biggest concerns are toileting, styling my hair, and showering!

[@LisaMonique]

Best of luck!

[@jjackson4829]

Same here! Mine is on March 6 2024. Very nervous. Right shoulder (dominant side), full thickness tears of supraspinatus, subscapularis and long head of bicep. Not looking forward to pain management and immobility. I hope yours goes well and that you have a speedy recovery!

[@karenschmidtke8129]

@@jjackson4829 I just completed that surgery. I am in week two and the bit about the management of hairstyling and showering is real! I look like a hag. My hair is a mess. Showering is getting easier, but not putting myself together as I normally would. It’s exhausting. Keeping up with the home physical therapy exercises is a lot. Watching these videos is very helpful encouraging

[@jjackson4829]

@@karenschmidtke8129 Things started getting a lot better around week 3-4 for me. The sling got old & tiring to have on, but by about 6 weeks out, you're starting to get strength built up and notice how much better it feels. I'm about 4-1/2 months out from surgery now, and my shoulder feels great. It's actually better and stronger than my non-surgical shoulder. I am just about to complete all physical therapy - I highly recommend sticking with all PT as it makes all the difference in outcome. I hope your recovery is speedy and that you get back to normal soon!

[@LenaSheppard]

Wow. You're very strong. My shoulder has been hurting for a few months & it's hard to do the exercises. I appreciate you being here !

[@LisaMonique]

Pre-surgery, when I was doing PT exercises they were painful, sharp stabbing pain. Now when I’m doing my post surgery exercises I just hit a block like my arm will not move any farther and I can push on it and it hurts but it’s a different type of pain it’s not a stabbing radiating pain.

[@StoopidMidgets]

Lisa, thank you for that awesome video! - I can relate to your situation. In 2008, I had a seriously frozen shoulder for half a year before it was diagnosed and treated correctly. The first physical therapist was not helpful. Very painful. Finally, I had surgery to "rip off' the scar tissue under anesthesia. Luckily, after the surgery, I was prescribed a CPM machine. I used it 4-5 hours a day and had a phone campaign I was able to work at while being glued to the chair for hours at a time - every single day! It helped healing tremedously. - I strongly recommend using your machine as much as you possibly can while you have it. I have heard from others that frozen shoulders do not bounce back completely. - Unfortunately, the same shoulder froze again for me in 2018 and the insurance did not allow for a CPM machine that time around. Had I known the low cost you mentioned, I would have rented it on my own. - In conclusion, recovery took much longer than the first time around but this time, I had a fantastic physical therapist. Apart from a little soreness when I stretch it out fully, my shoulder has it's normal range of motion again. However, it took over 2 years the second time around. - My recommendation - use your machine as much as possible. It is worth it.

[@FastingStarChanelNo5]

I once had a frozen shoulder that went away on its own. You're doing very well w/ shoulder challenges during a move of all things. But you are getting better & this too shall pass. Keep going Lisa, not much further to go. Thx Lisa & be blessed.

[@LisaMonique]

Yes I read that it can resolve on its own but when you’re trying to do physical therapy after shoulder surgery you need to be able to move your arm. They say on its own it can take up to six months to a year to resolve😳

[@FastingStarChanelNo5]

@@LisaMonique Ok, I'm confused. You had the surgery on the rc on one shoulder but isn't the other shoulder the frozen one? They prolly have PT for frozen s on its own, I just didnt get it. Took three month at the longest to finally go away. Boy did I find out how naturally left-handed I am when it happened lol. In any case glad yore doing so well.

[@lisawojtkielewicz3489]

I had a full tear in my rotator cuff and labrum. I wish I had a motorized recliner for my recovery. I had the manual and couldn't do it myself. I needed help for the first 4 weeks. My PT did my stretches. It was the worst but it helped the most. Massaging my elbow felt so food.

[@LisaMonique]

Yes I never really talked about my elbow but that was very sore every morning when I took off my sling!

[@lorim4651]

Thank you for sharing your experience and tips. I can’t imagine feeling pain any worse than my bunion surgery…but, I’ve put off rotator cuff surgery as long as possible. It needs to get done! My only question-how long before you could drive? Your videos have helped me feel a bit less anxious about planning my (much needed) shoulder surgery. Thank you!

[@LisaMonique]

My husband forgot my PT appointment week two, since I started PT the first week due to frozen shoulder so I drove myself. My physical therapist said if I was comfortable and it was fine. My shoulder has been hurting so bad for the previous six months that I have been driving with my opposite arm anyways. I just took the shoulder strap off of my neck but left it around my waist

[@cindymoore5005]

Thank you for sharing your experience. It's interesting and informative. ❤

[@kenyandavis1348]

Interesting contraption. What kind of shower sling were you using? Also, I believe the normal sling has a pad/pillow underneath correct? Any way you show the shower sling? I’ll likely be using one as well. Hope all is well! The series of updates are helpful!

[@Peridot500]

Please talk about how you dried your hair.

[@LisaMonique]

I did make a video clip on that I will add it in my hints video for women that I am publishing soon. I use the Revlon one step hairdryer for one-handed straightenIng

[@tanjarobinson8741]

I'm going to have surgery for a small rotator cuff tear as well. Thank you for all of your video's! So can you shave your armpit? I have all of these weird thoughts about all of this procedure lol. Also when can you go on long walks? I am used to walking 4 miles. I will miss doing weights. Not sure when I will be able to do that either.

[@LisaMonique]

Shaving is actually easy, you just bend over and your arm dangles down and you shave your pit that way. I was doing it as soon as I was allowed to shower. I started walking day 2, though in the beginning my arm was achy after a 2 mile walk which I was doing after about a week. I think after 2-3 weeks I could’ve handled a 4 mile walk if I wanted to walk that far lol. It’s just your pace that may have to adjust depending how much jostling goes on with your arm in a sling. Your recovery may be faster since you have a partial tear and if they’re not moving your bicep. I started 5 pound weights week nine, But my recovery is based on concern about ripping out bicep after it was moved to a new location. Today I go back to the doctor and will be potentially cleared for strength training. I’m at the 11 1/2 week point

[@tanjarobinson8741]

Thank you so much! This makes me feel so much better! @@LisaMonique

[@tanjarobinson8741]

hi Lisa. I am now on day six, doing pretty well I wanted to ask you if you had any sort of wrist pain? When I’m doing my exercises that were prescribed by the doctor with the dangling arm and things like that one of the exercises is also moving my wrist or my hand back-and-forth and my wrist is super painful and it seems to just have the same pain every day, I’m curious if you had that or if this might be a concern I need to talk to my doctor about? Thank you so much.

[@LisaMonique]

@@tanjarobinson8741 I had pain in my ring and pinky finger, lol. I think it's because of swelling, that travels down the ligaments that move the lower extremities on your arm. But I would definitely mention it to you dr or physical therapist. I talked about it for weeks and my PT kept saying it would go away on it's own as the swelling went down, but I didn't SEE a lot of swelling so I though he was wrong...but it went away in about 5 weeks...

[@tanjarobinson8741]

Oh ok. It’s pretty bad pain when I move my hand back and forth . I won’t have PT until 4 weeks but should prob tell my dr. Thank you! What a process. Sounds like you are doing great now 😀

[@adz5bneweng589]

I feel for you. My rotator cuff surgery was thr most painful thing I've ever experienced. Had to sleep sitting up for several weeks. My bicep in my dominant arm is completely detached (before surgery) from my shoulder and I have absolutely no issues, even 8 years later. (I do have an awesome "Popeye" muscle appearance though, which I don't mind).

[@LisaMonique]

That is so good to hear!!! Sleeping is still an issue for me, not painful but just “really getting comfortable“ I’m not sure if my hot flashes are waking me up, instead of my arm lol

[@adz5bneweng589]

@@LisaMonique oh no, double whammy!

[@Showtime-7815]

I’m having an shoulder impingement surgery for bone spurs but they could be more wrong because I’m hurting my bicep like it’s tore as well when I try to lift my arm up !!

[@LisaMonique]

Goo luck with your surgery!!

[@Showtime-7815]

@ thank you so much ❤️do you have any suggestions ? For me ? I’m definitely getting ice cooler

[@DTUFINOPhotography]

I have a shoulder labral tear and a cyst on spinoglenoid notch and measures approximately 1.5 X 1.4 x 1.3 Cm. I was given a cortisone shot for pain and it has relived 95% of the pain, but the cyst is definitely pressing up on my nerve cashing severe pain when i didn't have cortisone. Doc suggested shoulder surgery but i cant do that RIGHT now. I'm seeking to try Ultrasound-guided cyst aspiration to prevent it pressing on my nerve... then we can talk surgery but I'm cannot do surgery right now but the pain without cortisone was the worse pain i've ever felt in my life. I'd like to try PRP before full fledged surgery as well.

[@LisaMonique]

Yikes! I hope you can find some relief!

[@DTUFINOPhotography]

@@LisaMoniqueThank you! If i can hold off for a few months i can then consider surgery but meeting with my doc tomorrow. Hopefully he can drain the cyst and we can start prp in march.

[@Chris-iv2su]

I'm doing counseling work and can not afford not to work. How many days after such surgery do you think one will be able to do counseling?

[@LisaMonique]

I’d give yourself at least 48 hours to get situated. The typing could be hard with your surgical arm. The weight of your arm is very uncomfortable on the shoulder so you have to keep it propped. I think if you get yourself set up so that you could do it without moving around pre-surgery and then just either work your computer or your voice recorder or whatever you need to do afterwards, you could be fine. My surgery was on Monday and I met friends out for dinner Thursday. However my arm was extremely uncomfortable, I needed a pillow or something to prop it up because my sling didn’t support it correctly. Just make sure you have a variety of pillows, I tried feather pillows loose filling pillows thin pillows foam pillows but work work best for me was a travel pillow under my arm when sitting

[@LifestyleInHawaii808]

Very helpful.

[@karenveasey9409]

Looking back, do you recommend the compression sleeve thing? I've got the ice box set up.

[@LisaMonique]

I did not like the compression sleeve because it just didn’t compress at the right spot and actually pulled the ice away from my shoulder because my shoulders are so narrow.

[@pamh7758]

You look terrific

[@DTUFINOPhotography]

Can i ask you how long you went form Injusry to surgery? did you get cortizone shots prior to surgery?

[@LisaMonique]

Yes I got Cortizone shot but I think I only had partial tear at that point. My shoulder started bothering me nonstop in November and I had my first Cortizone shot in February and it worked well but then I was jumping in the back of my pick up truck and felt a snap and that’s why I totally tore my rotator cuff in April and had my MRI at the end of May. I was traveling in June so my surgery was a couple days after I returned in July.

[@DTUFINOPhotography]

​@@LisaMoniqueUgh.... that sucks! my rotator cuff is in tact, i just have a labrum tear but there's a cyst that i may want to try to have them drain. Seeing my doc tomorrow to discuss options.

[@animallover-lc2zh]

Do you get notified of comments when someone posts a question? All comments, except one that I see, are from a year ago. Want to ask a question but don't know if you'll see it.

[@LisaMonique]

I do get notified of new comments, not replies, so if I don't specifically look for those, sometimes I miss them

[@bevyoung2009]

Hello beautiful Lisa 😍

[@janicegunn9616]

While I appreciate your sharing your experience post surgery, but you assume everyone has the money to purchase a recliner, a special pillow, icing contraption, hair towels, etc. Not everyone is lucky enough to be able to buy products that would aid in the recovery process. Also, not everyone has a significant other or family members to help with our every day routine.

[@LisaMonique]

Not assuming anything, but those that can even purchase 1-2 things, will appreciate knowing a few products that can assist and why! Why would I make a video on what I didn't do? I'd have no experience on how to manage and if it helped. Maybe someone else can make that video.