Week 9 Rotator Cuff Surgery Recovery - BIG Changes!

[@terrencestimson1784]

Your videos have been great for me post surgery, watching this while at week 9

[@lielaine819]

I appreciate you shared all the details of your recovery process, It’s a great helpline for me! Especially I had sore and uncomfortable feelings time to time during nights, your personal experiences gave me the hope that I will recover if I keep working hard! Blessings!!

[@jmielatl3981]

Lookin good. With my 3cm full thickness supraspinatus repair that used 5 anchors, I’m at least 4+ weeks behind ya but all is progressing well. Keep up the Hard work!!!

[@livelongerlivestronger]

@JMiel Atl thank you! You had a more extensive repair than I did, so it will definitely take you a little longer. At least you know what to expect in about 4-5 weeks from now. Good to hear you are progressing well. You keep up the hard work too! We will get there!!

[@debeeolson2523]

Thank you so much! Starting week 6. You explain things so well, and my recovery is going great. Love your tips, they have worked for me.❤

[@livelongerlivestronger]

Yay! You are most welcome. I'm very glad to hear the video series has been helpful to you. YOU are exactly why I put all the time and effort into making them. It's great to hear your recovery has gone so well...awesome!

[@MrSeaneboy]

im 2.5 weeks post. I watch these advanced timeline videos for inspiration. Im still in pain and discomfort. Looking forward to week 9, believe me. Cheers

[@livelongerlivestronger]

@MrSeaneboy thank you for the feedback, I'm glad the videos are helpful! Don't worry, you will feel much better well before Week 9. Keep following your healthcare teams protocols and stay positive...you'll be there soon!

[@MrSeaneboy]

@@livelongerlivestronger thank you. Im sure youre right

[@lesliedavid1244]

It gets better. I’m at week 8 and feeling good

[@bradwilliams4921]

Thank you for your videos. I am coming up on week 8 post op and things are looking good. I feel this is because I was blessed with an excellent surgeon and great Physical Therapist. I have yet to start any active range of motion exercises and I am not certain when those will start but I remain optimistic.

[@livelongerlivestronger]

You are most welcome. I’m glad the videos have helped. I kept making them through week 17, so there is a lot more information on the channel if needed. Having a great surgeon and PT makes a huge difference. That combined with a positive mindset and consistent hard work. I started active range of motion on week 10. You have likely already started by now. Then comes strength training with light bands and dumbbells. Pretty soon you will start feeling more normal. Keep up the great work!

[@jgee3369]

Reverse shoulder replacement scheduled for June

[@livelongerlivestronger]

Best of wishes with your upcoming surgery and recovery!

[@gearwrenchstreetteamdealer7482]

You thing that help a lot was find something That you can hang from like a pull-up bar, hang from it with your feet on the ground. Try like 1 min and just work on the stretch

[@livelongerlivestronger]

I didn't hang from a pull-up bar until around 6 months in. I did use a pull-up bar to keep my arm elevated to assist with mobility, but never put any stress/strain or weight on it. Having said that, with a normal shoulder hanging regularly from a pull-up bar for a minute is super helpful to promote and maintain overhead mobility. It's something I do every day to this day and it's really helped.

[@jon1810]

Thanks for your videos. I’m 8 weeks post surgery for Supraspinatus full tear repair, labrum clean up, and Biceps Tenotomy. I feel like I’m progressing but this past week, I’m conjunction with more exercises, I have more pain. It’s on the front side of the shoulder and is a dull burning type pain. It goes away at night but as I move it, it comes back. Did you experience new types of pain that seemed to linger during your recovery?

[@livelongerlivestronger]

You are most welcome, I'm glad the videos are helpful. I definitely had new pains frequently, but they would typically quickly dissipate. When they didn't, it was due to overuse. A ton of changes are going on and they just take time. I actually made a video that may address your issue in more detail. The link is below. I'm hopeful it will answer your question in more detail: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZ-np6yOgqiWqrcsi=iwerYosA96cfEWrR

[@dassanghamitra]

I am 9 weeks PO and going through exactly what you told. Started active ROM and was feeling good. Yesterday i pushed myself..today i am in pain and shoulder is stiff

[@livelongerlivestronger]

@Sanghamitra Das I'm sorry to hear you are more stiff and having additional pain. You likely just pushed a little too hard. When that happened to me, I backed off either the volume or intensity for a bit and my shoulder returned to baseline. If that hadn't of worked, I would have definitely talked to my healthcare team. The good news is, that's totally normal! I've talked about that on a few of the videos. Check out Tip #3 on the Week 8 Video linked here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/pZ62dWpvf7yqnck Also check out Week 11 video on Pain vs. Discomfort. I think you will find the information useful! Here is that video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/qZ-np6yOgqiWqrc

[@dassanghamitra]

Thanks a lot Andrew for your quick response. One more advice I need from you .. My PT has started giving deep tissue laser therapy and it seems to be working. Do you think it can help. I will definitely check with my surgeon's team but wanted to get ur opinion on this. Thanks 🙏

[@livelongerlivestronger]

​@@dassanghamitra you're most welcome. I haven't had deep tissue laser therapy, but I do know that things like mobilization, passive range of motion, myofascial release, and massage to name a few are super helpful tools to reduce inflammation, break up scar tissue, and make you feel better. I am using all the tools I can to get better. I have also read good things about deep tissue laser therapy from reputable sources, not just the companies that are putting out the product. So, if it's offered to you, definitely try it and see if it helps. If it doesn't, you can always discontinue. Here is a link to an NCBI article about the use of low level laser therapy for musculoskeletal pain. After the link, I am pasting their conclusion as well. Please let me know how you do with it! www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4743666/ NCBI Conclusion: One has to be realistic about the therapeutic use of LLLT. The previous discussion has shown that LLLT is beneficial for pain relief and can accelerate the body’s ability to heal itself. LLLT has a long history and strong basic science evidence, which supports its use in pain management. It has few side effects and is well tolerated by the elderly. A laser or LED does not correct situations involving structural deficits or instabilities whether in bone or in soft tissue. Also, LLLT should only be used as an adjuvant therapy for pain relief in patients with neuropathic pain and neurologic deficits. Successful outcomes, like all medical management, depend on good clinical skills linked with an understanding of the nature of injury, inflammation, repair, pain, and the mechanism of laser and LED effects.

[@doclee84]

I'm at 9 wks and my progress is quite similar to yours. My surgeon told me to do the exercises every other day. I was wondering if you were told the same thing. Btw your videos are very helpful 🙂. Thanks!

[@livelongerlivestronger]

It depended on which phase of recovery I was doing. Passive mobility was twice daily. Active-assisted was twice daily. Active was daily. Strengthening was three times a week. I’m glad the videos were helpful!

[@nathanbruneau1822]

Im on week 10, and only have 90° w arm to side, and about 115° forward. Discouraging. But ill try more mini sessions and push less

[@livelongerlivestronger]

Hey Nathan! Don't worry at all. Mobility takes time and LOTS of work. I would make progress and immediately lose it an hour after I did mobility. I found consistent mobility with the mini sessions over time really added up and made a huge difference for me. I kept them light and easy, just doing mobility, and keeping PT a separate thing. It really helped a ton. Consistency was the key. Hope that helps. The main thing is, stay positive and be consistent. If you do, you will get there!

[@eileenbesser7831]

I would love to try child’s pose. I don’t have quite as many exercises as you do, but along the same lines.

[@livelongerlivestronger]

@Eileen Besser one of my favorite stretches for flexion is lying on the floor face up. Place the arms straight up to the ceiling, keeping them straight. Now gently put them overhead and let them get closer and closer to the ground. It's a really good, but gentle stretch!

[@mikematusek8410]

Great content !! I will have surgery on a complete full tear of the rotator cuff, it's also detached from bone. How long did it take you before you got the full go ahead to work out with weight. I'm 57 and always have been very active

[@livelongerlivestronger]

@Mike Matusek thank you! For me, I got the go ahead to start light banded resistance at 12 weeks. At 18 weeks, I got the go ahead to gradually increase to nothing more than 25 lbs. below my shoulder and 10 lbs. above. I've always been super active as well. That's been the hardest part for me, is trying to stay active, when we're not supposed to be super active. There are ways we can do something though! I'm sorry to hear about the detachment, but stay positive and follow your healthcare team's advice. You will get there!

[@reneeb5935]

Hi Mike! I had the same as you and received banded resistance at 12 weeks.

[@ironlung2267]

Question - did you do these 5 Active ROM movements in addition to your formal pt sessions on non-pt days? I'm at 18 weeks, my pt has me doing 3 pt sessions a week to build strength - on non pt days she tells me just to move my arm like I normally would live life which will help build strength. This is where I'm having trouble because I can easily over do it with no formal moves on off days as well as I have a horrible pain arc from 80 - 120 degrees flexion, I got a cortisone shot a week ago that improved this.

[@livelongerlivestronger]

I used what I call mini-sessions, which you can find in the Week 8 video on the channel. I talk about those mini-sessions in several of the subsequent videos in detail as well, like Week 13 and 14, etc. Check the videos out for that level of detail. The short version is, I did those several times a day, every day. It helped immensely! You can’t do strengthening movements several times a day, but you can use the movements I show in the videos. If I had to do it all over, I would definitely use mini-sessions several times a day for my entire recovery. The movements change during different stages of recovery, but the concept remains the same. Hope that helps!

[@vbBegin1957]

I see you didnt record week 7. Im in week 7 today and like to know how soon you started back to weights?

[@livelongerlivestronger]

@vbBegin I did the shoulder surgery prep video on week 7. I've linked the video for Week 8, with some helpful tips, below in this reply. If you keep watching the videos past week 10, you will see the exact timing and processes I used for recovery. My timeline was a little longer because my surgeon wanted to give my repair a little more time to heal since he knew I would be really active. Strengthening started happening a few weeks later. At week 7, you're getting close to starting your strengthening again. It takes time to hit real weights. I was lifting normally again after a year. Hope that helps! kzbin.info/www/bejne/pZ62dWpvf7yqnck

[@k.v.lokesh]

Hi sir ,after surgery till how many days will be paining and when i will do cricket and gym i got surgery past 3months back .. but still i hav pain sir

[@livelongerlivestronger]

Hi K.V.! It was 4 months until I was doing most normal, light household tasks, 6 months until I could workout using most movements, and 12 months until I was totally back to lifting heavy weights and doing more complex CrossFit movements. Check out the next 5-6 videos in the series on my channel. The Weeks 10-17 videos will show you the incremental progress and movement progressions to give you a better idea on those details. Best wishes on your recovery!

[@GFS695]

I cant do side raises at all, week 9.

[@livelongerlivestronger]

Keep at it. Shoulder surgery recovery takes a LONG time and we all recover at different rates due to many factors. Keep following your healthcare teams instructions, be consistent with your therapy, and stay positive. This is a marathon. You WILL get there!

[@kathysavage2548]

I am week 9 and no good for me Super painful

[@livelongerlivestronger]

I'm sorry to hear that. Make sure to communicate to your healthcare team, surgeon and PT. They can often times change meds or prescribe a therapy that will help.

[@8garyhouse8]

I'm sorry but upright rows have no place in physical therapy much less Working out in a gym when healthy. An extremely bad exercise for shoulder health. But If extreme capsular compression and impingement is your thing have at it

[@livelongerlivestronger]

I’ve read and seen that literature as well. Jeff Cavaliere is a DPT and is strictly against them, as are many others. I addressed my concerns with my DPT. What isn’t as mainstream is why upright rows can be bad. It’s because of improper technique. My DPT made sure I was doing mine correctly and they helped me a lot. I am now pain free and lifting better than I was before surgery. I agree with you, upright rows can absolutely be very bad if not done correctly or anatomy of the individual is not conducive to this particular movement.