20 Jan Why Do I Have Shoulder Pain?
Our shoulder joints are one of the most mobile in our entire body, moving the shoulder backwards and forwards, and also allowing you to move your arms in a circular motion, as well as up and away from your body. As such, keeping them in good working order is clearly quite important!
Problems with this particular joint can be especially distressing, as it can make it very hard and painful to move around freely, leaving you feeling very uncomfortable indeed.
Unfortunately, there are all sorts of ways in which you can injure your shoulder, whether it’s through sports and exercise, repetitive movements (which can cause strain, often without you noticing until you experience a level of pain), or manual labour.
It’s important to take care of your body and keep it strong and healthy, no matter what age you are, but don’t forget that you are more likely to experience shoulder pain the older you get, as the soft tissue in the shoulder that helps keep it moving well can degenerate with age.
What causes shoulder pain?
One of the most common causes of shoulder pain is a rotator cuff problem and tendonitis in the shoulder can be very uncomfortable. Tendonitis is when your tendons become inflamed or irritated – and you may well have heard it referred to as swimmer’s or tennis shoulder, as these sports involve a lot of activities where your arm is lifted over your head (Healthline, rotator cuff injury page).
Symptoms of tendonitis include pain or swelling in the front of the shoulder and side of the arm, stiffness, a clicking sound when you raise your arm, pain that wakes you when you’re sleeping, a loss of mobility and strength, and pain when you raise or lower your arm, or when you reach behind your back.
Other causes can be frozen shoulder (where the joint becomes so stiff and painful that you can’t use your arm to do everyday activities), referred pain from the neck or upper back, osteoarthritis (where the cartilage has worn away so the bones in the joint rub together) and shoulder instability.
How do you treat shoulder pain?
Shoulder problems can be very complex and take some time to resolve, which is why you may want to make an appointment with Camberley osteopathy clinic OsteoVision sooner rather than later if you want to start moving pain-free.
An osteopath can work with you to work out the root cause of the problem, making use of different massage, articulation and stretching techniques to help reduce tension and improve shoulder movement.
You may also be given strengthening or loosening exercises and provide advice on posture, as well as lifestyle, to help make sure you’re doing all you can to look after your shoulders properly. If you’d like to find out more, get in touch with us today.