Rotator Cuff Surgery pt 3 - First Weeks

My first PT session a week after surgery went very well. My therapist found good range of motion, showing not too much scar tissue had developed, and was glad my pain levels were not an issue. I was given a few simple, but surprisingly challenging exercises to do at home. Our main goal was not to increase strength like most athletes, but to stop my muscle from atrophying any more than it had since surgery. One exercise was to squeeze my shoulder blades together. It was difficult to simply move my tight shoulder, but once the muscles began to relax and moved easier I could clearly see a decent loss of muscle definition already.

By the end of the second week, I had been to two PT appointments and already felt much improvement in my shoulder. So much time had seemed to pass that I somehow convinced myself I was three weeks post-surgery. When I realized my mistake, I was fairly disheartened to know I was only halfway through my first month instead of close to a full month in. But on the other hand, I was thrilled to be so far recovery wise in such a short time.

While I could use my left hand sparingly, although for nothing weight baring, I was still basically one-handed for all intents and purposes. So I was less than thrilled when I had an accident resulting in a deep cut on the thumb of my only good hand. Thankfully it healed quickly, feeling close to normal after a week, but the loss of my main stabilizing finger definitely gave added challenge to picking up things like water glasses. I’d highly suggest not following my lead in that area. It was certainly a physical and emotional setback to have further handicap myself.

Three years ago, I hiked the Appalachian Trail with my husband. During the months of hiking there was a time or two when we ran out of water and had to continue walking late at night, tired and thirsty until we found an active source of water. Those times were very frustrating. You simply wanted to stop and sleep, but were parched and knew that feeling would only intensify if you slept dehydrated and had to start the next morning not knowing how long you’d hike before finding water. Recovery from rotator cuff surgery is similar to that feeling. Simply wanting to have water (be recovered) but knowing the only way to get it is by keeping walking. All you want is to have a normally functioning arm again. But once you’ve had surgery, you’re stuck recovering at the rate you’re told if you ever want that normal arm function again. You almost begin to wish you hadn’t had surgery, but trust me, as frustratingly slow as recovery is, the lack of intense pain is 100% worth the frustration of waiting.

What’s worse, you can’t even get properly frustrated. Your shoulder can’t experience too much movement so you must stay calm and find other ways to release the stress. Some people run, others do a hard workout, but none of these are very satisfying when you have to go slow enough to minimize bouncing. You can’t walk fast, let alone become physically frustrated.

People often say, it could be a lot worse, many people would love your problem. But honestly, I thank when we say this we undervalue what that person is experiencing. It could always be worse. Technically, even if you were to die it Could have been worse. It could have been gruesome or slow or a million other worse things. Why do we rank pain based on other people’s experiences? Yes, surgery might seem minor overall, but maybe that person is experiencing a number of other large life struggles and exercise is their one release? Suddenly this “not so bad” thing is seen in a different light. If they’re a strong, mentally healthy person they’ll find a new outlet, but it’s still an added strain on their current situation. We work to bloom where we’re planted, but we’re not all the same type of plant so what soil (or situation) might not sound so bad to you might be someone else’s dessert. You could be a cactus and love it. But if they’re a plant that needs shade and plentiful water, they’ll quickly struggle to survive.

This is why benchmarks are so important. They give you goals to work toward. So dive into your PT like it’s a second job. Obviously listen to your body, but as your can stretch farther or move easier, note that and celebrate it just like you would a gym PR. It helps immensely to keep a record of your stability, mobility, and strength gains. The progress is a constant reminder that “normal” life is slowly returning.

Rocking the focused face

I was glad to have my physical therapist progressing me weekly with new exercises. By week two of PT I was working with pulleys to regain passive shoulder mobility, adding a few pounds to my bicep curls, and getting to use resistance bands with my tricep extensions. Excited with the prospect of soon being given the green light to move my elbow actively away from my body…I was becoming tired of walking around the house looking like a T-rex. I was noticing slight muscle stability gains in small ways. Originally when putting on deodorant I had to be extremely careful, but now my arm could withstand slight pressure without sending out a warning signal through my shoulder. I also noticed when I washed my gimpy arm in the shower I could apply a slight pressure to the part of my arm normally pressed against my torso without it getting angry.

It’s challenging to describe the sensations you’ll experience in your body while your arm is stretching, strengthening, and healing, but I’ll endeavor to do my best. I personally hated the inability to do normal activities or exercise. The high level of restrictions left me fairly terrified of the notion I might reinjure the area during the healing process. Every little sensation gave way to waves of panic that I had pulled or injured something trying to heal still. My PT reassured me there would be small pulling sensations and tightness that was totally normal. My understanding was that as the muscle was used and moved, excess scar tissue was being broken, a good thing since it would otherwise hamper mobility. The areas around my shoulder incisions would get extremely angry also. As the surrounding muscles worked to make up for the healing ones, my neck, upper back, shoulder, pec, and upper arm all seemed constantly riddled with knots or very tight. The stretches helped offer relief and I used my sidekick tool often to aid in the massage efforts.

The worst part was probably the tightness that was almost impossible to fully fix without someone hand massaging the tight areas throughout the day. Since that’s not feasible for most people, you’ll be left to focus on constantly relaxing the area. It’s amazing how the body naturally works to protect weak areas by getting them to tighten and pull close to the body. For me personally, the only time I found true relaxation was when I laid down with my sling on. Nighttime was my joy and I found it hard coaxing myself from bed in the mornings.