Think it depends on how you react to pain meds. Don't hesitate to call your doctor to get a new script if the ones prescribed don't cut it. My big advice on the whole is get therapists you can work with. Be sure to ask your doctor who he recommends and be sure to ask what exercises the doctor is requiring when so you know what the therapists should be doing as well. When it comes to exercises, try to do each with your good arm first to see how the shoulder moves and then mimic it with the one you are working out. I'm with Sky on the ice cream thing. I snarfed loads of ice cream sandwiches and inhaled gallons of milk and orange juice after surgery. Did alot of frozen fruit smoothies spiked with Emergen-C as well. Figured I had a calcium and potassium craving going on. Recovery time seems to depend on extent of injury, how quickly you heal, how good your therapists are, and how you balance working the joint with resting it.

Sky,

I just spent an hour responding to your kind reply.... went to "preview" mode and lost everything that I had written to you in response, it was a long missive. I really appreciated your message, and spent a lot of time writing back but it was lost.

So now briefly, I have taken to heart your advice about PTs and will do the "right" albeit "painful" course. I think I am already at a disadvantage here because I've already spent 7-weeks doing Alleve, Ben Gay, massive asprin, and compensation for my injured shoulder before I sought treatment. I am so trained in not using my left arm or shoulder even prior to surgery it is just so intuitive now I don't now how to break it...

Its a shame I somehow lost all that I had written to you but there are two things that stood out to me, I'll briefly repeat. I really appreciate going into this with the collective knowledge and wisdom you all have given me and Kudos to you all. My husband has raised objections to this correspondence with you and this website because he says "There's no good from a bunch of people boo-hooing to each other".

We obviously know better -- that this is a communication about information and education, shared experiences, emotional and physical support. I am very apprehensive about having this surgery done and ending up victim to not emotionally or physically standing my ground.

I'm afraid I will just be dependent and isolated after this surgery. I'm afraid this is just what he wants to seize total control of our life. So Sky, I wrote you but it vanished into the ethers of byte heaven. Robyn

Kelik,

I am a soldier, I'll do whatever I'm told to do painful or not in terms of rehab, as long as it doesn't involve pushups, situps, or running. lol I think your general advice is to be assertive when it comes to meds or PTs, to demand the medication you need and the therapists with your well-being in mind. And to be responsible for your own progress, exercise, and communication.

Emotionally I am a wreck right now with surgery next week. But you and Sky and ice cream really? I am going to be on a couch, bed or recliner snarfing down ice cream all day? I haven't had ice cream anything in over 8-years... no pie, no cake, no candy, no chocolate anything... I just don't, when John takes the boys out for ice cream or treats I just get a soda. At the "Cheesecake Factory" restaurant I din't have any desert.. After the surgery, maybe ice-cream could be my savior? Hmmmmmmm

I'm bored trying to wait out this surgery for the past 7 weeks. I've "soldiered on" and have had weekend guests, I've done back to school everything. Haven't seen my chiropractor since this injury and my entire body aches with the compensation for the injured shoulder, how do you incorporate that into your PT?

Thankfully Love Robyn - don't tempt me with ice cream though

You really need to allow yourself to feel bad, fighting it will just prolong the emotional crippling affect. Get the "bad" out, fast, then make room to move forward and allow the positive to work. Pain is something "I" have found is just part of my life, no where to go, no where to hide, so it is there and I've accepted living with it, I've been over a year of real pain. My new PT is getting somewhere now, pain is still there, but things ARE changing. Everyday can feel like a lifetime, but you have to keep moving forward in your personal being. It's okay to have occasional "break-down, poor me sessions", just don't let that rule you as it will hamper your ability to move forward. Don't live on expectations, appreciate every little improvement, no matter the size. You MAY just breeze right out of this surgery and surprise yourself, MANY do great and don't have the issues that some of us end up with. May your surgery be one of the many positive ones!

I'll keep you in my thoughts!!! How about frozen yogurt? LOL

Sky

Heh.... Tell your husband you are boo hooing here so he won't have to listen to it.

And I'm not allowed push ups, sit ups, or running for at least a few more months so things are looking up for you in a big way.... LOL

Maybe your weakness will be hot tea or frozen fruit bars. I was sort of surprised when I started pounding the ice cream, but the average high here was around 100. The brace was worse than a bulky wool sweater. I dealt with a lot of pain after surgery but part of that was because I wasn't allowed to move my arm at all for weeks (problem with therapy) and my initial pain meds didn't work. Made for a grumpy joint for a bit which felt better once I started doing exercises for therapy.

I'd been on the disabled list for three months before I finally talked an OS into doing exploratory surgery to find out what was wrong with the shoulder. That pre-op period was a nasty time so you definitely have my sympathy. I found the pain after surgery was actually not as bad as what I had experienced for the months before...AND once I got a new script a week after surgery, I had good pain meds for when I decided I didn't want to tolerate it.

Oh... One thing I didn't mention... Not sure what others have done, but I bought a bunch of front closure sports bras to wear around the house because the brace made normal clothing impossible. I borrowed some button down shirts from my boyfriend to wear over everything if I went out. My boyfriend about died laughing the first time I went to dinner with him because he said I looked like I had one arm and was about eight months pregnant.

Let us know how things go for you... My biggest problem was cabin fever after surgery....

Hi Robyn - I'm scheduled for surgery Sept. 3 - one day after you. It will be exactly 6 months after my first surgery (yup, headin' in for round 2), and I can definitely appreciate the anxiety, even after having gone through this already. My first surgery was a subacromial decompression, bursectomy, and removal of some bone spurs. I always had bad biceps pain after I injured my shoulder last July (I've been dealing with this for over a year!), and continued to have the same pain after surgery. New MRI shows torn biceps tendon, rotator cuff tear, and torn labrum - go figure! I'm not sure what the other surgeon was looking at when he did my first surgery, or if all this fun stuff happened in PT. But I found myself a new surgeon and will hopefully get everything fixed next week.

These are just a few things I learned from last time. -Find a comfortable place to set up camp and have it ready for when you come home from surgery. -Keep the vital stuff right at hand - pain meds, TV remote, portable phone, water bottle, iPod, whatever else you can think of. - Stay on schedule with the pain meds, most definitely! -Stay hydrated! The pain meds will make you, um, "clogged." That can become a real problem (it was for me last time). A friend told me that everytime he took pain meds he also took Senokot and that really helped, along with drinking lots of water. -Make sure your post-up instructions regarding what you can and can't do with your arm are clear - communication with your surgeon is so important and very often so lacking! If your surgeon's not a great communicator (most aren't) maybe he has a physician's assistant that you can connect with. -I found a great sports bra that zips in the front and has a racerback. It's available on QVC and it's made by Carol Wior. -Ice cream therapy is a must... Sky is right!

Now that you've found this site, stay connected! I found that there were lots of ups and downs during my recovery last time, and I only had the barest minimum of surgery done. My friends and family just didn't understand because they've not been through it. They mean well, but recovery can be lonely. Everyone here knows the frustrations, and can appreciate the joy in even the smallest of milestones. And there's lots of knowledge and experience flying around these boards in addition to the support, with lots of generous folks willing to share it.

Good luck on Tuesday! I'll be thinking of you as I go into anxiety overload about Wednesday.

Sue