The Vent and Rant Thread

[Lady Blue]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

I spent almost all of the past year dealing with frozen shoulder on the right side. It has pretty much resolved (with a lot of pt visits) but now the left one is freezing, even more painfully than the first one did. Lots of different opinions around about treatment, but pt helped me get through the last one (and I really like my therapist) so I'm going that route with this one. Except today I came home from pt and burst into tears, because the session was soooo painful.

I can empathize with what you're going through. I suffered with frozen shoulder (my right) about 2 years ago. I went to PT 3 times a week for 3 months and it still wasn't back to normal, though it did help. I got a painful shot in that shoulder too. Semi-relief lasted about a day, no longer. Then I was sent to a pain specialist and was given some heavy duty pain pills I'd never heard of, but were quite potent. I stay away from even OTC drugs if at all possible. A headache has to last for hours before I consider taking anything for it. But I was in so much pain that I took the pain pills (but only when I'd be staying at home). They helped a great deal, time passed and with continuing PT at home as well, eventually my shoulder was usable again and pain-free, but from onset to recovery lasted nearly a year.

I hope your current bout with frozen shoulder turns out to be not as severe and of shorter duration. I know I never want to go through that again. And I feel bad for anyone that goes through it, especially a second time. Best of luck.

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

I spent almost all of the past year dealing with frozen shoulder on the right side. It has pretty much resolved (with a lot of pt visits) but now the left one is freezing, even more painfully than the first one did. Lots of different opinions around about treatment, but pt helped me get through the last one (and I really like my therapist) so I'm going that route with this one. Except today I came home from pt and burst into tears, because the session was soooo painful.

Oh. My sympathies. My left shoulder froze up in Summer 2012. After some attempts with a physiotherapist recommending exercises for me to do at home, finally resorted to an osteopath that my wife had previously used. I think some of the osteopathy ideas are a bit suspect, but this ostepath certainly knew all about shoulders and what was needed to relax the muscles. It took about six monthly visits to get me back in working order.

If your PT is doing direct manipulations, I suspect that is the best course. I found doing exercises myself didn't really help at all, but my osteopath worked on the muscles around my shoulder, easing each group in turn.

[bjones6416]

See? I guess misery loves company, lol, because you guys made me feel better! No, I'm not doing any strength training or exercises at all -- just VERY gentle stretches at home. And yes, all manual therapy at PT -- stretches, mobilizations, massage. He really has to earn his money on me!

[covingtoncat73]

Originally Posted by Lady Blue

Do you have online access to census records? You seem to be in to genealogy pretty deep, so I would imagine you already checked census records for the names you need IF they would be listed in the 1850 census or later where individual names were listed. I'm sure you've already checked every avenue available. I was just wondering.

Thanks. Yeah, I think I found what I am pretty sure was my greatx3 grandfather in the 18600 census but that led to more questions. The Heritage Quest Database has the 1860 and 1840 but not the 1850. Also iit is just weird I can[t find obits for him or his first wife. I found one for his older brother, which didn't mention his brothers at all, and one for his second wife.

I hear you on flu shots. I don't know how effective their are. the last time I had the Flu was the sprig after I'd had a shot (I got a shot the november before). It is true that could've been just a really bad respiratory infection, though...

[covingtoncat73]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

I spent almost all of the past year dealing with frozen shoulder on the right side. It has pretty much resolved (with a lot of pt visits) but now the left one is freezing, even more painfully than the first one did. Lots of different opinions around about treatment, but pt helped me get through the last one (and I really like my therapist) so I'm going that route with this one. Except today I came home from pt and burst into tears, because the session was soooo painful.

Ouch! I'm so sorry. My step-father called his physical therapist the "physical terrorist." I know they do good work but, from all I've heard, it can be pretty painful for the patient!

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Lady Blue

...We've been hearing a lot about the new 4-strain flu shots ... my fabulous employer-paid health insurance coverage ... I don't want to mention any names (Blue Cross Blue Shield) will not pay for the 4-strain shot. They'll only pay for the 3-strain shot! ...

That sucks. I have the same insurance, although like you, I won't mention BCBS's name (and yes, otherwise it is a pretty good insurance). I have an annual checkup coming up in a couple of weeks, so I'll ask if they have the 4-strain shot. If they do and I have to pay $39.00 for the added protection, I'll pay it. Getting the flu is no fun.

[Rumpelteazer]

I'm wondering if it is (inter)national be-rude-to-others day. It started this morning when I went down to the store 15 minutes before we open so I could change the till, turn on everything that needs to be turned on and sweeping up the leaves in the entryway. There was a customer who was already waiting when I got downstairs and when I didn't open the door for him he started knocking on the window, ringing the doorbell and shouting through the mailbox! I'm sorry, but we open at 10am, I go downstairs early to get everything ready and when I'm done, almost always before 10am, I open the store. He complained to my dad about my disrespect, my father agreed with me that he was lucky I let him in at all.

The day ended with someone calling me a nasty name because I couldn't remember the light he bought 3 years ago for his bathroom and he didn't know what he needed himself.

In between there was other rude behaviour of customers (impatient sighing and huffing when the customer in front of them needs a longer explanation), being snippy when told something is sold out/not in stock.

It's been a while since we had a day like this, luckily there are few of those days!

[cromag]

I'm sorry, but the rudest thing I can think to do on be-rude-to-others day would be to be as pleasant as possible. Maybe now they've all got what they need and the nice folks can come back!




I don't mean to be overly cryptic, but this is going to be a very weird weekend. If I can make it to Wednesday I'll be alright!

[Rumpelteazer]

Originally Posted by cromag

I'm sorry, but the rudest thing I can think to do on be-rude-to-others day would be to be as pleasant as possible. Maybe now they've all got what they need and the nice folks can come back!




I don't mean to be overly cryptic, but this is going to be a very weird weekend. If I can make it to Wednesday I'll be alright!

That's usually how I do it, unless they are really rude, then I kick them out. It's always funny how confused rude people get when you act all sweet and nice!

Good luck this weekend and hopefully it won't be overly weird (or will be, if you want that).

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

See? I guess misery loves company, lol, because you guys made me feel better! No, I'm not doing any strength training or exercises at all -- just VERY gentle stretches at home. And yes, all manual therapy at PT -- stretches, mobilizations, massage. He really has to earn his money on me!

Ah, the frozen shoulder club. I started out with a torn rotator cuff, right shoulder, in May 2012 (hot on the heels of having fractured my right big toe in February that same year), which turned into frozen shoulder by mid-summer, and I'm still dealing with it. "Gentle" PT didn't seem to do anything for me, so I rigged up my exercise equipment here and finally just (don't scream) tore the damn adhesions myself by doing a form of angled lat-pulldown. (I used the wide lat-pulldown bar, and pushed the left side out as far in front and to the right of me as I could, which pushed my right arm/shoulder backwards and at an angle behind and away from my body, which was where I had the least mobility). A huge bit of the adhesions tore, and I got a lot of my mobility back in the arm, but I'm still fighting with it.

I mean, frozen shoulder is "adhesive capsulitis." it's a bit like Endometriosis, if anyone female here has had that--filmy adhesions form, and then connect from A to B. With Frozen Shoulder, they form, attach themselves from one muscle or tendon to another, then they harden and become scar tissue. The only way, really, to "fix" Frozen Shoulder is to either see if the adhesions tear themselves, bit-by-bit, over time, as you use the arm, or...just rip them yourself. That's what PT really does (and why it hurts so much and makes you cry). After nearly a year of small exercises, light stretching, blah-blah, I said something impolite and used the lat-pulldown. Got a big bunch of the pain over with at once (n.b.: I took pain pills first; I used that electronic gizmo they give you to help numb the shoulder, then I did the first of about 10 of the pulldowns, and I did it when I was alone in the house so the little screams and whimpers wouldn't be heard. I keep doing them, but the screaming and whimpering part is over).

I still can't raise my hand as far behind my back as I'd like, but most of the range of motion of the arm has returned now, and generally speaking, it does not hurt. I do highly recommend the steroid injections, at least 2, for anyone who hasn't tried that, early on, (I made a lot of progress with those), but the PT, either slow or fast, is really the best way to fix it. Mine was very severe--my use of the arm was extremely restricted--so my, um, "solution" mayn't be the right path for most people. After nearly 18 months of first having a foot that wouldn't work and kept re-breaking, then the cuff tear, then the frozen shoulder, my sense of humor went right out the window.

Obviously, this was a real hail mary ploy, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone. If you have a tear that's still inflamed, doing something like this will tear the cuff, so be sure that the tear has healed (inasmuch as they ever heal) before you do anything this daft. In fact--don't do anything this daft.

In any event--man, do you have my sympathies! If they haven't given you the little electronic doodah with the patches, that helps numb the area, ask them about that. It does help, however temporarily, and it absolutely helps with the pain after PT.

(And my health insurer wouldn't pay for my bloody Flu shot, either, those wankers.)

Hitch

[wannabee]

Originally Posted by bjones6416

See? I guess misery loves company, lol, because you guys made me feel better! No, I'm not doing any strength training or exercises at all -- just VERY gentle stretches at home. And yes, all manual therapy at PT -- stretches, mobilizations, massage. He really has to earn his money on me!

I noticed your signature reference to chocolate. I suggest you google +sugar +inflammation +pain and do some research. Every time I get stuck into the chocolate, biscuits or high carbs, my shoulder, left foot and thumbs give me hell. I lay off the sugar for a weekmor so and, although it doesn't go away completely, I get good relief.

Mark

[bjones6416]

Tee hee. No, I'm not really into chocolate. It was just a quote from Worldwalker years ago that tickled my funny bone.

And yes, Hitch, I get to have the electric patch gizmo at the end of PT to help with the pain. And based on how my other shoulder did last year, this lightning bolt pain should recede as the shoulder moves on into the frozen stage. Tough to get through, though.

[Rumpelteazer]

Tip:

when you've banged your head hard enough to get a bump don't go dye your hair with dye you need to massage in the next day. Ouch.

[nohmi2]

When, oh when, are major stores going to insist on standardised clothing
sizes from manufacturers?

This lark of always having to try on garments has lost it's thrill I tell ya!

Cheers.

[poohbear_nc]

If I were allowed to use lethal force at work, things would go so much smoother .... and I would feel so much better ....


00Pooh?