The shoulder joint of your body is one of the most vulnerable joints present in the human body. However, we should be careful of the probable injuries that can occur to the shoulder and take precautionary measures accordingly. In fact, if your shoulders are healthy in spite of the number of movements it goes through, then you surely must be doing the right things to strengthen them. Many reasons can cause shoulder muscle pain. The number of ligaments and tendons associated with a shoulder result in different categories of injuries to the shoulder.
A common cause of shoulder muscle pain is soreness of the tendon in the rotator cuff. This rotator cuff is that part of the shoulder which helps in its circular motion. The other common cause of shoulder pain is the soreness of the subacromial bursa, which is a sac of fluid under the highest part of the human shoulder. Sometimes the injury or pain in the shoulder is so underlying that you may not experience any pain during idle periods. But the pain evokes after writing, lifting items, or playing a sport, i.e., anything that requires you to lift your arms. You may not remember any injury, but the pain during the lifting motion turns out to be sharp and unperturbed.
How does the rotator cuff get hurt?
The rotator cuff is made up of four muscles that surround the prime arm bone. This rotator cuff function in keeping the shoulder steady as the arm moves. The Supraspinatus muscle rests on top of the shoulder. The tendon from this muscle travels under the bone on the outside of the shoulder. This tendon is injured most often due to its position between the bones. If this tendon becomes swollen and sore, it can get pressed between the two bones. As a result, the sac of fluid that cushions the tendon can also be damaged. In that case, the pain is usually at the outer side of the shoulder. This pain worsens when you raise your arm or try to lift something above your head. This type of shoulder muscle pain can be so bad that it might restrain you from doing even the simplest of tasks.
The immediate treatment for a shoulder muscle pain includes the following:
- Rest
- Apply a heating pad or cold pad to the sore area.
- Adding lavender or other specific essential oils to your herbal bag can help reduce your discomfort caused by a shoulder muscle pain.
- Over-the-counter medicines can reduce the pain and swelling.
- Applying electrical stimulation of muscles and nerves helps in shoulder pains caused due to muscle disorder or ligament injury.
- Conduct Ultrasound (USG) to understand how critical the condition is. The treatment will thus be prescribed depending on the severity of the injury.
- Injecting a pain reliever acts for quicker relief from pain in the shoulder.
- Exercise to improve range-of-motion, strength, and function of the shoulder affected by the muscle pain.
Exercises to get relief from shoulder muscle pain:
Some of the exercises may turn out as a relief to the shoulder muscle pain, but you should consult a doctor before trying them out. A wrong exercise can make things worse resulting in more pain and discomfort.
- The range of motion
Stand up and lean over facing the floor. Let your sore arm dangle straight down and then draw circles in the air with that arm. Draw small circles in the beginning, and then gradually draw bigger ones. Repeat this 5 to 10 times during a day. However, if you experience pain, stop doing the exercise and wait for the pain to reduce. - Rotator cuff strengthening
To do this exercise, you need a piece of rubber tubing. Stand next to a closed door with a doorknob. Connect the tubing around the knob. With your hand that is closest to the door, flex your arm at a 90° angle from the elbow, then grasp the loop of the tubing and extract the band across your tummy. Start with one set and slowly try to increase the number of sets as your shoulder pain lessens. But do it every day. - Upper extremity strengthening
With time when your pain withers away, a general weight-lifting program for the upper body using weight machines or free weights can be added. Lie on your right side with your left arm along your side. With a weight in your left hand and your forearm across your tummy, raise your forearm. Keep your elbow near your side during this whole exercise.
Apart from the above exercises, an aerobic exercise program may also help to improve the blood flow to the tendon. The blood flow caused due to the aerobics helps in reducing the soreness. This helps the injury heal faster.
A shoulder muscle pain usually takes a long time to heal. In many cases, the pain subsides temporarily due to medicine but remains dormant. Any minimal injury can aggravate the pain. So, it is always suggested to address the pain at the earliest stage so that things do not go out of control and your shoulder remains fit and fine.
