r/ShoulderInjuries

I just got my MRI arthrogram back and it doesn’t show anything really of significance. Maybe a minor labrum tear. I’ve been having shoulder pain since my injury but I also have pain on the side of my neck. PT, massage, a shot, and acupuncture has not helped me. I have been in PT for 8 months now. I’m getting really frustrated about this because I’m experiencing pain and have been since I was injured. I frequently feel pain that feels like it’s going down a line, like from my neck to my fingers. I thought the MRI would give me more answers and now I’m left with more questions.

Hi guys

I need advice regarding my shoulder dislocation.

My shoulder dislocated for the first time in 2022, and after that I was admitted to the Accident Ward, and doctors relocated my shoulder properly. After that, my shoulder dislocated a second time in like 2024. The first time and the second time, doctors said to do exercise and attend the clinic, but I couldn't do it properly. After years without any proper exercise or clinic, my shoulder dislocated a third time in April 2026. This time, I was able to relocate my shoulder by myself, and I didn't do any exercises either. For the fourth time, my shoulder dislocated the day before, and I wasn't able to relocate it by myself. This time, I felt more pain, so I was admitted to the accident ward, and the doctors relocated it properly. So I need advice on how I can prevent future dislocation, and has anyone faced this? Please be kind enough to drop a message because now I am a little bit scared about what will happen in the future, and how I will know if I need surgery or not? If I do surgery, will it prevent future dislocation? Also, I hope to go to the gym as well, so guys don't hesitate to share your opinions and thoughts about my situation. I would love to hear from youra side.

my shoulders took some of the load. i lifted through it for the rest of my session but i went considerably lighter on the weight. i woke up this morning with soreness in my shoulders and pain when i lift my arms but i still have full ROM it will just hurt and the pain is in the front of my shoulder. i just want to know how serious you guys think this is and if it warrents a doctor visit or you think it can go away in a few days

Hello from New Zealand

I am seeing a lot of people are going through surgery I just want some personal experince and also professional opinion on this matter I understand that it depends on how severe the accident was.

The place I stay at is slack with properly treating patients as its free health care to give in example I dislocated my left shoulder skat boarding fell off from about meter and a half reach my left hand backwards and it popped out, I had to wait about 2 and a half hour to put it back in place from doctors they x rayed my shoulder after popping it back in and told me to go back to work the next day I did not have any mri to see if there was ligament or nerve damage either.

My ankle was quite bad in condition but they did not check it either.

Seems like they are not going to push for me to get a surgery as its a big wait list and public funding.

Background I am sort of fit 24 years old male. First dislocation

Questio 1: can you make a full recovery without surgery or is surgery necessary to get close as possible to full recovery

Question 2: since i am likely to not get surgery how do I be careful and get back into work, gyming, hunting, martial arts etc. I do like physical activity.

Question 3: should It be necessary for me to get a mri scan?

​

Has anyone had a minor posterior tear and successfully rehabbed it without surgery? What exercises did you do?

Hi!

I’ve had an irritated shoulder and neck for a year due to lifting too heavy at the gym (self inflicted I know!) I’ve had 6 months of physio and it’s still there now. I do my physio exercises and it’s still irritated. On top of that I started a new job and was given a work station assessment but my issues are still there. I was given an ergonomic mouse and ergonomic chair with neck support. I’ve tried the ergonomic chair with and without armrests - my shoulder is still irritated.

Anyway, I was wondering if anyone had tried a sports massage for an irritated nerve in shoulder? if so, did it help and how many sessions did you need?

i’m freaking out about losing my job 😰.

any advice is appreciate.

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Hey everyone,

I’ve had arthroscopic Bankart repair surgeries on both of my shoulders. Fortunately, the damage wasn't too severe in either case, so I only needed 2 anchors in each shoulder to tie the labrum back down. I am currently working through physical therapy, and my ultimate goal is to return to MMA.

For any fighters or grapplers who have been through this and made it back to the mats/cage:

1. Is it truly feasible to return to full MMA sparring and grappling after having both shoulders repaired?

2. How long did it take for you to actually feel confident throwing hard strikes, posting, or defending submissions without constantly worrying about your shoulders popping out?

3. What specific changes did you make to your fighting style, daily training, or physical conditioning to make sure you didn't reinjure them?

Any advice, timelines, or reality checks would be greatly appreciated!

I hurt my shoulder in the gym a couple weeks ago. I was warming up for dumbbell bench press. I put the weights up and then I heard a crunching noise in my left shoulder. Next thing I know, my arm completely gave out and I had to drop the weight. I knew right away that I was pretty messed up. I’ve suffered a few injuries as a result of training; strained back, pulled hamstring, etc.

I went to the ER and the doctor sent me to get X-rays. Those came back negative. I was discharged with the diagnosis of a potentially partially torn rotator cuff. I went to see my doctor a week later and they didn’t really have a definitive stance on what it could be. My doctor made an appointment for me to get an MRI at the end of the month.

I’m hoping that I didn’t tear my rotator cuff but everything I look at online points to that because I can’t lift my arm above my head. Has anyone had a similar experience before? My range of motion has improved since the injury and I feel a bit stronger but I still don’t have full range of motion.

Hello! My mom has had recurrent right shoulder dislocations since 2011 and is finally having Latarjet surgery this year.

Her surgery was originally in July but got postponed to September due to a cold. I live abroad, but I came home to help her through it. Unfortunately, I have to leave for classes on the day of her surgery and can’t change my flight.

She’ll have some help from family, but she mostly relies on me, so I’m trying to prepare everything I can before I leave.

What can I do to make her recovery easier at home? I was thinking about setting up the bathroom for one-handed use and getting a special pillow or anything helpful for sleeping and daily tasks.

For anyone who’s been through shoulder surgery or helped someone recover, what would you recommend preparing in advance? Anything you wish you had set up or bought?

Thank you!

Hey guys! I thought I’d come here for help and hopefully doesn’t give me more anxiety. I had shoulder surgery about five months ago to fix instability. I had dislocated my shoulder twice and knew it was time to get it fixed. I’m a 23 year old male so assumed I would bounce back relatively fine. My surgeon performed a labrum repair, remplissage, and joint capsule tightening.

Over the course of my recovery I had terrible shoulder stiffness and could hardly move my shoulder. I had to do aggressive PT stretching in order to break up scar tissue. I recently lowered my dose of diclofenac sodium and with that I have started noticing that my joint feels much looser.

I am kind of paranoid that I may have overstretched my joint capsule and made my joint looser then it should be from prolonged stretching to help with scar tissue.

I don’t notice any pain, swelling or deep aches. I occasionally notice some clicking and crunching noises when I move my shoulder but nothing that brings pain.

Overall I just feel a sudden feeling of feeling loose. Anyone maybe know why?d

Hi everyone,

I’m going to have a Bankart repair surgery soon and I’m wondering if there’s anything I can do before the operation to make the recovery easier.

For those of you who have had a Bankart repair:

- Did you do any specific exercises or prehab before surgery that you felt helped with your recovery?

- Is there anything you wish you had worked on before the operation?

- How long did it take before you felt reasonably functional again?

- How long until you were able to return to activities such as gym training, sports, or normal daily activities?

I’d really appreciate hearing about your experiences, especially what helped and what you would recommend doing before surgery.

Thanks!

So basically, I've been dealing with ongoing shoulder issues since I was about 15, and things got a lot worse over the past year. Right now, any kind of stretching, strengthening exercises, or rotator cuff work just makes it flare up and get worse. For example, I just tried doing some super light rotator cuff stuff with a 1kg dumbbell, and now my right shoulder is aching even while resting, and I'm even getting some tingling/numbness in my fingers.

​As for the actual imaging results:

​Right shoulder (US): The Supraspinatus tendon looks a bit non-uniform, but no tears.

​Left shoulder (US): A tiny 0.2 cm calcification in the Subscapularis tendon, plus some wear-and-tear/degenerative changes in the AC joint.

​Left shoulder (MR Arthrography): A very small labral tear (SLAP/SLNJ type) in the anteroinferior labrum between the cartilage and the labrum."

Hey! Did anyone else have a really hard time straightening their elbow so they could lift their arm straight up? My physical therapist introduced this last week, and I am not having any luck getting my elbow in. I am stressing that there is something wrong. Has anyone else experienced this? Thanks!

I had a labral tear in my right shoulder and had surgery. I eventually recovered and got back to 100% and was able to work out and play basketball again.
About 6 months after being cleared, I played basketball for the first time again. A friend threw a bad pass and I reached across my body to catch it. I immediately felt a pull around my chest/left shoulder. Since then, my left shoulder has felt unstable, with aching, clicking/thumping, and a feeling that it moves too far when I let my arm hang. I’ve also had pain around my neck/upper back and have been pretty anxious about the whole thing.
It’s been about 2 months. I’m doing PT for 6 weeks and my orthopedic surgeon plans to consider an MRA if I’m still having problems. My symptoms feel very similar to what I experienced with my right labral tear, which is what scares me.
I’m especially struggling . I just wanted to be able to work out and play basketball again, and now I’m worried I might need surgery on both shoulders within a year.
For anyone who has had labrum surgery on both shoulders:
How did your second surgery/recovery compare with the first?
Did you eventually get back to lifting and playing sports?
How long until you felt normal again?
Did having both shoulders operated on affect your long-term life?
If you had symptoms but ended up NOT needing surgery, what did your recovery look like?

To anyone who had labrum repair surgery for an anterior tear, how was it? I am really nervous as it is my first surgery and the nerve block really scares me. Also, how long was it until you could write? I am still in school and am worried about how much I am going to have to miss.