A healthy, functioning rotator cuff is important for many reasons. For one thing, if you have a torn rotator cuff, it can cause immense pain and swelling. The symptoms of a tear include sharp shooting pains in the shoulder blade or armpit, difficulty lifting your arm up or out to the side, and trouble sleeping on your back because of discomfort with lying on top of the affected area. It’s not just about avoiding injury though – there are several actions you can easily take that will help heal your torn rotator cuff naturally!
What is a Rotator Cuff?
A rotator cuff is a group of tendons and muscles located in the shoulder and upper back. It connects the upper part of the arm to the shoulder blade. The tendons in the rotator cuff are responsible for shoulder stability. The muscles in the rotator cuff allow the shoulder to rotate.
To understand how important the rotator cuff is, it’s good to know how the shoulder works. The shoulder is made up of three bones: the humerus (upper arm), scapula (shoulder blade), and clavicle (collar bone). The shoulder is a ball-and-socket type joint. The ball, or head, of your upper arm bone fits precisely into a shallow socket in your shoulder blade.
Why Does a Healthy Rotator Cuff Matter?
Your shoulders do a lot of essential things that you probably take for granted. For instance, they help you perform actions such as getting a book off the top shelf, washing your hair, or throwing a baseball.
Your body makes the complicated task they perform look effortless, but it’s not. It takes a lot of muscles and tendons working together to help you move your shoulder in the way that it does, including those found within your rotator cuff.
The rotator cuff is what keeps your arm in this socket. Clearly, it’s an important piece of the body’s puzzle. When rotator cuff pain occurs, it can be incredibly debilitating. It’s also something that needs to be taken seriously!
What are the Symptoms of Rotator Cuff Pain?
If you have a torn rotator cuff, it can cause immense pain and swelling. The symptoms of a tear include sharp shooting pains in the shoulder blade or armpit, difficulty lifting your arm up or out to the side, and trouble sleeping on your back because of the discomfort associated with lying on top of the affected area.
Other symptoms associated with a rotator cuff injury may include:
- A dull ache in the shoulder
- Difficulty or pain when lifting arm up or out to the side
- A grating sound or sensation when moving your shoulder in certain positions
- Weakness in the impacted shoulder and arm
- Inability to reach behind your back
- A lump or bump in the shoulder area from swelling and scar tissue
Common Causes of Rotator Cuff Pain
Unfortunately, a rotator cuff tear is one of the most common ways you can injure your shoulder area. In order to heal rotator cuff pain naturally, you need to understand what caused it. There are numerous potential causes for a torn rotator cuff. They range from injuries that happen as you go about your day to those that occur because of other health conditions and illnesses.
Sports injuries, unexpected falls, overuse from repeated actions like typing, painting or playing tennis, and normal wear and tear from aging can all lead to rotator cuff pain. Rotator cuff pain can also be caused by bursitis, frozen shoulder, tendonitis, and impingement of the tendons in the shoulder.
Non-Surgical Treatment for Rotator Cuff Tears
Now that you know what a rotator cuff is and why having one matters, let’s discuss how to heal it. Bear in mind that seeking treatment early on during the course of rotator cuff issues is key, and there are non-invasive methods that don’t involve surgery or drugs that have been shown to be effective in the majority of cases.
Many of these and more are all part of the services at Healing Hands Chiropractic, and you can read on to learn about five natural and effective treatment options for rotator cuff pain and injuries.
1. Chiropractic
While many believe that chiropractors only treat back and neck pain, this simply isn’t the case. They’re also experts in understanding how the body works and moves. Their goal and holistic approach are to help restore function to all parts of the body and to help harness your body’s ability to heal itself. Likewise, chiropractic care has been shown to be effective for a wide range of conditions, including rotator cuff pain.
2. Ice Therapy
Ice works wonders if you’ve injured your rotator cuff, especially if you pack the area right away. It’s a simple and safe way to help reduce pain and swelling, as well as relax the muscles in this area of your body. If you know you’ve just injured your rotator cuff, apply ice for 15 minutes every other hour for the first few hours. Then you can drop down to 3 times a day until the pain subsides.
3. Heating Pad
If you have a rotator cuff injury, then you can also treat it using a heating pad, given that it is not a torn muscle. How does it work? When the heat from the device is applied to the injured cuff rotator, there is an upsurge of blood flow to the affected tissues. As a result, inflammation goes down and speeds up the healing process.
4. Rest
As much we love moving our arms around, it’s also important that you give them time for healing after an injury like a torn rotator cuff. One of the hardest things to do in our society is to rest and take time to let our body heal. If you’re injured, your body needs even more rest than usual.
Try getting more sleep and limiting overhead activities to give your rotator cuff time to heal. So in a nutshell, take it easy and give your shoulder and rotator cuff time to heal. By slowing down, you could truly speed up your recovery time. Your body will thank you!
5. Strengthening and Stretching
There are specific exercises you can do to strengthen and restore movement to the rotator cuff. Stretching will also help improve your rotator cuff pain, by increasing flexibility and range of motion. Remember, stretching should never hurt or cause pain in the rotator cuff. In addition, they make all sorts of activities involving the shoulder area easier and pain-free!
However, you don’t have to wait until you are hurt to reap the benefits of strengthening and stretching exercises, and knowing how to do them beforehand can help you avoid injury in the future. Definitely seek out the advice of an expert before starting any strengthening and stretching regimens.
What is the Best Home Remedy for Rotator Cuff Injury?
As far as home remedies are concerned, the best thing you can try is the RICE method. By using rest, ice, compression, and elevation immediately after an injury, your rotator cuff should bounce back much more quickly. It’ll also make you able to try exercising earlier, which is a big plus.
Exercising with a Rotator Cuff Tear: What Works
If your doctor has cleared you for strengthening and stretching exercises to help in healing your rotator cuff injury, try giving these a try!
1. Crossover Arm Stretch
With your feet hip distance apart, relax your shoulders and gently pull one arm across your chest as far as you can. Hold at your upper arm area for 30 seconds. Relax for 10 seconds. Repeat the stretch 5x per side.
2. Back Rotation
Hold a small hand towel, lengthwise, behind your back. Be sure you grab one end with one hand and lightly hold the other end with your other hand. Pull the towel horizontally so that it stretches your shoulder, but doesn’t cause pain. Hold this stretch for 30 seconds. Relax for 10 seconds. Repeat 4x per side.
3. Pendulum
Lean forward with your knees slightly bent and put one hand on a table for support. Let your other arm hang at your side. Swing this arm back and forth 3-4 times, then side to side 3-4 times, and then in a circular motion 3-4 times. Repeat this sequence with the other arm. Do this 3x per side.
4. Standing Row
Using a light resistance band, loop the band around a doorknob or post. Grab the handles or two ends of the band with your hand. With your feet hip distance apart, hold the band with your elbow bent and at your side.
Keeping your arm close to your side, slowly pull your elbow straight back. Slowly return to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 10 per side. Think about squeezing your shoulder blades together as you pull.
Rotator Cuff Tear Exercises to Avoid
You should avoid doing any exercise that requires an extreme range of motion from your rotator cuff. Other exercises to avoid include chest exercises and dip movements.
How Long Does It Take for a Torn Rotator Cuff to Heal Without Surgery?
Generally speaking, a mild tear will take about four weeks to heal. However, if you’re dealing with a more severe injury, it could take as long as four to six months – and possibly even longer. Either way, surgery should be the last option that you consider.
How Can Healing Hands Chiropractic Help?
Healing hands chiropractic is chock full of techniques and tools that can help you heal your torn rotator cuff naturally! Our doctors use a variety of methods, treatments and modalities to treat and heal rotator cuff pain.
Healing Hands Chiropractic offers a holistic approach for healing rotator cuff pain naturally with methods that include chiropractic care, rehabilitative exercises and therapies.
When you visit us, we’ll make sure you regain your full range of motion. This includes getting rid of the pain you currently feel when you try to use your arm above your head. We can also help strengthen your shoulder muscles. That way, you won’t be in pain elevating your arm or completing ordinary tasks.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions about how we can help heal your torn rotator cuff naturally, including non-invasive treatment options for people dealing with shoulder pain.
Contact Us Today to Start Living Pain-Free
Whether your injury is due to an accident or wear and tear over time, your chiropractor can help promote healing in the shoulder area by reducing inflammation and correcting misalignments that may have occurred as you move your arm.
Dr. Dee, at Healing Hands Chiropractic in Murfreesboro, TN, has years of experiencing treating injuries such as rotator cuff pain. Through targeted adjustments, she can help reduce inflammation around the rotator cuff. She can also help restore range of motion and recommend exercises that will strengthen the area.
Through these adjustments, Dr. Dee will help restore the body’s nervous system. This power is what helps the body heal itself and will help your rotator cuff heal.
If you think you are suffering from a rotator cuff injury, please contact our office today. Chiropractic care is a safe, natural, and effective way to treat rotator cuff pain at its source. Dr. Dee and her kind and caring staff at Healing Hands Chiropractic look forward to hearing from you! Contact our offices today at 615-203-3505.
