Shoulder discomfort for over a week

[Blackflamingo31]

Hi there,

I'm 21 years old and last Monday woke up with the bicep of my left shoulder sore. It was more aggravated with certain movements. It's hard to describe but I'll try my best.

-the mid area between my shoulder and elbow was slightly painful and felt pinched when I pressed down on a certain part of it.

-if I raise my arm over my head there is no discomfort

-if I reach forward or backward however there is pain in my shoulder

-the pain varies from very mild to pretty uncomfortable

-the discomfort feels deep, not superficial

I'm so confused because I haven't lifted anything heavy that I can remember. I am under extreme stress however and am suffering with anxiety and depression. I have irrational thoughts sometimes and one is that someone from my past who harassed me snuck into my room and injected me with a dirty needle. I'm scared because I'm scared that happened and that's what causing the pain, even though I have no way to prove it. I know it sounds unlikely but I can't think of any other reason as to why my bicep hurts like this. It's never happened before and my doctor just brushed it off. Please help.

[earthwitch]

Can you get to see a chiropractor or osteopath? They may be able to help - both identifying what is going on with the tendon, and also how to fix it.

[Blackflamingo31 in reply to earthwitch]

Possibly, I'm gonna have a chat with my mom about it. Thanks for your help!

[Comet007]

It might be what is called a frozen shoulder. Very painful and can come on without injury. It is more common in older people usually but not always.

I am not being dismissive of your fears as you know yourself how anxiety and feeling vulnerable plays on your mind and blows things out of proportion.

It is unlikely to have come from an injection. Try not to freak out. If it is a frozen shoulder or other deep muscle issue it will resolve itself in time. You may need something like ibuprofen or codeine for your pain.

Stay safe.

[Blackflamingo31 in reply to Comet007]

Yeah I think you're right. The pain is slowly going away and I was probably just blowing my fears out of proportion. Thank you so much for not being dismissive about my thinking though. That was very kind and thanks for your help!

[Guyb]

Hi there's a physiotherapist in Huddersfield used to treat the Giants rugby league team have you tried going down that route they'll treat shoulder injuries all the time as for pain I'm on fentanyl patches but be carefull with them and do exactly as your Dr tells you good luck

[Guyb]

Can you get to see a chiropractor or osteopath? They may be able to help - both identifying what is going on with the tendon, and also how to fix it.

[johnsmith]

It is worth going to a yoga class. This will help with muscle education. It will also help with anxiety and depression. Anxiety can be due to poor breathing habits and the yoga will help you look at this.

Depression could be due to not getting enough sleep. Depression could be helped by doing yoga because it will change your body movement and breathing habits. Worth investigating to see if yoga works or not. Note you need to do it with instruction from a yoga teacher not from a book. The exercise will also help you to relax your muscles. With relaxed muscles there is less drain on brain resources. This in turn reduces the brains need to switch off because it is no longer constantly on the alert.

You could have over contracted the biceps muscle. That can just happen. A yoga teacher probably can give you some advice if you had a dose of cramp or not.

There is nothing wrong with irrational thoughts. Everyone gets them. The trick is to realise that it is a thought that comes out of nowhere and as it comes it will go.

Hope I have been able to be helpful.