4 months later…

and I’m still not back to normal. Last year I was playing gigs about 6 months after the injury. This time around, it’s now at least 7 months since the last ill-advised gig, and the tendon still hasn’t settled down.

I had 6 or 7 sessions of acupuncture with a new guy (new to me) from Shanghai, recommended by a French bass-player. Also did acupressure, and this was very painful – the first session really seemed to mess up my shoulder and I couldn’t even lift my arm, though this faded quickly over the next 36 hours. The only effect of the treatment seemed to be to make the shoulder less aggravated from the treatment itself. The acupuncuturist felt there should have been more improvement than there was, so as he wasn’t confident I stopped seeing him.

Been back on MSM, Glucosamine & Chondroitin for the last few weeks. Recently did some more internet research and came across the condition ‘tendonosis’, which seems to better reflect my situation, though it’s strange that none of the ‘experts’ I’ve spoken to have come up with this. Basically ‘tendonitis’ means inflammation of the tendon, but when you have really chronic tendon pain, the tendon has probably healed, just badly, and probably with the ‘wrong’ sort of cartilage.

Also doing some exercises, stretches and icing most days. Exercises –

- twisting arm through 180 degrees and back hanging straight down, 3 sets of 50, with 2.5kg weight.
- scapula clench w. theraband on doorknob, 3 sets of 20 at 127cms (toes from door)
- back arm lift, lying face down on bed. arms straight, with 0.5kg each hand (water bottle)

also just started isometric ‘thor’ handpress (1 x 30 secs each way), and back-hand-press (standing against doorframe, hand just above arse, pressing with palm against doorframe, 5 x 5 secs, v. difficult).

~ by handsdown on Thu, September 27, 2007.