Shoulder Injuries?

[tattuna]

I tore my rotator cuff at the gym a couple years ago. Supraspinatus torn from the humerus. Still isn't healed. MRI shows it's about 30% torn, but because of the way I have to hold my arm when I tattoo, it won't heal. I did physical therapy for a while, but it seemed to hurt more than it helped. Got the swine flu and was out for a week. After I got over the flu it felt like my shoulder was healed. Turns out rest is what I needed. To this day rest is the only cure for me and I can't spend as much time on the yak as I used to. The surgeon said if I could take 3 months off of work it will probably heal on it's own. I wish I could afford to do that!

I don't want to do the surgery so I'm spending more time on boats and lakes and using more machines than free weights at the gym these days.

My best guess is you'll probably have to get an MRI to see exactly what's going on and treat it accordingly. If an MRI is out of the question at least see a good sports doctor and they should be able to pin point the problem. Make sure it's a SPORTS doctor though, general physicians won't cut it for something like that. I never had any idea how much a shoulder injury sucks till it happened to me.

Good luck and keep us updated on your progress.