Shoulder impingement comes with pain, unusual sensations and limited movement. You shouldn’t have to deal with these problems. When you are coping with shoulder impingement, physical therapy at REPAIR SI can help you find comfort and mobility again. It may help you prevent a painful recurrence, too.
Find out how shoulder impingement works
Shoulder impingement involves a group of four muscles called the rotator cuff becoming inflamed in a small space within your shoulder. These muscles move in a small area between your upper arm bone (humerus) and shoulder blade (scapula). The inflammation often stems from repetitive shoulder motion in sports or at work.
With little space to expand, the swelling of these muscles can cause significant pain radiating down your arm. The pain may be worse at night. The inflammation can prevent movement, causing a “frozen shoulder.” You may notice a crackling sound when you move your shoulder.
Tips for reducing shoulder impingement symptoms
If shoulder impingement is holding you back from moving comfortably, we can provide a few pieces of advice:
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Seek physical therapy treatments.
You can get physical therapy tailored to your lifestyle. A licensed physical therapist can treat problems stemming from work like painting, washing windows or constructing buildings. They can also treat a swimming, baseball or tennis injury in return to sport therapy.
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Take advantage of medication-free pain treatment.
You may be taking over-the-counter or prescribed medication for pain, but you have additional options. These can be used in addition to your current pain relief, if you are taking any. At REPAIR SI, we offer cupping, manual therapy, acupuncture, dry needling and shockwave therapy.
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Try a few exercises at home.
You can find exercises for shoulder impingement in this article. These five exercises are designed to ease shoulder impingement symptoms, and they require no equipment — only a doorway to stand in and a towel.
For more exercises, tailored to your needs, our licensed physical therapists at REPAIR SI can design a shoulder exercise routine to help relieve your impingement symptoms.
Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment.