Left shoulder pain/ dull ache/burning- help

[Haileys Mom]

I am hoping someone can provide some insight. Two months ago, while at work (sit at a microscope for 8 hrs. a day for 10 yrs. now), I noticed some twinges in my L breast. I just assumed hormonal, but then I started getting twinges in my L shoulder, which turned into a dull aching and sometimes burning sensation. The area that it started out in was the side of the shoulder in the back, like under the arm. Imagine lifting your arm up, and right beneath your armpit, you rub the vertical area underneath. Now, two months later, the pain has progressed to sometimes on the top of my arm, the muscle. I seem to notice it more when I'm at my desk working.

Dr. visits have not diagnosed the problem. So far I've had a diagnostic mammogram (good) and a chest xray (good). The chest xray showed some slight curvature to the spine, but other than that, good. Of course because I've had some tingles and shooting sensations in my left breast, my mind starts to "connect" the two and worry that it is cancer. Dr. says that is highly unlikely and that it sounds like muscles or nerves, myofascial pain, etc.

Each day I wake up thinking positively, but then the pain rears its head and I start to worry again. Why isn't it going away? I can't figure out what's going on.

I'm 38 years old and have a one year old, that I am picking up constantly. I have a sit down job at a microscope that I am in a fixed position. Could poor posture be to blame? This is so strange. Sometimes, the area itches and the back of my shoulder blade itches, too. Tingles and twinges once in a while. What should I do?

[atswim2birds]

Part 4 of 4 - Now – here’s the kicker – about a month ago, after 3 years of no pain, the pain came back again.  But here’s the bit I find fascinating and uplifting – in a scientific method sort of way – and am truly grateful to have stumbled upon.  I ask myself – what could have triggered the return of the beast? Ergo, I ask myself what have you done a month or so ago that you haven’t done during the past 3 years?  Epiphany – the answer was obvious – I had recently bought a motorcycle.  I’ve ridden bikes on and off since I was 18.  I also had a bike when the beast first appeared 3 years ago (and now have no doubt that riding the bike over time – without doing the various physio routines to help stretch out/loosen the muscles – contributed to the creation of the beast).  You see, when you ride a motorcycle, you change gears by squeezing the clutch on the left handgrip (with your left hand naturally).  This squeezing motion utilizes a fairly unique muscle group (left fingers, hand, forearm, running up to your left bicep, tricep, pectoral, shoulder, neck).  Shazam.  I am now confident that if I once again implement the various physio routines I undertook before, I’ll stop the beast in its tracks.  Will keep you all posted and let you know if this does the trick. I noted that many of the other posters mentioned that the pain seemed to be activated after doing repetitive motions over an extended period of time (e.g., picking up and putting down a baby).  My (admittedly non-professional, anecdotal) diagnosis is that this sort of repetitive motion (just like my pulling and releasing the clutch on my motorcycle) can result – eventually – in myofascial pain – caused by one or more muscles becoming knotted – and this knotting having a knock-on effect on other parts of the body – culminating in a pinched nerve – or in a second knotted muscle. Apologies for the long ramble – just stumbled upon the site and thought I’d blurt out the details of my own experience – which had a happy ending the first time – and will hopefully have a happy ending this second time around as well. Keep the faith – in my experience, with a disciplined and varied (non-strenuous and non-painful, and in fact, for the most part, relaxing, soothing and not-unenjoyable) physio routine, this problem can be licked!

[atswim2birds]

Part 3 of 4 - To this day, I have no idea which method of exorcism did the trick because, at the same time I was seeing the 2nd acupuncturist, I was also (a) doing the neck/shoulder/upper-back stretching exercises the physio had given me; (b) doing lots of push-ups (which always seemed to help alleviate the pain); (c) doing yoga (on my own); (d) doing tai-chi (on my own); and (e) like one of the previous posters (eager to try anything at all to help cure the cause rather than merely help alleviate the pain on a short-term basis), I picked up a book on trigger-point therapy – a little known form of physio designed to cure myofascial pain (essentially pain deriving from muscles that have become knotted) – this was an eye-opening and  life-changing experience for me – the various brief (approx 1 to 2 minute) trigger point massages (I gave myself)  2 or 3 times a day – seemed to be helping solve the problem (but definitely not solving the problem altogether on their own) – although, remarkably, at the same time, simple, self-given trigger-point massages completely cured another similar issue I had had (for about 20 years) with tightness and a dull ache in my knees and hips (which started when I was in my mid 20s (after running track (the mile) and cross-country in college) – a problem no one, and I mean no one, doctors and physios alike, was able to properly diagnose over a 20 year period of time – and the complete cure came down to an extremely simple massage tool – a marble ball that I rolled over the narrow sliver of muscle just next to the hip for about a minute once a day over a 2-week period – and then – once every couple of weeks or so or whenever the tightness returned). But back to the left shoulder blade/pectoral pain – another thing I did at the time, again, eager to try everything possible to fight off the beast, was to pick up a mini, hand-held gyro-ball (kind of like a yo-yo that you activate by pulling a string) that I would rotate with my left hand and wrist – the gyro-ball builds in intensity with centripetal force and thereby loosens and stretches the muscles in your wrist and forearm.  This little thing was fantastic and I have no doubt it did its part in helping to solve the problem (apparently, it’s meant to be great for such afflictions as carpal tunnel). What I surmised from all of the above was that the issue (a pinched nerve, a knotted muscle, whatever it actually was) seemed to be coming from various parts in my body which were all connected – what I needed to do was properly stretch and loosen my neck, shoulders and upper back – as well as my forearms and wrists – because all of the nerves and muscles in these areas were partially connected – and a knotted muscle in one place would wind up pinching a nerve in another place. I kept up all of the above physio routines on a regular basis – and paid a lot more attention to my posture.  The pain stayed gone and life was beautiful again.

[atswim2birds]

Part 2 of 4 - It was at that point that I knew it was time for me to see a doctor.  I first saw my GP who said it sounded like a pinched nerve – he directed me to a neurologist – who took x-rays and an MRI – nothing showed any discernible causes but he offered to give me a steroid injection in my neck to help ease the pain – which, as mentioned, was getting more and more intense – but I politely declined this generous offer (I wasn’t going to let anyone stick a needle (let alone a steroid) in my neck).  The neurologist told me that, in lieu of the steroid injection, he would refer me to a physiotherapist.  This chap (an ex-boxer) was great. He told me straight up that he wouldn’t be able to diagnose the precise cause of the problem but told me that, in his view as well, it seemed like a pinched nerve.  He gave me a whole bunch of exercises – designed to ease the tension (and the resulting pressure on the nerves and muscles) in my neck, shoulders and upper back.  Several months into these stretching routines, the pain seemed to be easing up ever so slightly (but would typically, and very dishearteningly, suddenly return with a vengeance). The physiotherapist referred me to an osteopath – a very tall Hungarian chap who assured me he could cure the problem by cracking my back once every two weeks for a couple of months.  After not feeling a damn bit of difference after the 4th back-cracking, I gave up on this chap – and thought I’d give acupuncture a try.  The first acupuncturist I tried seemed a bit rubbish – so I switched to another one who was highly recommended.  She stuck a few pins in me and gave me some tree-bark-like powder to eat like cinnamon once a day.  After 4 appointments with her, I was about to strike her from the list as well – when the most remarkable thing happened – the pain went away completely.

[atswim2birds]

Part 1 of 4 - Hi folks - OK, I too, now have to add my voice to the song.  AS my response is a long one, to keep from falling afoul of the 8000 character limit, I’ll chop it into 4 parts.  First off, on an extremely positive note, presuming we were all afflicted with the same beast, in my experience, the pain can definitely go away completely – as it did in my case, although it’s now resurfaced 3 years later.  About 3 years ago, I had the same a burning/searing sensation that would gravitate back and forth between just above my left shoulder blade and my upper left pectoral muscle.  I’ve never been stabbed with a knife (thankfully) but that’s what it felt like (or at least what I imagine it would feel like to be stabbed with a knife in that area) – like someone had just stuck me with a knife in both places.  The pain went on for more than a year.  I developed great sympathy and respect for people who suffer with long-term chronic physical pain – it’s a real downer and can really sour your perspective on life (even if you’re a naturally upbeat person – which I tend to be).  The pain, over the course of a year, became more and more intense – going from the dull burning/searing sensation to a sharp and sudden knifelike pain.  At its worst, it became downright freakish – I’d be walking down the street and – all of a sudden – wham – I’d get hit with a spasm in my left pectoral, arm and wrist that would build in intensity for a good 1 to 2 minutes, almost knocking me off my feet and contorting my entire left arm.  At one point, I was in a job interview, which I had thoroughly nailed – only to get hit with one of these spasms during the last minute of the interview.  I must have seemed like Jekyll and Hyde to the interviewer – and sufficiently freaked him out – cuz I didn’t get that job.

[Hillyrobertson]

I can't believe so many of us are having the same issue. Mine is my right breast, chest, shoulder, neck, forearm, wrist, hand and shoulder blade. An ultrasound and MRI did diagnose supraspinatis tendon impingement and bursitis in my shoulder. Another dr diagnosed frozen shoulder, carpal tunnel but my dr doesn't think frozen shoulder and my Physio also isn't sure what's happening. So far I've seen two specialist and I'm seeing a surgeon next week, a lot of my symptoms fit thoracic outlet syndrome, RSI and a few other things, but it's been going on for 5 months with no real answer. So glad to find you all as I started to think it was just me going crazy.

[muchinfo]

Am having the same problems
i thought i was alone its been all most a year now and its getting worse i.can feel the pain or tingling pins sensation
I feel pins and needle sensation in my arms mostley the left arm also at time the sharp psin in arm pit and sorness of uper arm area and top of breast
ive seen my doctor and i struggle to explsin whats going on as it changes dayley good day and bad
when its bad  it hurts just my arm on the side of my body harx to tell if its arm or breast
had bloods all normal
going for xray of back/ neck during the week
I know i may make it worse with worry and am feeling so tired with it all
I feel my doc is at the point that he rolls his eyes when i come in
at times i am convinced i feel knots uper brest / sholdet area and also get sore point if touch to the skin i jump a mile
this is affecting my marriage and work now and quality of my life
am so down about it all
i fear what if its somthing realy bad going on in my body and am getting fobed off with a scrip of vals :(