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?

[mom124744]

i am 44 years old i have 5 grown kids 3 grandkids and i have been having the same pains in my left shoulder and arm i have had back surgery neck surgery i have had sugery on both hands and thumb and i have had trigger points shots i had 45 shots across my back and neck at one time this pain has been going on for 18 years it starts out in your arm then it moves to your neck and back and also your legs the doctors still dont know what it is it has got so bad the doctors have me on hydroco 10 -500mg  morphine 30mg andgabapentin 300mg im telling everyone this because i have been though all this nothing works the surgerys  the shots  or the meds. it all makes things worse so please before you have sugerys or get all the shots think about what im saying because the shots and sugery are very painfull and afterwards the pain is worse

[laurapr77]

I read the story and can't help but relate. That's the story of my life, so far, doctors are not clear what is the problem. Went to 5 doctors...is really depressing.

[xeeshan]

It could me the muscular and nerve issues, are you using any meprazole family medicines? or any anti acid anti gastro medicines? because these medicines will not allow the to produce vitamin b12, which is vital for nerves and muscles, you should also check the vit b12 ratio in blood through blood test.

Good Luck

[MsIrish]

I had the same problem a few years ago.  It became severe and had an MRI done which did show lots of inflamation in the shoulder, so much that they diagnosed (wrongly) a torn Rotater cuff.  They did repair surgery, and found that it was not torn, but severely inflamed due to a bone spur that they were not able to see in the x-rays or MRI.  My arm got to where I could not raise it, and it had severe pain.  I would look into the shoulder more carefully.

[Pauly283]

Hi guys,

it's truly awful to hear of the pain and suffering some of you are having to endure and the duration of the symptoms for some of you is horrifying, so I would like to tell you of my own experience in the hope that it will be of some help and hopefully lead to some much-needed relief for as many of you as possible.

I've been having a very similar, recurring problem for the last 5 months although there is no chest involvement in my symptoms.

I first became aware of a problem when I started to get spasms at the back of my right armpit (teres minor muscle) when performing really innocuous tasks like spraying deodorant and after wiping you know where.

Then I would feel pressure gradually building up at the top of my right arm(deltoid) during the morning which was a weird sensation and which I now know to be nerve involvement.

I work as a postman, so i walk 10 to 15 miles a day and carry heavy mailbags, so this was obviously making the problem worse during the course of my working day.

After 4 days of persevering and hoping the pain would ease it became unbearable and I had to go off sick from work. I went to my GP who tested all of my joints and muscles and declared that they were all fine, so just prescribed me anti-inflammatory painkillers and told me to rest my right arm and shoulder. I would rest for 4 or 5 days and then return to work feeling mostly okay.

Anyway to cut a long story short, the problem recurred 3 times(resulting in 3 bouts of absence in a 5 month period and a final warning from my employers) and each time the pain got worse and more muscles became involved up to the point where just walking to the corner shop left me in severe pain.

I was suffering severe burning, stabbing, pinching, and aching pains in my teres minor, deltoids, biceps and foreams, plus pins and needles right down my arm and a horrible aching throb just to the left of where the pulse is taken. The pain was so bad that it would wake me up at night and I don't mind admitting that at times I was close to tears with it. It also resulted in me sleeping on the sofa for 3 weeks as I could not put any weight on my right shoulder or neck without feeling terrible pressure.

At this point, what with getting nowhere with my GP( he refused me an X-ray and just kept prescribing the same pills which I'd already told him were having no effect and which I now know aren't even the right painkillers for nerve pain - antidepressant tricyclic drugs are) and after finding this thread which included some, short, sharp advice to get to a chiropractor asap, I did exactly that.

When I went to her for my first appointment( I paid for my own treatment which averaged £30 per session) I was in serious pain and discomfort which was so obvious to her that she decided to start the hands-on treatment straight away after the consultation(instead of asking me to come back at a later date.)

She was extremely professional and got stuck in straight away. It was uncomfortable at times( she knew instinctively which areas to leave alone in the early stages by my reaction to touch) but you could feel that the manipulation and massage was definitely making a difference for the better.

I left my first session feeling marginally less pain and discomfort and still walking very gingerly, but about two hours later I can honestly say that approximately 80% of the intense pain that I'd been enduring( this third recurrence had lasted 17 days and was by far the worst) had eased off much to my huge relief.

I attended another 2 sessions with the chiropractor before switching to employer-funded physiotherapy( which I'm still waiting for haha.)

I went back to work on light duties( staying in the office and not delivering mail) and have gradually been easing back into the job to the point where I will be back on full delivery when I go into work tomorrow after just 3 weeks. So here's hoping that I will respond okay.

My chiropractor and GP say that my symptoms were caused by shoulder impingement syndrome, which I am now pretty certain was a trapped or pinched axillary nerve as this nerve runs through all of the areas of the shoulder and arm where I suffered pain and discomfort and is also attached to the spinal cord at vertebrae C5 and C6 which was an extremely tender part of my neck during the chiropractic treatment.

I'm almost certain that the main cause of my problem was an RSI injury initially to my teres minor muscle escalating to a trapped or 'impinged' nerve over the following days caused by me spending far too long on a boring Sunday using  my computer mouse with my arm completely extended.

My reason for this is that thinking back, my muscle spasms and subsequent feeling of pressure(tightening) in my right arm always started on a Monday after a freakishly long internet session the previous day. So as funny and faintly ridiculous as it sounds, I'm sure that this was the root cause of all of my extreme pain( the worst I've ever experienced, far worse than a fracture) and discomfort that has blighted the last 5 months of my life.

Taking this into account, I would urge all of you to examine your daily routine with a fine toothcomb to try and discover what might be the root cause of your injury thereby hopefully eliminating the possibility of it recurring in the near future which it might otherwise do even after receiving successful treatment in the short term.

Needless to say, as I use an optical mouse, I've learnt to use it against my leg or against my stomach now with my elbow supported by the arm of the chair and have been fine and pain-free using this method.

Also whenever I get the chance I apply a bag of frozen peas(wrapped in a tea towel or cloth to prevent ice burns) to the back of my neck for 20 mins at hourly intervals supporting the frozen pea bag in place by sitting right back against an arm chair. In the hourly interval between the frozen pea trick I  also place a microwave hot water bottle against the affected area at the back of my shoulder/ armpit(be careful it's not too hot obviously) which apparently helps increase blood flow to the soft tissue by 20% and speeds up the healing process.

I still get the odd twinge of the nerve and a numb feeling in my arm especially when lifting my hand above my head( which I'm hoping my long-awaited physiotherapy or maybe a return to the chiropractor on indeed just time will cure) but apart from that I am pain-free and am able to perform perfectly well in my personal and work life. I'm also extremely relieved to have come out of the other side of that long dark tunnel that I know so many of you are still trapped in.

I sincerely hope that my post will be useful and provide hope to as many of you as possible.

I will also post links below to medical sites that I came across during my bad times and found to be very helpful in increasing my knowledge of my injury and in giving me hope.

http://www.rcsed.ac.uk/fellows/lvanrensburg/classification/nerves/axillarynerve.htm

http://chirocentre.co.uk/trapped-nerve-neck-pain-relief/?phpMyAdmin=LS5YS3fGkHHFpQLkxX1BKp8uRi1

http://ergocise.com/pains.html

Good luck to you all
Paul.

[ApoGertrudes]

For women like me who gained a little weight (around 25 lbs.) and who have pain or soreness around the armpit, shoulder, upper back and breast, try to find out if you are wearing the right size of bra. Also, using some hot and cold patches like salonpas helps ease the discomfort. Hope this helps! My prayers to all!