I just recently got over having sore shoulders. It began on one side, migrated to the other, then back to the first shoulder. Talk about an uncomfortable week. A few of the 7 remedies to reliving a sore shoulder that I listed below helped me immensely. Most of the other remedies listed were ones my mother used as she recuperated from shoulder surgery last month.
Depending on if the pain in your shoulder is associated with muscle or something deeper; massage just might do the trick. Over-using a shoulder or lifting heavy items can cause weak shoulder muscles to ache. A gentle massage can work out the kinks that build up in underdeveloped muscles and ease the pain.
I’ve found that a warm compress helps quite a range of should pain. Applying the compress directly to the aching area of your shoulder should reduce most painful twinges. Even if you are only able to apply a heating pad to the general area of pain, then the heat should be able to radiate to deeper tissue and ease the ache.
There are muscle rubs that feel warm and ones that feel cool. I’ve gotten great results from the warm ones when I need to apply muscle rub to a painful shoulder muscle. However, if the ache seems to be coming from my shoulder joint, then I use the cool feeling muscle rub instead. If you aren’t sure which to use, you can read the tubes of muscle rub and see what each one is best used on. Most muscle rubs tell you what type of ache they are designed to relieve.
Sore muscles tend to be caused by tension, even in the shoulder. Doing some light stretches might be just what is needed to get your shoulder to quit hurting. Rolling your shoulders slowly backwards and then towards the front in the opposite direction usually helps for soreness in the area where the shoulders meet the neck.
This remedy was the main one I had to use since sleeping on top of my achy shoulder greatly intensified the pain. Keeping the pressure off of a sore shoulder tends to speed up the healing process as well. Shoulder pain that is mostly due to a sore joint within the shoulder is greatly reduced by making sure to keep pressure off of it.
Swelling is reduced with ibuprofen and this is perfect if your shoulder pain is caused by inflammation. Ibuprofen also eases most other pain as well. As long as you don’t exceed the maximum dose and take ibuprofen like it was candy, then you shouldn’t have any issues. The bottle does state that long term use can cause internal problems.
It’s amazing at how much can be accomplished by sleeping and relaxing. When I say ‘rest’ I’m also referring to the rest you give your shoulder. Try not to use it as much if movement increases the pain. Give it a break. A couple of days of rest and your shoulder will hopefully be as good as new.
These 7 remedies to reliving a sore shoulder are just some suggestions that I’ve provided. By all means, if your shoulder pain doesn’t subside with any of these or if it gets worse, go see a doctor. Sometimes the pain you feel in your shoulder is a precursor to something more serious. Have you ever had severe shoulder pain that you dealt with in a different manner?
Top Photo Credit: jonathanpenney11