"Famous" Physical Therapists Bob Schrupp and Brad Heineck present 60 second exercises and stretches one can do for Frozen Shoulder or Adhesive Capsulitis. Check out the Products Bob and Brad LOVE on their Amazon Channel: www.amazon.com...
7 years ago I was helping my husband bring a cupboard out of the basement the next morning I was in incredible, excruciating pain. I went to the chiropractor he said oh it’s arthritis. I went to the doctor. He sent me for an x-ray. Then he sent me to the physiotherapist that didn’t help. Then I went back to the chiropractor, he didn’t help. Then I went to massage therapy. they couldn’t help then I went to the acupuncturist and she did cupping as well that didn’t help so I have been in pain for seven years and all of a sudden a new chiropractor that I’ve been seeing for two years finally just said three months ago I think you have frozen shoulder and he has done nothing to help me either until I saw your video and I’m going to try your exercises to try and get my frozen shoulder working again.
After using PT exercises to get my frozen left should back to about 95-98% full range of motion, five years later, my right shoulder is now in the first phase of adhesive capsulitis. Knowing it took about 18 months with the left shoulder, I am jumping on the PT exercises early this time. One of the first places I looked to remind of the exercises that help is the Bob & Brad channel. Thank you both for all you have done to help others.
Up until a couple weeks ago I had never heard of frozen shoulder. The pain started mildly about two months in advance of the torturous onslaught of incapacitating pain. After about 12 days of misery I was finally able to loosen up my muscles and found relief. I have been educating myself on self therapy with your help for which I thank you !! Keep up the great work guys !
Very helpful. Had a frozen shoulder with oretty much all my muscles atrophied from a shoulder reconstruction. I've been doing these exercises like a mad man and they've worked quicker than anything I did for 3 months. Thanks!
Great instruction with focus on pain management and stretching first followed by strengthening later with many examples of each. You guys remind me of the Car Talk guys, Click and Clack. Love your sense of humor mixed in. Thanks for all the helpful info!
Recently diagnosed with Frozen Shoulder and currently on my 2nd week of PT sessions, stumbled upon your videos and so happy I did. My daughter has Plantar Fasciitis and we both have scoliosis. Mine is dextro scoliosis column 5 to 11, and once in a while my spine would hurt so much and I can't even get off from bed because of this. Now I can watch your videos and help me take care of myself somehow. Big thanks to you good doctors! Salute!
You guys are excellent. I've had several of my patients follow you. Very easy to watch and follow videos. You guys work well together. Good sense of humor!!!
OMG. I was just diagnosed with this yesterday. The doctor informed me that I would have to go to PT 2-3 days a week for up to a year. Holy cow! Who has that kind of money to pay. Of course, with my insurance, I have a co-pay every time. Your videos will help me cut down on cost and time. Not only are your videos informative, they are colorful as well. Thanks for the knowledge and keep up the good work.
I am so grateful to have found your videos for frozen shoulder, of which I didn't know was the term for what was wrong with my shoulder. I do not have health insurance so seeking medical treatment was not an option for me. I am so thankful for you both helping me and guiding me along my journey toward healing!
Thank you very much for this video. Gives me hope for recovery. I will never take my range of motions for granted again. Very helpful and entertaining content!
One of the most painful conditions 😫I have experienced in more recent years (...successively in both arms!...)Thank God for Physical Therapists! Like my husband, too... 😊❤️
My own experience with this condition in my left shoulder was as follows: I am a strong believer of PT but PT did not work for me in this case. The onset started with a spontaneous nagging sometimes stinging pain deep in my shoulder in particular at night and a gradual loss of motion of my left arm in particular reaching to side. I went to see a PT who did trigger point and dry needling of the infraspinatus. He gave me mild mobilization exercises to do as home work like the ones shown above by B and B. However the pain aggravated and after four months I ended up with a biceps tendonitis on top of the frozen shoulder. So I went to see a doctor and he gave me a cortizone injection in the bursa; this did not work either, so he sent me to the hospital to see an orthopedic surgeon. I got X-rays and an MRI to exclude other conditions such as tears etc. The surgeon diagnosed me after examination with frozen shoulder based on limited passive motion (abduction?) and said that we do not know what is the cause of it and so we do not know how it can be cured - although there are a number of theories. He told me that the stiffness could last for years and the condition itself was painful in particular during the first six months but innocent. He was opposed to the idea of surgery and told me to adapt my bike and work place to the limited range of the shoulder and to use it within the limits of pain. Based on his advise I gave it some rest to let the biceps tendonitis heal. At night I used several pillows to keep the shoulder supported because a stretch of the capsule can lead to pain. Bob and Brad have some great videos on this topic. I did do some light stretches of the shoulder als within the limits of pain in order to prevent cramping etc. Also I went out for long walks because sitting on a couch makes you even feel stiffer. When the pain eventually subsided, the shoulder was still crap in terms of motion, even stiffer, but I had decided not to get frustrated about it and live with it. The last few weeks however - almost a year after it started - asif by miracle I slowly get movement back without using force. So do not mess with that frozen shoulder too much, in my personal experience, it will heal by itself. In my opinion PT can help with staying pain free during the frozen shoulder pain period by stretching and massaging other parts of your body that might start to ache out of compensation in particular the neck, back and your other shoulder. This is my personal experience however, some people might find direct relief from the frozen shoulder in PT from exercises and massages. Take care and do not despair; most of the frozen shoulders are reported heal considerably over time although it can take a while. Avoid using cortizone shots and too many pain killers when they do not work. Go for a hot bath or shower instead.
This is very similar to my experience. I tried everything from physio to acupuncture to massage to cortisone. Nothing worked. It eventually just unfroze of its own accord. I am now experiencing frozen shoulder number 2 (several years on) on the other side this time. Sigh. People keep telling me what to do. They can't believe I am just going, 'There is nothing one can do!'. As i f I am passively accepting of my lot. (Well, I am actually, but with the benefit of experience!).
@@heathermillar772 Yes people not familiar with the condition telling what you should do... They confuse the term frozen with stiff; as in 'stiff muscles' which you can stretch or move and will become more supple and less sore. Not so with frozen shoulder because it is the capsule that is affected. Luckily in the city where I live at the University hospital I could see an orthopedic surgeon who has become expert on the condition. He saw many patients and evaluated much of the scientific literature and concluded 1. that frozen shoulder is difficult to diagnose, in particular in the freezing phase, because shoulders can hurt because of lots of reasons and most often frozen shoulder can only get clinically assessed: it does not show up on x rays or MRI. 2. that we do not know what causes it (apart from the post-operative/trauma frozen shoulder/and risk groups). 3.And that therefore we do not know of a cure yet - according to him.. No cure has yet be proven scientifically effective - be it meds/PT. However he strongly advised against surgery because of the damage to other ligaments/tissue it could cause. Most of the frozen shoulders cure by themselves considerdably over time, he said. More women than men get the condition in the age ranges from 40 - 50 (However I am a man).Not all patients get their full movement back. My left shoulder does not hurt anymore and I regained some reach but getting a book from the highest shelf is impossible and I have stopped being frustrated about it. If people find relief in exercises, meds, fantastic - I just had to live with it and be careful with it. Get well soon!
Im simply stating how correct I find this entry. 9 months now, and just recieved a shot 5 days ago. I am a diff. case and hope that I will get better. Sooo dibilitating with all the husband issues to deal with and 6 children. Very ness. for me to use my arm for my 2 yr. old. She is in everything. :)
Uhhh...SO confusing. I live in Austria and I have a PT and Orthopedist telling me I need to STRETCH and STRETCH. I tried taking some time to let it heal and my range of motion went to crap. I really hope it unthaws Thanks for the advice.
After experiencing frozen shoulder and trying the stretching/physical therapy I agree with you. I'm also a believer in exercise and physical therapy- but not for this. Let it rest and heal of its own accord.
Thank you for showing me the exercise for adhesive capsulitis. I have been suffering from it for about 3 months now. 48 years old here. Very active then all of a sudden, I couldn’t move my left arm😢
Same! It happened overnight. I woke up and both my shoulders were so painful! I’ve been dealing with this for over 2 weeks. I’m glad I found this video.
Big thankyou, couldn't lift my left arm up yesterday. Used the pulley technique (skipping rope over the top of an open door while sat on a chair) much better today x
Hi Bob and Brad, I love your videos. Come visit our rehab teams in Atlanta! Have to thank you for this and the other shoulder videos. My frozen shoulder went from the beginning to almos completely thawed in 6 months thanks to your cheerful support in stretching. Take good care and happy 2022!
Thanks guys , these vids helped me to understand the difference between rotator cuff and frozen shoulder pro lems . You actually know what you,re talking about . Unlike some . Finally getting some relief through a chiropractor who diagnosed the problema correctly . Your exercises help a lot ! Thanks again.
I concur with the multiple commenters on this video regarding frequency of stretching/exercise for adhesive capsulitis/frozen shoulder; IMO, do NOT follow the recommendations from most sites that tell you to do these exercises/stretches 3x per day. Excessive use will continue to inflame the shoulder, OR worse, inflame/damage tendons such as the biceps tendon where it attaches to top of the shoulder/glenoid. *Time* is what restores movement from actual adhesive capsulitis, more specifically the "thawing" stage, helped somewhat by *moderate* stretching, and very light strengthening. I personally wouldnt do these exercises more than twice/day, and wait at least 24 hrs (preferably 48) for the next session if you experience any pain or soreness. And definitely don't do strength movements (such as rotator cuff band-work or scaptions) more than every-other day at the most. The first physical therapist I saw (director of the clinic, no less) said something along the lines of, "Oh, you want it to hurt when you stretch; That's how you know the adhesions are breaking apart." HOGWASH. -Within a week following his advice I had an inflamed biceps tendon, and I changed clinics. 48 hrs of rest, and I was pain free. I've seen 3 physical therapists since Mr. "You want it to hurt", and EVERY one of them said "No! Don't push it til you feel pain, and take time off if it gets sore". -My current PTs also said taking time off will not make you lose the mobility gains you've made after the freezing stage, which was an important piece of advice for me. Elevating the affected arm on a pillow while sleeping (I'm a back-sleeper) helped with my pain, as well. I'm currently 6 weeks into the therapy, from when my shoulder was at its worst; I have about 70% of my range of motion back, except for about only 35% of my external rotation back, and I'm probably at 25% of my overall shoulder strength. But I'm slowly/steadily improving. Anyway, good luck! And DON'T OVER DO IT.
Thanks for this. After many experiences of being pushed and overdoing it, I'm beginning to believe less is more. But, it is hard to make progress. Any further recommendations? What does a typical workout look like in the thawing stage?
@@brendawoodward1579 Brenda I don't really know the answer but in my experience I would walk everyday for general physical health but I stopped doing the stretching exercises entirely because it actually felt like I was pulling and ripping things and the pain became worse. Once I stopped, the pain and stiffness gradually went away improving over time. It did take several months.
Thank you guys for the examples of how to do them. I have two months off of bus driving to unfreeze and strengthen my shoulders again. I can't even describe how bad the pain is.
I'm a man in my 50s. I've had it for 18 months. First 4 months I did nothing thinking it was an injury that would heal. When it didn't heal and got worse I saw doctor. Did PT for a few months. Painful because they make you force it past your comfortable range. A few times she put me in intense pain. I hated my therapist and called her my dominatrix.The more you do the PT exercises at home the better. Hard to do because you have to force it into the painful range in order to regain some range and you have to do this a few times a day to maintain it. After about 8 months since it started it was noticeably less painful and had more range. Today after 18 months the range is about 90%. Still hurts at extreme range but I rarely need to move in that range for any tasks. Not a big deal since it no longer prevents me from doing anything (lifting overhead, putting on a coat, etc.). I'd never heard of frozen shoulder until I was diagnosed with it.
I was diagnosed yesterday. The doctor said I am in my second stage. But doing my research they say second stage it's more stifling than painful. It sounds weird to me since I have severe pain. Any thoughts for me ? I am so frustrated and sad with this situation in my body.
May have it in both shoulders, much worse in my right and I think I'm in the earliest stage. Went to the doctor and she suspects frozen shoulder, but sent me for x-rays just in case and I'm waiting to here back. So glad you made this video, she said if it is frozen shoulder then physio is recommended, but that's not a financial option at the moment. So here I am on RU-vid, looking for DIY answers.😉 Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Hi sir, I'm very thankful to you both for making are making videos for us. I'm PT here in Canada and have learn so many new techniques to apply in my field and my patients are getting benefits from. once again thank you .
A lot of these exercises require one good arm. I have TWO frozen shoulders... 😟 My left shoulder has been frozen for about 14 months and the right one for three months. You two are very personable and fun to watch. This video helped a bit with my left shoulder.
Me too! It's awful! It started with my left shoulder, and now after 9 months it isn't as painful but still has limited movement-- but now my right shoulder (my dominant arm) has me inventing new swear words daily. It's frikkin' agony. Trying to take my shirt off is the worst... if I don't laugh about it I'll cry. (Plus I'm a professional percussionist. I guess I should be oddly grateful the pandemic has reduced my gig schedule...?)
Me too, had an injury to my right shoulder which led to frozen shoulder and then about 2 months later the left shoulder which had been treated for impingement joined in the big freeze. I have a good physio now who is treating me so I'm hopeful of seeing improvement in the weeks ahead.
Love you guys. I have been diagnosed with Frozen Shoulder. The only thing that helped was a cortisone injection and physiotherapy. Just a warning. Check with your doctor if you take meds. for high blood pressure. I have never taken ibuprofen before and and it does interfere with blood pressure meds. I did not know this and my BP skyrocketed before I realized what was causing it. Same for other anti-inflammatory medication.
You guys are awesome Im currently in the first stage of frozen shoulder I'm working with a PT but it's going very slowly these exercises seem to be much better I'm currently doing five minutes of pendulum swinging my arm around in a circle very hard to do I have limited Mobility cannot lift it above my shoulder either direction so thank you so much for this video I think it's going to help me a lot I will be continuing to watch
Pt did not help me. Could never get me out of the first stage until i had my shoulder manipulated. Worked a miracle on me now Pt goes much better and when they move my shoulder they say it is so much better. Still, need strength thou as muscles are weak
oh gawd I cannot even get my hand close to behind my back. I'm so grateful to find you guys though!! I cannot do steroid shots because I'm diabetic, I get very sick. AND I cannot do PT because I don't have a sitter for my little one and work. I hope this helps because the pain is sooooo terrible. It wakes me up at night and any small unexpected movement brings me to my knees.
I'll find the link to a study that said Frozen Shoulder was in the age group of women as the PT said. It also said that it was most often found in woman who have medabolic syndrome and autoimmune conditions. I've been battling this on and off for years. I've been eating horrible with Covid-stress. After realizing that the report was talking about me!! I'm trying to get back to my anti-inflammatory diet. Thank you so much for the easy streach movements. ♥️
I got this in my right shoulder and it lasted 2 years. Agony. Five years later now i have in the left shoulder...Im now into it for four months. I will try these exercises to see if it makes any difference this time. Wish me luck haha
I am a pilates instructor and your videos has helped me so much for my clients! And pilates apparatus Reformer is perfect for these exercises, post physio 👍🏼👍🏼
In the event that the shoulder is “frozen” at a range that the patient or client is unable to do exercises prescribed by their PT, that individual needs to refer to a Licensed Massage Practitioner. Once enough range of motion is regained, these exercises are awesome
Yea this was a really weird condition the onset and development. Im a school bus driver. Definately an over use issue. Ugh terrible pain. It was so weird And I was so greatful to get a diagnosis. Thank you for all the good info. Im so glad to be out of extreme pain phase. The relief came after deep tissue massage. Now can do exercise and streching. I do throughout my work day and how nice to sleep better. Work in progress.❤ you two. Prayers of hope and relief to all from Montgomery Illinois.
This video was very helpful. Easy exercises to do at home. I'm a 57 yr old woman and I workout and speed walk 3-4 times a week. Started having right shoulder discomfort that progressed to stiffness which limited my range of motion. At first I thought I had pulled a muscle and eased up on my workouts. But the stiffness got worse and so did the pain. I could no longer sleep on my left side or bare weight on it. I just came across your exercises and I'm hopeful it will help out.
I'm all in favor of physical therapy. I had a bad back and went from crawling to playing tennis in 2 weeks. BUT when I had frozen shoulder, every kind of therapy hurt like hell: every hot pack, every cold pack, every movement including the ones described here hurt like hell. Was never so close to suicide in my life. What worked was an injection. It was like a miracle; within 2 minutes, 90% of the pain was gone. After that, therapy still set me back every single time I went in. Finally stopped going. Got gradually better. Took 3 years. Listen to your body.
Thanks guys this has helped me a lot it's been two months of my surgery was doing good until this last month I can't stretch good it hurts so bad mobility is awful I'm worst now than before surgery, god bless you guys
I've been a C5/6 quad for almost 13 years. I am paralyzed from my chest, down. I am involved in adaptive sports. I'm going to buy one of these pulley systems to improve my range of motion.
Since I sleep on a floating ( holiday) matrass and walked a lot ( the arm swings) it seems my shoulder gets loads better. Pain free waking up.. amazing. ( And I feel on a holiday in my own house since the shoulder at night goes into the not too hard floated mattrass.
Don't forget to flex your biceps and gently do weightless curls with the biceps flexed for 15 reps. Then rest for 5 minutes and repeat. This Will ease the pain A LOT!
I had a frozen shoulder about 2 yrs ago and needed physical therapy for it. I still have flare ups from time to time so I might have to go back. Mine was really bad, the supraspinatus muscle, I couldn't even lift my arm up all the way or bend it behind me. They had me using the stretch bands, door pulley thing, and trying to use a wooden stick behind my back just to stretch out my arm farther.
I love you guys but I have learnt that any attempt to exercise when I’m in first and second phase results in setbacks and an increase in pain for a day or two . A lot of my friends in my support group have had the same experience. Also, here is no way my arm would even go behind my back while freezing or frozen. I really look forward to doing these exercises when pain has gone though and I’m up to the thawing phase 👍🏼
These videos are so good. I belive I have frozen shoulder, for various reasons found out via your videos.Pain is severe, cant do external or internal. It just came on suddenly. Have an appointment with a GP later today, and take it from there. In the meantime I am doing soever light exercises, applying heat etc. I also have a shoulder brace which I used for the first time for a few houts yesterday. seems to help significantly. Getting any sleep is not good, I literally cant put my arm across my body to rest it on a pillow
You guys are full of excellent information, I’m not out of the woods yet, so to speak of, and I was getting discouraged until I watch this video. They’ve talked to me about capsular release, but I need to ask them if that could build scare tissue later on in life, I have that external indicator you mentioned after my capsular reconstruction surgery eight months ago.
Very Helpful Guys 👍🏼 love the way you showed varied techniques with different equipment that’s awesome! I’m definitely starting these right away. ~Tyvm…Great Video!
Dear Bob and Brad, the two most famous physical therapists on the internet (in your [and mine] opinion of course) :-) You guys are great and your videos have helped me with various aches and pains in the past. Not sure if you read/reply to comments but thought I would try! On Monday I was finally (after 2.5 years of deteriorating symptoms) diagnosed with a frozen shoulder and subacromial bursitis. I am in the UK and the NHS only just decided to run an ultrasound and hence made the diagnosis, prior I just had to live with it! I now have to have two different injections for the SAB and FS. So, I looked for a video from you. For me, it is a bit too painful to do most of these stretches right now but I shall try. However, what I really wondered was whether you had any advice for the incredibly painful spasms I get in my biceps muscle/top of arm when I move it? The 'advanced practitioner' I saw on Monday did not really have an advice on this and did not even comment on it really, I got the impression he had not heard of spasms in the biceps but of course I could be wrong. I find that apart from the complete lack of range of movement in my shoulder, this spasming is the pits! Cheers and keep up the great videos! A xx
Thanks for your great simple explanations & easy to understand excerises required. Just wondering if it's possible to just slow down a little the example of the examples of motions please. Thank Guys.
I have stage 3 Parkinson's disease , roughly 8 months ago, my left shoulder started to become somewhat stiff. Three months ago my neurologist diagnosed me with adhesive capsulitis. I've been doing the exercise that she recommended, but thus far no improvement. Last week I awoke with my right shoulder showing the early signs I noticed before in my left shoulder. So I've started the exercises, and it seems to be working. I wish I had known about these exercises a lot earlier.
Thank you! I have been struggling just getting my arm on the desk to write…with a little bit of pulley action, I feel so much better already! Will do these exercises daily! (I started sxs in July. Sudden big decrease in movement in mid-November. It is now January.)
Praying this helps me but this is easier then the cross stretch I can't physically stretch my bad arm across my good arm. I tried and omg pain. This is easier then what my Dr suggested and seems to already be helping some. Thank you.
People with thyroid issues and diabetes are more prone to frozen shoulder. I dislocated my shoulder and ended up tearing my rotator cuff. A couple of months later frozen shoulder set in and I was in excruciating pain for months. The pain was insideous. The pain made me sweat profusely and at times I thought i was going to pass out. A year later I'm still dealing with frozen shoulder, but the pain has greatly reduced and I still can't move my arm in certain movements. It sucks...
Bob .... Brad ..... Thanks for the post! .... Good necessary advice! Healing .... from an injury! .... These exercises work! ..... Keep at them .... over a long .... while.
Outstanding video. Having been through all this - twice so both shoulders a decade apart - I'd just add 1) for the behind the back exercise, do it in the shower with a soapy back. Tie a washcloth or scarf or similar to the wrist and use the good arm to pull the hand up. Hold up for 10 seconds, release, repeat 10 times. Do 3 times a day. Also 2) Do exercises lying on your back so gravity will help move the arm further (you mention). Then to move further, use a cane or broom handle to push the arm further up to, but not into, the pain. When near the full range but hitting a wall, put a 2 or 3 lb hand weight in the hand.
The exercises seem very useful, things are explained well and the video is pleasant to watch. The camaraderie between the presenters and the personal touches like little variations which might help: nice. I shall try the moves. Thanks and good wishes.
😂🤣😂 I'm infinitely grateful for this channel and this video - to find out why I'm laughing though, watch it with English closed caption/ subtitles. I don't think it will win them many hearing impaired clients.
Thanks so much for this! I suffered from frozen shoulder for 1 year, got past it and now it’s back! Oi! I’ll be doing these every day. Hopefully I can reverse it.
I'm currently going through physical therapy for a frozen shoulder - have been doing a few of these. I was given a pulley system for use at home. I didn't think about the internal rotation exercise...I will have to try that.
Thank u so much! I had no clue about my back (shoulder blades) that you mentioned. Now I have a lot of info on how to gain strength and how to heal up. Nice to hear it's bad to just let the shoulder sit.
Unfortunately I 'self diagnosed' shoulder impingement and tried to fix myself. Problem became much worse. Today full assessment with physiotherapist (UK,) diagnosis - frozen shoulder - very painful. My point - see a professional - I put it off because of pandemic - didn't want to bother NHS and now I am paying twice - pain and fees for private treatment - wonderful professional btw.
