Shoulder Pain Relief: Treatment & Home Remedies

Having endured persistent shoulder pain and discomfort, you're undoubtedly familiar with the significant impact it can impose on your daily life. This enduring ache can disrupt your sleep and cast a shadow over your overall well-being. For those who lead an active lifestyle, it possesses the potential to hinder their engagement in beloved activities, whether it involves hitting the gym, exercising with other people, or practising any other physical activities.  

To return to your daily activities following an injured shoulder, you need to start taking measures to heal it. Fortunately, most minor shoulder injuries can be handled with home remedies. However, in some cases they may require more extensive medical treatment.  In this article, we'll explore all aspects of shoulder pain, from its usual causes to the different kinds of treatment available.

You can read through for an overview of shoulder pain or navigate to a specific topic by clicking on it:

• Shoulder Pain Causes and Frequent Injuries 
• Home Remedies
• Medical Treatments for Shoulder Pain
• Exercising and Stretching the Shoulder
• Preventing Shoulder Pain
• Wrapping Up

Shoulder Pain Causes and Frequent Injuries 

Injury can trigger abrupt shoulder pain, but pain also develops progressively over time as a result of constant or excessive use. Sometimes, shoulder pain is caused by a medical condition such as arthritis, or by an injury occurring in other areas of the body (called "referred pain").

To understand how shoulder pain can be alleviated, it would be useful to find out clearly why you are experiencing shoulder pain. Anatomically, shoulders are joints composed of a series of bones, muscles and tendons allowing you to lift, move and rotate your arms smoothly. There are three main bones in the shoulder joint: the humerus (upper arm bones), the scapula (shoulder blades) and the clavicle (collarbone).

Certain types of shoulder pain are related to damage to one or several of these bones, for example :

• Fracture: a fracture happens when the clavicle or the scapula undergoes a traumatic shock and the bone breaks or fissures. This injury usually manifests itself as intense pain, bruising and potential swelling.
• Dislocation: a dislocation takes place when the upper part of the arm comes out of the socket, generally resulting in severe pain and weakening of the shoulder.

However, a bone injury is not the only cause for painful shoulders. Injury to the cartilage, muscles or other soft tissues can also cause pain. One of the following conditions could have contributed to pain without a broken or dislocated shoulder:

• Separation: the joint between the clavicle and the scapula is named the acromioclavicular joint. A significant degree of force may alter the ligaments that support this joint and cause the clavicle to slip out of its place. The result is usually a bump on the upper area of the shoulder.
• Impingement: shoulder impingement occurs when the rotator cuff tendons are pinched by the shoulder bones, causing pain and possibly swelling. One of the main risk factors is repeatedly raising the arms above the head.
• Adhesive capsulitis: Adhesive capsulitis, also called "frozen shoulder", occurs when adhesions, or unusual scar tissue bands, are formed around the joint and restrict or completely obstruct the mobility of the shoulder.
• Cartilage tear: cartilage consists of connecting tissue at the ends of joints. Its functions include cushioning the bones so that they do not knock against each other. Many cartilage tears can occur as a result of overuse and repetitive movements over time. Symptoms include persistent pain, shoulder weakness and a sensation of painful locking.
• Rotator cuff tear: the muscles and tendons that support the shoulders, the rotator cuff, can get damaged as a result of an acute injury or excessive use. Persistent pain and a cracking sound when moving the arm are symptoms associated with this condition.
• Bursitis: this is swelling and irritation of the bursae, which are fluid-filled sacs that protect and cushion the joints, caused by repeated movements over time.

Home Remedies 

Treating shoulder pain varies according to the condition of the injury and its seriousness. However, in numerous instances, shoulder pain does not necessitate intensive medical treatment. Home remedies such as the application of ice and good rest, are frequently effective to relief moderate shoulder pain. Just try to restrict the use of the shoulder as much as possible, and avoid lifting the arms above your head or exerting yourself in any way.

As well as rest and ice, home treatments are available. Here are a few simple and successful home remedies for shoulder pain:

Anti-inflammatory medications

In order to relieve shoulder pain and reduce inflammation, over-the-counter anti-inflammatories such as aspirin and ibuprofen can be used. Consulting a doctor, who will be able to advise you, is recommended if not certain about the type of anti-inflammatory to use for your injury.

Muscle relaxants 

If anti-inflammatory medications aren’t doing the trick — or if you feel like you need to supplement them with something — then talk to your doctor about muscle relaxants. They can help to treat pain by reducing soreness and stiffness in the affected area. If your shoulder injury is making it hard to sleep, then taking muscle relaxants at night and sleeping with MedCline’s Shoulder Relief System may make it easier to get the rest you need. 

Pain medications 

Over-the-counter pain medications like aspirin can help in providing some relief from your shoulder pain. Talk with a doctor to see which pain medication is right for you, as well as discuss the potential side effects. 

Heat therapy 

If the source of your shoulder pain is an injury to the muscles, then heat therapy may be able to help. Things like heated compresses and hot water bottles can reduce stiffness and get your muscles to relax. You might also try topical heat creams and ointments, which in some cases can provide relief for small aches and pains. 

Medical Shoulder Pain Treatments 

If at-home treatments don’t prove to be an effective solution to your shoulder pain, then it may be time to consider getting medical treatment. To decide on the medical treatment plan that’s best for you, you’ll first have to consider your own condition and consult with a doctor who can advise you on the best course of treatment. 

When you go to see a doctor for shoulder pain, they’ll look over your medical records and ask you a series of questions. They’ll inquire about the intensity of the pain, how often it occurs, the first time you noticed it, and so on. The next step will be to conduct a physical exam to check for structural problems and common injuries. The doctor will likely try to test your range of motion by applying pressure to your shoulders or having you rotate them. 

After an initial physical exam, your doctor may order additional testing in order to arrive at a conclusive diagnosis. These tests may include: 

• X-rays 
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan 
• Ultrasound

Shoulder Exercises and Stretches 

According to Harvard Medical School, performing shoulder exercises and stretches two to three days per week can help reduce pain by keeping your muscles strong and flexible. If you’ve already suffered a shoulder injury, then consistently exercising and stretching the muscles in your shoulder can accelerate recovery and lower the chances of reinjury. Just remember to always ease your way into exercise by warming up and stop if you start to experience any pain — after all, you don’t want to end up reinjuring your shoulder through exercise. 

Once you’ve been stretching for a while and you begin to feel some progress being made towards recovery, you might start doing basic shoulder exercises to build up muscle. Here are two easy exercises that may help if you’re suffering from frozen shoulder or a similar condition:

• Outward rotations: Take a rubber exercise band and hold it between your hands. Keep your elbows at your sides and at a 90 degree angle. Keeping your elbows close to your body, slowly shift the lower part of the affected arm two to three inches outward and hold for five seconds. Do this 10 to 15 times, and keep at it on a daily basis. 
• Inward rotations: Hook one end of a rubber exercise band around the knob of a closed door. Hold the other end of the exercise band with the hand of your affected arm. While keeping your elbow close to your body and at a 90 degree angle, slowly pull the band two to three inches towards your body and hold for five seconds. Do this 10 to 15 times, and keep at it on a daily basis.  

Shoulder Pain Prevention 

Have you ever heard the phrase, “Prevention is the best medicine”? Taking preventative steps to minimize your risk of a shoulder injury is usually easier than having to treat an injury after the fact. Here are a few things that you can do to potentially lower your risk of experiencing a shoulder injury:

Stay active 

Leading an active lifestyle can help reduce the risk of a shoulder injury. That’s because when you regularly exercise, go to the gym, play sports, or do whatever you need to do to stay fit, you keep your body limber and strengthen your muscles. If you’re particularly concerned about a shoulder injury, then it may be a good idea to build up your shoulder strength, which can help stabilize the joint. However, it’s important that you don’t overtrain your shoulder and that you give it plenty of time to rest after each workout. 

Always warm up 

It can be dangerous to jump straight into rigorous exercise without properly warming up. Before doing any serious exercise, it’s important to stretch out, get your blood pumping, and increase your heart rate. So make sure to always thoroughly stretch and complete some mild exercise — like a light jog, for instance — before starting any intense workout. 

Adjust your sleeping position 

Did you know that sleeping on your side every night can contribute to shoulder pain? Over time, it can irritate your rotator cuff and result in lingering pain or soreness. To prevent shoulder pain from side-sleeping, try switching up your sleeping position. Sleeping on your back instead of your side can help take some stress off of your shoulder and ensure that your weight is more evenly distributed. 

Alternatively, if you feel most comfortable while side-sleeping, you should check out our shoulder relief pillow, which supports your entire body, takes pressure off your shoulder, and allows you to sleep comfortably throughout the night. 

Summary

Shoulder pain can be an issue that impacts your day-to-day life and stops you from doing the things you love. But once you diagnose your shoulder injury, you can begin to treat it. You’ll often be able to address the pain through simple home remedies, but if the injury is more severe it may require medical treatment. So, if you’ve been experiencing shoulder pain, visit a doctor sooner rather than later. They can help you identify the root of the pain and come up with the best course of treatment. 

References:

1. “Diagnosing Shoulder Sprains, Strains & Tears.” Patient Care at NYU Langone Health, NYU Langone Health, nyulangone.org/conditions/shoulder-sprains-strains-tears/diagnosis. 
2. Iftikhar, Noreen. “Treating and Managing Shoulder Pain .” Edited by Gregory Minnis, Healthline, Healthline Media, 4 Sept. 2018, www.healthline.com/health/shoulder-pain-remedies. 
3. “Ouch! Shoulder Pain and How to Treat It.” Harvard Medical School, Harvard Health Publishing, 13 Apr. 2020, www.health.harvard.edu/pain/ouch-shoulder-pain-and-how-to-treat-it. 
4. “7 Stretching & Strengthening Exercises for a Frozen Shoulder.” Harvard Medical School, Harvard Health Publishing , 30 Aug. 2020, www.health.harvard.edu/shoulders/stretching-exercises-frozen-shoulder. 
5. “Shoulder Injuries and Disorders.” MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine, 9 June 2020, medlineplus.gov/shoulderinjuriesanddisorders.html. 
6. “Shoulder Pain.” Versus Arthritis, Versus Arthritis, www.versusarthritis.org/about-arthritis/conditions/shoulder-pain/.