It’s a blissful, cloudless morning in Sydney Australia where the sun is beaming and the birds are chanting.
I’m sitting on my porch sipping my first morning brew of Grey Earl tea, and I abruptly turn my head to avoid a bumblebee.
Ouch.
An aching nerve begins to pulsate from my neck to my shoulder and I scold myself for forgetting what whiplash feels like.
I shake it off, and assume that gardening will stretch and get my mind off of the pain.
As I spend my day in the garden, I forget all about my shoulder pain and focus on pruning my overgrown perennials.
At that point, I wished that I had maintained them a little better and prevented them from growing as much but then again, there’s nothing better to do in the midst of the pandemic anyways.
The next morning, I wake up and feel a discomfort that I haven’t really felt before.
I can’t exactly pinpoint where the pain is coming from, but all I know is that I could barely brush and pull my hair up out of my face.
“Maybe it’s from sleeping? Maybe it’s from working out?” I laugh, knowing that I haven’t seen the inside of a gym in months.
"My peaceful morning routine might relax me enough to overcome the pain," I thought.
That first sip of tea in the morning always hits a little different, although it would be a lot more enjoyable without this aching shoulder.
There was a small chance of gardening today, which only made me think of how yesterday's gardening would go to waste if I continued to neglect my plants...
The days go on and my pain persists so finally, I give in and visit a specialist for my muscle and joint pain.
Toby Hudson at the Sydney Muscle and Joint Clinic helped me understand why I was experiencing this type of discomfort, and how I could relieve the pain with specific exercises.
By educating me on common upper limb injuries, we were able to diagnose my shoulder pain as ‘The painful and weak shoulder’.
Dr. Hudson explained how shoulder pain and weakness is caused by an irritated tendon in the rotator cuff and bicep muscles.
Pain, weakness, and aggravation during daily activities, are side effects of this injury, all which I was experiencing for the past week.
I told Dr. Hudson about the whiplash incident, and we assumed that is where the pain began before it escalated down to my shoulder.
Gardening definitely wasn't helping my shoulder recover and thankfully, I knew when to stop.
I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to do the things that I love for weeks to come, but Dr. Hudson instantly relieved me of my shoulder pain.
His treatments concentrated on building and increasing my shoulder strength through isometric and heavy, slow resistance exercises. Dr. Hudson mentioned that massage and direct pressure can also help with recovery, but his resistance exercises already had my shoulder back to new in no time.
My overall experience with Toby Hudson at the Sydney Muscle and Joint Clinic in Penrith was outstanding and I’d recommend it to anyone struggling with any joint or muscle pain.
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