Having a frozen shoulder is the worst thing that one might endure. This is not the kind of pain that one could get from an insect bite or a wound but this is a gradual pain that a person experiences that hampers his daily activities such as writing, doing household chores, and even simply mobilizing himself.
At times, when someone is having a frozen shoulder, the affected area looks like the ligament and bones are dislocated. The gradual pain has different stages that need to be treated by either exercises, medication, or surgery. In this article today, we will discuss how a patient with frozen shoulders be aided by an ergonomic chair especially if he's working at the computer and spends most of his time typing, one of the activities that strain his shoulder capsule.
To begin, we will know first the meaning and symptoms of frozen shoulders. We will know the prevalence of people who suffer from frozen shoulders:
I.Parts of the Shoulder:
Before we discuss what a frozen shoulder is, we'll identify first the three parts of the shoulder. These parts form a ball-and-socket joint. The three parts are:
● humerus (upper arm)
● scapula (shoulder blades)
● clavicle (collarbone)
There's a tissue that surrounds and holds the joint together. This is the shoulder capsule. When a person has a frozen shoulder, this (frozen shoulder) is greatly affected.
II. What is a Frozen Shoulder:
A frozen shoulder is a condition that affects your shoulder joints or shoulder capsule. The pain that this causes is not sudden or sharp. It usually is characterized by a heavy, dull, or achy pain.
When one has a frozen shoulder, it might start with numbness that hampers the mobility of the arm. Then, it would run to the shoulder where the shoulder capsule is located. When this condition attacks, the person might feel heavy pain on the shoulder area because the accumulation of bands of scar tissue takes place around that area and the synovial fluid which lubricates the shoulder capsule becomes less.
III.How does a Frozen Shoulder Look Like:
In some cases, a person who suffers from a frozen shoulder suffers from numbness in the shoulders but the pain takes place in different stages. Imagine a woman who is brushing her hair then the gradual pain on the shoulder takes place. You might see her with a raised shoulder that would make her look like she put an extra shoulder pad but on one shoulder only. This also gives discomfort to her neck and makes the facial muscles look more stretched. That's how a person with a frozen shoulder looks like.
Aside from the looks of a person with a frozen shoulder, we must also know the stages of this condition. How it starts and how long does one stage last:
IV.The Stages of a Frozen Shoulder:
The stages of this condition have three unique characteristics. Each stage lasts for a particular duration of time and the range of motion becomes limited in certain activities. Hence, here are the following stages:
● Freezing Stage:
❖ The pain in the shoulder builds up as you try moving it. It is accompanied by difficulty in motion especially when lifting or raising your shoulder.
❖ This pain gets worse and it gets more painful at night. The kind of pain that throbs then becomes dull and heavy.
❖ This lasts for about 6-9 months.
● Frozen Stage:
❖ The shoulder condition gets better but the stiffness gets worse.
❖ The moving of your shoulder gets more difficult and doing some chores becomes more challenging.
❖ This happens for about 4-12 months.
● Thawing Stage:
❖ Your range of motion goes back to normal
❖ However, it does not ensure that the shoulder capsule is already healed.
❖ This might last from 6 months to two years.
Should one choose an immediate relief of the frozen shoulder, there are over-the-counter prescriptions that doctors give to the patients such as Ibuprofen and Aspirin. However, in some cases, the doctors give their patients strong anti-inflammatory drugs.
V.Who are at High Risk of this Condition:
Most women are more prone to this condition compared to men. Most women aged 40 to 60 are the ones who develop this condition. It becomes riskier when a female individual is recovering from conditions like stroke or surgery like a mastectomy that keeps you from moving your arms.
It is also notable that people who suffer from diabetes are more likely to develop this condition as well as those people who suffer from thyroid problems, heart disease, and Parkinson's disease.
In this case, there are treatments both invasive and non-invasive that are done to strengthen and improve your motions. This will be the next part of our discussion:
VI.Treatments for Frozen Shoulders:
The following treatments are both invasive and non-invasive. These are applied to the patient should his or her condition would not improve or the pain he or she endures worsens. The following are:
● Corticosteroid Injection: A jab applied on the affected shoulder. This improves the range of your motion.
● Joint Distention: The injection of sterile water to the shoulder capsule so it could be stretched.
● Physical Therapy: Sessions with a Chiropractic therapist are done as well as the other physical therapy sessions.
● Surgery: Through an Arthroscopic procedure, the frozen shoulder would be treated.
● Shoulder Manipulation: This one is seldom done because there is already an Arthroscopic procedure. In this method though, surgeons would forcefully move your shoulders under general anesthesia.
The following treatments may be risky for some people whose pain tolerance is low. In some cases, this may lead to some fractures. So, what if that person who undergoes the frozen shoulder treatment is a working individual or a housemaker who needs to do a lot of household chores. The use of a reliable product that is built using the ergonomic system is recommendable. This product is from Flexispot.
VII.Flexispot's Ergonomic Chairs:
Flexispot offers a wide array of Ergonomic office chairs that have the lumbar support system. It has been engineered with sophistication and functionality to ensure the safety of the person who's going to use the product. With specs that could carry a weight capacity of up to 200lbs, even the ones with a frozen shoulder would be safe to use the product plus Flexispot's ergo chairs are the best standing desk mates because they can complement your needs in converting a sedentary lifestyle into an active one.
