In Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM), the frozen shoulder is called as the “50 year old shoulder”, an inexplicable pain that grows in the shoulder, making it harder and harder to move. Frozen shoulder often occurs with no associated injury or discernible cause. It usually affects patients between the ages of 40 to 60 years old and it is twice as common in women than in men.
How to self-diagnose frozen shoulder
The upper arm (upper part of the arm) is pressed against the rib cage, and the hand and forearm (lower part of the arm) are extended outwards. If this movement is particularly painful, the abduction may even be limited. It means that the patient is likely to suffer from frozen shoulder. If there is no pain, it may not be frozen shoulder.
Frozen shoulder exercises
There are four excercises for frozen shoulder that can release a frozen shoulder quickly, which you can practise at home.
Note: Do the exercises at your own comfort level. Gently and slowly increase the range of motion as much as possible, on a daily basis.
Climb the wall (Finger Walk)
- Facing a wall, reach out and touch the wall with your fingertips starting at the waist level and slowly walk your fingers up the wall, until you have raised your arm as far as you comfortably can.
- Lower your arm slowly.
- Repeat this exercise 30times a day.
Note: Your fingers, not your shoulder muscles should be doing the exercise.
Straighten the arm
- Face the wall uprightwith the arms hanging down.
- The straight arms abducted to the sides, and the maximum angle of daily elevation is recorded.
- Repeat this exercise once each day and exercise more than 30 times each time.
Slap on the back
- Swing the arms back and forth in turn.
- Move the left arm forward to the right, slap the right shoulder.
- Move the right arm to the left rear, slap the left back, alternate left and right.
- Repeat this exercise twice a day and exercise more than 30 times each time.
Touch the back
- Extend both arms back, with the wrist of the unaffected side.
- The fingers of the affected armtouch the back as far as possible.
- Repeat this exercise twice a day and exercise more than 30 times each time.
