Shoulder problems continue

[elizilla]

I've been to the chiro once or twice a week for the last month. My shoulders continue to kill me, worse all the time. Maybe I'm doing the wrong thing with this chiro stuff. Last night some of my friends were telling me that I shouldn't let the chiro do so many adjustments so close together, that I need to take more time to recover in between.

I got through American Supercamp just fine, weekend before last, with shoulder problems no worse than what I always have lately. I took a bunch of ibuprofen and it helped. But I hate to just take ibuprofen all the time, because I figure that these aches and pains mean something and I don't want to not be aware of them. But several friends are telling me to take it all the time because it will reduce swelling.

I wonder if my bed is doing bad things to me? I have definitely noticed there is a depression in the place where my shoulders always end up. I always wake up in this hole. It's not the kind of mattress you flip - it's a pillow top mattress and it's only got the pillow thing on one side. I went to the furniture store (Art Van) on Monday night to try some other mattresses, and found out that the one I have is still under a guarantee. They had me in their computer from when I bought it in 2005. They gave me the info to call it in, and I did so. Now they're claiming the guarantee doesn't apply because I bought a floor sample. I am absolutely 100% certain I did not buy a floor sample - I am horrified at the very thought. I would buy a floor sample bed frame in a hearbeat, but a mattress that a thousand strangers have laid on, with their shoes on? Yuck! If they sold me a floor sample without telling me, or if this is their method of dodging warranty claims, either is highly unethical and I won't be doing business with them again. I wasn't going to try to make an issue of it, I was just going to buy another mattress. But this, this is war. I'm now waiting for a call back as I work my way up the food chain.

Really, I suspect that what's killing me is the time spent at the computer. Need to do less of it, so I don't keep turning into my grandparents, sitting around all day talking about ailments. Yuck.

Comments

[endico.livejournal.com]

Can you flip the mattress end to end so your head goes where the feet used to be?

Have you ever tried a memory foam mattress? I saw some Tempurpedic mattresses on display at Costco the other day and they looked interesting. Very squishy. I love my memory foam pillow but I'm not sure how much I'd like it for the whole mattress. Maybe you could try one out at a hotel first.

Oh look, Tempurpedic has a list of hotels with their mattresses.
http://www.tempurpedic.com/about/partnerships/hotels/

Good luck with the shoulder and with furniture shopping.

[(Anonymous)]

Can you flip the mattress end to end so your head goes where the feet used to be?

Even rolling it over every six months or so helps, even if you don't flip it.

-R

[c-maxx.livejournal.com]

I also only sleep on my shoulders, can't breathe on my back, and I find using two pillows, one a thick feather pillow [army surp from Actiongeardotcom- did have to air them out a while- mothballs- before I could use them], support my head better and take some of the pressure off my shoulder.

Also find since i've been eating gelatin for some years for my bicycle knees (cartilege grows very slowly), my left shoulder stands sleeping pressure much more successfully (better than in my 30's and am nearly 60 now!).

[mbumby.livejournal.com]

When I started seeing my chiro I went 3 times a week for a few weeks, then down to twice... Now I go once a month. If it is helping temporarily, but not "sticking" then maybe you need a different answer.

G'luck w/ AV.

Ibu? Well, reducing swelling is good, but I learned at one point that if you always have some in your system, you body will (hopefully temporarily!) require some, so a headache (my problem then) will appear if I don't have enough... So I weaned myself!

My chiro at least used to do either heat or cold treatments -- does yours do that? Might that help?

[elizilla]

I have been tracking it and I feel WORSE after seeing the chiro. At least, my right shoulder does, and that was the good one. The left shoulder, I think is feeling better, and has maybe even gained back some range of motion. I decided to give it a couple weeks between visits and see what happens.

I am also going to go see my regular doctor to talk about it again. Or maybe hunt up an osteopathic doctor.