Shoulder Pain

I was banded on May 4,2007 and have had horrible horrible left shoulder pain. When will this go away? And what can I do to help it?

Thought this link might help you out a bit:

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f84/shoulder-pain-31953/

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I'm Pregnant! Due 10/21/09

I had my surgery on 4.25.07 and also experienced the shoulder pain. Often it is paired with back discomfort on my left side. For myself, I find that it is usually associated with eating or drinking too much, too fast. I'm pretty sure it's gas pain. The first 2+ weeks, it was pretty severe.

I find that when I start to get it, if I stop eating and drinking immediately and start moving around (stand up and walk around), then it usually doesn't get so severe. It's been over a month since my surgery and I still get it sometimes, but not nearly as often.

Best of luck. If the discomfort continues, make sure you discuss it with your dr.

peppermint tea is good & massaging the ribs. My nurse told me its wind & the tea has done it for me. I was banded 26th may & so far so good xx

I know this sounds crazy but it mostly works.

Get on hands and knees - butt high in the air, chin on the ground. I go so far as to kneel on an ottoman and put my forehead on the ground below. The pain normally goes away in less than a minute or two. Supposedly get the bubbles away from the painful spot inside.

My thanks to Deanna for posting this before - it has been a huge help for me.

Try a heating pad. Put the heat on your shoulder.....I had bad pain in my left shoulder from gas. I could not get rid of it until I put some heat on it and it worked like a charm!!

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Surgery Date 5/11/07
Dr. Richard Benavides
Surgery Center of Richardson
Richardson, Texas
Self Pay $15,000

I think it's amazing that so many people suffer from this, but the doctor's don't mention it! I found walking and gas-x helps.

for me the only thing that works is lying flat on my back. At the first sign of it, I lie down and within 30 minutes it goes away. During my lunch break today at work, I was on the floor in my office for 30 minutes trying to head off a bad attack.

I think the shoulder pain has been the worst part for me- it can last several weeks according to my doctor's handout. hang in there!

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Thanks for the suggestions. It has been SIX weeks for me, and I am STILL having trouble with it. Not nearly as often, but still, every day or so an episode.

I am soooooo glad it helped you woodguy...it was a tremendous help for my upper body pain as well!!! Deanna

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Hello all,

I suffered with shoulder pain for the first 3 weeks after banding. It went away finally and I thought that would be the last of it. Now I've found that when I get a fill, back it comes for a few days. I've had 2 fills now and both times had this again. Anyone else find the same thing? Heat bags are a gift from god!!!
Cheers,

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Banded 21 March 2007/136.2kg
Fills-26/04/07 2mls;29/05/07 .5mls;26/07/07 1ml

That is interesting Lisa. It seemed like the pain was finally going away after 4 weeks, but then I got my first fill, and I think it did get worse again. hmmmm.

Shoulder pain WILL go away... I had it really bad, too, but it DID go away... Will still flare up a bit if I try to eat too much!!! It is VERY normal post-op

I was banded on May 23rd, and am still having the excrutiating pain in my left shoulder and neck. I saw my surgeon today for my post-op, and he explained that 1 in 20 patients experience this type of pain. Although most people associate the pain with the gases from the surgery, the surgeon said its actually caused by the diaphram muscles becoming "irritated" during the surgery. Has anyone else ever heard of this explanation? Not only did my surgeon tell me this today, but I had someone else tell me the same thing a few days ago.

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~Mary

that is very true- the diaphragm's nerves send referral pain to your shoulder so whatever irritates the diaphragm can cause your shoulder to ache. Gas can do it if it puts pressure, the surgery itself can cause irritation to it and that's part of why its so hard to treat. Nerve pain doesn't go away easily with pain meds so I don't even try those any more

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