I’ve postponed my shoulder operation indefinitely. I would have had to wear some sort of cast for a month after wards, then do almost nothing with that arm for the second month, then do light physical therapy during the third month, then move on to full physical therapy during the fourth month. Being so out of commission for the better part of four months is a bit much just now. The fact is, the SLAP tear is not really bothering me all that much; there’s really only one movement I (rarely) make that causes me pain, and that pain is minor. So I think I’m going to try a regimen of exercise, acupuncture, and massage to see if I can get some improvement without surgery. In the worst case, I’ll do the surgery at some point in the future when either (1) the shoulder is bothering me to the point of having an adverse impact on my daily life, or (2) I have the time to sit back for four months of recovery.
Tags: "government health care", "navy medicine", military medicine, Naval Medical Center San Diego, tricare, triwest
